ISLAMABAD: Speakers at a seminar underlined the need that national policies should be effective to address climate challenges in Pakistan, especially after devastating floods in Sindh and Balochistan. They suggested that renewable energy be focused for future economic growth.
Speakers were addressing at a Learning and Awareness Session on Pakistan’s Power Sector Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP 2022-2031): Opportunities and Challenges here on Friday. They emphasized that under Paris agreement in which Pakistan committed to reduce fossil fuel energy consumption but has not been implemented in reality.
Ms. Shahida Rehmani MNA addressing the session said Sindh is not only producing power but indigenous gas is also supplied to other provinces. Energy policy is being formulated after careful insights of provinces and other stakeholders. She pledged to forward recommendations of the session to competent authorities of the energy sector in Islamabad.
Zain Mouvli, an independent expert of Alternative Law Collective, a Lahore based firm on renewable energy in his presentation before the participants technically commented that Pakistan’s environmental problems are engulfed with the miseries of the energy sector. Latest data suggests that recent floods in Sindh and Balochistan have some proven scientific roots belonging to the fossil fuels problem.
The Indus Basin has been destroyed heavily in past decades. He further said that Pakistan’s climate change has some tipping points as quoted by IMF monsoon patterns have been changed in the region.
He said that Article 153, 154 mandated CCI as a competent forum for making and regulating policies in relation to electricity, also Indicative generation capacity expansion plan (IGCEP) plan for adding power generation capacity to meet further demand on evidence based least cost and sustainability basis.
NTDC must identify new capacity of power generation but least cost policy has not been analyzed in framing IGCEP21 plan submitted by NTDC therefore rejected by NEPRA. Ironically, Govt has approved IGCEP plan in a hurry after a month to get USD 400 million loan from WB.
Senior economist Prof. Ejaz Qureshi said as far as Sindh is concerned, there’s no need to build any dams on river Indus. According to him, power generation is directly related to GDP, growth and development.
Energy sector has generation capacity but the distribution system is dilapidated. Sindh has produced more power from Thar coal at least 6000 MW from different areas of thar. He suggested that we shouldn’t import coal or oil for power generation but should focus on local resources for that. Pakistan has only one percent share in global climate change but is heavily affected by it, especially Sindh where some districts are still under water, he concluded.
Zulfiqar Halepoto, a civil society activist said it has been proved that some people are still in Pakistan who advocate for justice and rights based activism apart from geographical or ethnic boundaries. It is up to the Sindh government after regime change in Islamabad to advocate further on the rights of Sindh in federal govt.
Dr. Raza HOD of the Economics department at NED University said we are surplus in energy till 2031-32 but still we are facing power outages. We need to engage all stakeholders before framing any energy policy or key energy decisions. Ejaz ul Haque said the energy Subject should be provincial, Sindh is generating more power than it consumes.
Dr. Mehboob Shaikh, President of Sindh Vision, an independent Sindh based think tank commented on the adversaries of Thar district locals due to power sector projects in the area. Their voices are deliberately neglected, we must raise our voices for their rights. Zahid Farooq of Urban Resource Centre (URC) said IGCEP public hearings should also be organized in provincial capitals.
Ms. Sara Zaman, a rights-based expert, said that the impact on women, children and older people are more adverse in the wake of energy crises and climate change in Pakistan. Less than 6% of women are present in overall energy sectors, she informed the forum.
Shahid Azhar, senior technical officer of Energy department of Sindh government and Focal person on IGCEP said Energy sector should also be devolved as per sprit of the constitution. We have established a Sindh transmission dispatch company which is working more efficiently than NTDC. At least energy policy shouldn’t be changed, it needs continuation with changing governments, he concluded.
Saeed Baloch of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) raised some questions he said: did our Parliament ratify the Paris Agreement to generate more coal based energy, how much more fossil fuel based energy are we expecting to operate in future. He further suggested to authorities that transmission lines should be localized and we must focus on wind and solar energy.
Prof Dr. Badar Soomro said Energy process and planning should have a long term agenda and he seconded the proposal of solar energy to reduce power shortages. Ms. Zeenia shaukat in a session organized by The Knowledge Forum on “Pakistan’s Power Sector Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP 2022-31): opportunities and Challenges” in a local hotel today.
Ms. Zeenia, TKF Director elaborated that the national energy plan in 2022 has key significance due to additional hydro-based projects, leading to some serious reservations in Sindh and must be documented in manner to annex comments of civil society and other stakeholders of Sindh as well.