Pakistan's Energy Crunch Hits Harder: ECONOMISTAN Economic Analysis Think Tank

"China’s biggest dam, the “Three Gorges Dam”, produce an equivalent of 22,500 MW of energy which is more than the need of the entire country of Pakistan..."

In my last article concerning the “Energy Crunch” that Pakistan is facing, I emphasized the importance of alternative sources of energy and the part they can play in propelling Pakistan’s economy into the future. This article further elaborates on the previous article while touching on the topics of discussion concerning energy and the power crises in the current scenario.

Pakistan is facing an acute energy shortage mainly caused by lack of proper planning and vision for the future. Pakistan can become a strong and vibrant economy only if we have a vision for Pakistan as a “fossil fuel-less” country. If we just ponder for a second on the nature of the universe we are part of, we will be amazed by its enormity. However, we will be even more shocked when we think about the omnipresence of “energy” in the universe. God has endowed our universe with an unfathomable amount of energy. The fusion reactions taking place in the sun produce enormous amount of energy in a matter of billionths of a second. The sun produces enough energy to sustain the entire solar system what to talk of our planet earth. It is up to mankind to take advantage of the energy the sun produces through the use of solar energy. There are also endeavors to replicate the fusion reaction taking place in the sun on earth by scientists in the US in a controlled environment that would produce more energy than is required to initiate the reaction. It is reported that one such fusion plant could create enough energy to sustain the energy needs for the entire US for a good period of time. Till the time we have such technology, alternative sources of energy are our best recourse.

Pakistan has a huge potential to exploit the vast land of Balochistan, which gets one of the highest amount of sunlight in a particular year in the entire world. Wind energy is sustainable in the coastal areas of Pakistan along with Swat in the north amongst other areas. Wind turbines for homes are also available that can produce energy where sustained speed is even lower. A cheaper alternative to solar cells is under development in the US called “Tubular Energy” which is used to capture the sunlight and costs less to maintain than the solar cells.

Hydroelectric power generated from water is one of the best recourse for a country like Pakistan. Nature has endowed Pakistan with one of the highest terrain on earth to take advantage of the potential energy and converting it into useful power by construction of hydropower dams. China’s biggest dam, the “Three Gorges Dam”, produce an equivalent of 22,500 MW of energy which is more than the need of the entire country of Pakistan.

Pakistan is currently facing a power shortage that is caused not only by poor vision and planning but also factors of moral depravity amongst the ruling elite. Pakistan has enough power plants to produce energy for the entire country. The capacity more or less is there, with the IPPs and the so called “rental power” stations. But, the exorbitant amount of fuel costs that go with it to light up the entire country is non-sustainable. Fossil fuels are therefore an energy resource of the dark ages and we have to come out of it. Coupled with the issue of circular debt, the power crises takes a more serious turn when we imagine how our industry is suffering day in and day out because of the lack of power. Millions of jobs are lost in the process putting an even more drain on the country’s prosperity. It has been reported that many textile units in Pakistan are relocating to Bangladesh to take advantage of the cheap electricity and access to international markets. It has also been reported that the IPPs in Bangladesh cost less per unit than Pakistan.

A more immediate solution to the power crises for our industry is to create power plants by a consortium of companies themselves. We should take the shining example of Sialkot airport in this regard which was developed by the private enterprise in Pakistan in the triangle area of the three industrial cities of Sialkot, Gujrat and Gujranwala. A consortium of industries in a particular industrial area can initiate these power projects themselves and ensure their industries of cheap and reliable power all the year round. It would be even more heartening if such an endeavor utilized the alternative sources of energy. The time is more than ripe for such an endeavor to reap fruition.

Pakistan has a huge amount of coal reserves in the Thar desert area which we can also exploit till the time alternative sources of energy become prevalent in Pakistan. The US is massively utilizing its coal reserves to produce electricity and Pakistan can do the same. Developing Thar’s coal reserves and producing electricity would also result in the uplift of the local Thar economy and part of the benefit should be given to the local towns people in Thar by giving them access to totally free electricity. If Pakistan utilizes its own sources of energy and becomes a net energy exporting nation by minimizing the use of fossil-fuels and maximizing the potential of alternative energy sources, Pakistan can also save a lot of much needed foreign exchange resulting from the repatriation of profits by IPPs and savings resulting from less import of fossil-fuel for energy production.

The future is very bright for Pakistan and energy is no obstacle. It is imperative that Pakistan grab the opportunity through greater transparency, honest intent, good vision and hard work in the right (alternative sources of energy) areas of energy development.