Addition of 9,000 Megawatts of Solar Energy to the National Grid

 
 
 
Additional 9000 Megawatts of Solar Energy to the National Grid

For power generation, Pakistan highly depends on the import of fossil fuels, including oil and natural gas. Generating power from nonrenewable resources is quite expensive to fulfil domestic energy needs. According to the SAARC Energy Outlook 2030 Report, Pakistan’s total power generation capacity in 2021 reached 37,261 MW, which was 33,452 in 2019 and 25,178 MW in 2016. Globally, the share of renewable energy resources has been increasing in the energy mix for producing electricity.

Despite such huge renewable potential available, this share is yet negligible in Pakistan due to the use of fossil fuels for electricity generation. In recent years, crucial progress has been achieved in Pakistan, but the country is still unable to meet the energy targets set in the United Nations SDGs for 2030. The energy demand is persistently increasing in Pakistan as the country proceeds to develop its industry, agriculture, real estate, and transportation sector.

Given the importance of renewable resources, the Government of Pakistan and energy planners prioritise domestic energy generation opportunities to achieve affordable and sustainable electricity goals. Recently, the federal and provincial governments have made efforts and announced the establishment of solar grid stations in several urban and rural areas to provide access to electricity. However, with these efforts, the share of renewable energy increased from 0.3% to 5.36% from 2015 to 2021 in the energy mix for power generation (ITA,2022).

To further increase the energy share, the government has ordered the addition of 9,000 megawatts of solar energy to the national grid. The decision has been made due to the current hike in electricity prices following the rise in fuel cost with an initiative to waive all import duties and tax incentives. Furthermore, it will initiate a project of 2,000MW of solar PV generation on 11kv feeders and an additional 1,000MW to solarise public sector buildings. Under this project, the government will provide roof space for solar installation and minimum energy yield will be guaranteed by the vendor.

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IMARAT Institute of Policy Studies

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