ISLAMABAD, Mar 12 (APP):Ministry for Power Division Omar Ayub Khan Tuesday said that the government was giving top priority to extend energy to each corner of the country for robust economic growth and new renewable energy (RE) policy 2019 would be announced next month.
Speaking at inaugural session of International Conference on Sustainable Energy in Pakistan jointly organized by US-Pakistan Centers for Advanced Studies in Energy, National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST) , University of Engineering and Technology Peshawar and Arizona State University, the minister said open and competitive electricity market was being envisaged first time in the country. He said it would not only offer exponential investment opportunities to entrepreneurs but also open vistas for regional electricity trade.
The Minister said Pakistan energy market size had more than $ 60 billion and generation side alone had $ 40 billion investment opportunities besides in transmission and distribution lines.
He said Saudi Arabia was also investing $ 14 billion in energy sector in next few years.
Now a days, there was tremendous innovation in the energy sector, he said and urged the academia and students to put their mind together in order to enhance per captia energy demand of the people.
He was of the views that still, 25 per cent of the population had no access to the energy.
The Minister said the country’s energy mix consisted 60 per cent thermal, 30 per cent hydel and other resources. Efforts were being made to enhance percentage of RE in the energy mix and its share enhanced to 18,000 MW.
He said high transmission lines of 500 Kv and 220 Kv faced tripping issue due to smog and the ministry was actively working to overpower the tripping.
Earlier, USAID Mission Director Jerry Bison said Pakistan had great potential of RE energy particularly solar and wind. He said USAID would continue to work with Pakistan to cope with growing energy need.
He said US also helped Pakistan in building Mangla and Tarbela dam around 50 years ago.
Vice Chancellor UET Peshawar Dr Iftikhar Hussain in his welcome address said that concerted efforts were need of the hour to tap sustainable energy potential. He said the conference would act as catalyst to achieve desire results.
