ISLAMABAD, March 20 (Xinhua) -- The Government of Pakistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Tuesday signed a loan agreement worth 260 million U.S. dollars to improve power transmission network in the South Asian country.

According to a statement issued by the ADB, the agreement was signed by ADB Country Director Yang Xiaohong and Pakistani Economic Affairs Division's Secretary Syed Ghazanfar Abbas Jilani in Islamabad. Director General ADB for Central and West Asia Werner Liepach was also present on the occasion.

Liepach said on the occasion that the Bank was committed to working with Pakistan for developing a larger, stronger, smarter, and climate resilient power transmission network.

He stated, "A reliable and strong transmission network is essential to ensure uninterrupted supply of power for the industry and to propel economic growth," he said.

The Pakistan-ADB agreement is part of the Second Power Transmission Enhancement Investment Program aimed to improve coverage, reliability, transparency, and quality of the power transmission service in Pakistan by expanding the 220-kV transmission network in Sindh and Balochistan provinces and upgrading the supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and revenue metering systems (RMS) in the South Asian country.

The up-gradation of the SCADA and RMS across the national grid will enable real time monitoring and control of the grid, prevent losses, reduce power outages, and increase grid stability and capacity.

It will also feed computerized metering data complying with the grid code into the system for settlement of the market operator, the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA), to streamline revenue collection, billing and payment processes, as well as create the foundation for an energy trading platform.

The power transmission network up-gradation will also help in procuring power from new and renewable power plants to the national grid and on the load centers enhancing Pakistan's energy security.