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Overcoming Electricity Crisis in Pakistan: An Overview of the Renewable Energy

Status and Development in Pakistan
Article · December 2017

DOI: 10.5890/JEAM.2017.12.007
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Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management 5(4) (2017) 357-383
Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management

https://lhscientificpublishing.com/Journals/JEAM-Default.aspx
Overcoming Electricity Crisis in Pakistan: An Overview of the Renewable Energy

Status and Development in Pakistan
Syed Aziz Ur Rehman1, Yanpeng Cai1,2,†, Mohammad Nafees3, Gordhan Das Walasai4,6, Nayyar
Hussain Mirjat5,6, Wajid Rashid1
1
State Key Laboratory of Water Environment Simulation, School of Environment, Beijing Normal University, Beijing,
China
2
Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainable Communities, University of Regina, Regina Saskatchewan, Canada
3
Department of Environmental Sciences, University of Peshawar, 25000 Peshawar, Pakistan
4
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Quaid-e-Awam University of Engineering, Science and Technology, Nawab-
shah, Pakistan
5
Department of Electrical Engineering, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jamshoro, Sindh, Pakistan
6
Energy and Environmental Engineering Research Group, Mehran University of Engineering and Technology, Jams-
horo, Sindh, Pakistan
Submission Info Abstract

Communicated by Gengyuan Liu Pakistan is currently facing energy crisis in the form of electricity and
Received 25 May 2017 natural gas load shedding due to the insufficient availability of
Accepted 21 October 2017
indigenous fossil fuels. On the other hand, the country possesses huge
Available online 1 January 2018
renewable energy resources (RERs) which are merely harnessed due to
lack of institutional and governmental support. This paper is designed to
Keywords discuss the past and current energy demand and supply situation in the
country followed by an assessment of the potential for RERs which can
Energy crisis
Hydel be harnessed for meeting energy demand of the country. An extensive
Pakistan literature review is undertaken in this study, focusing therein the potential
Policy of RERs in the country covering hydel, solar, wind, biomass and
Renewable geothermal energy resources. It is revealed from this review that the
Solar highest potential out of all RERs exist for solar energy, i.e. 2900 GW
Wind followed by wind energy 346 GW, hydropower 100 GW and biomass
energy 12.74 GW. Besides, it is observed that the highest number of
ongoing potential energy projects pertain to mega hydropower
generation. The research concludes that Pakistan needs to invest more
and more in hydel energy and keep the pace of research and investment
in the solar and wind energy as much as possible so that country
indigenously self-sufficient and economically viable for all types of
RERs in the long run.
© 2017 L&H Scientific Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.
1 Introduction
Pakistan is located in South Asia covering an area of 796,095 km2, situated between latitudes 24o and 36o
north and longitudes 61o and 76o east (Bhutto et al., 2011). The energy demand in the country is growing day
†
Corresponding author.
Email address: yanpeng.cai@bnu.edu.cn (Y.P. CAI).
ISSN2325-6192, eISSN2325-6206, CN 10-1358/X /$- see front materials © 2016 L&H Scientific Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved.
DOI:10.5890/JEAM.2017.12.007
358 S.A.U. Rehman et al / Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management 5(4) (2017) 357-383
by day and has increased 28% in the last four years which is further forecasted to rise by 85% in 2025 (Khan
and Pervaiz, 2013). The production of oil and petroleum products within the country does not suffice the
needs (Douggar, 1995), i.e. the local production is only 63,000 barrels per day while the import is 308.9 thou-
sand barrels per day. The country possesses comparatively huge reserves of coal, i.e. 175 billion tons which is
bituminous to sub-bituminous in quality having low heat contents. Therefore, Pakistan has to import 4.26 mil-
lion tons of coal mostly lignite with the limited domestic production of 3.44 million tons. Despite very low
per capita energy consumption, i.e. 501.6 kg-oil compared to global average of 1790.1 kg-oil, the country still
spends 2.5 to 3 billion dollars per year towards importing the primary energy. This situation has caused a
electricity shortfall which has hindered the economic growth of the country with an estimated 66.7% of the
members of business community believing that load shedding is the primary business obstacle in Pakistan
(Awan and Khan, 2014) compared to corruption (11.7%) and crime/terrorism (5.5%) (Shaikh et al., 2015).
Pakistan’s energy demand is increasing at a rate of 11-13% per year which is expected to reach 179 mil-
lion tons of oil equivalent (TOE) in 2020 from 57.9 million TOE in 2006. There is a constant electricity short-
fall since 2006 in the country which has reached 8500 MW in summers of 2012 resulting in 14-20 hours of
load shedding (Uddin et al., 2016). The power demand in the country is forecasted to be 40,000 MW by 2020
(Zuberi et al., 2015) and about 66,000 MW in 2030 while no substantial improvements have undertaken to
improve the supply side despite ample renewable energy resources (RERs) in the country(Zuberi et al., 2013).
The highest demand of electricity is coming from the consumers in the residential sector, and their number
has increased from 5-7% from 2010 to 2015 (Perwez et al., 2015). Besides electricity, natural gas and LPG
shortage have also become another challenge coped with high sever load-shedding in the country during win-
ter. This further adversely affect the industrial activities, transportation and daily life with the increased
economic burden on common people for substituting fuels and technologies (Nayyar et al., 2014).
The power policy of 1994 is mainly considered responsible for the energy crisis in the country for bringing
in and encouraging Independent Power Producers (IPPS) to produce electricity using thermal power plants.
Although the policy worked well initially owing to lower oil and gas prices, as such, the demand was met
temporarily (Perwez et al., 2015). However, the aftermaths of the policy are disastrous because under this
policy Pakistan has to import crude oil of worth 1400 million US dollars annually which earlier costed only
530 million US dollar in 1996. Currently, the energy imports comprise of around 20 percent of foreign ex-
change and 40% of the total imports of the country (Uddin et al., 2016). The total energy supplies of the Paki-
stan during 2014-14 are 70.26 million TOE, as shown in Figure 1 of which 26.21 million TOE is alone im-
ported energy.
Unfortunately, over the years Pakistan failed to diversify the energy supply options thereby not incorporat-
ing RERs in the overall fuel mix. We have observed that historically the main sources of primary energy sup-
ply have had been mainly oil and natural gas as shown in Figure 2. Thus, it is indispensable to analyse and
assess the potentially available RERs in the country and determine its vital role in the energy sector of the
country which will have long-lasting economic and environmental implications. Therefore, the paper in hand
has been designed to examine and assess the renewable energy potential of the country with the spirit to un-
derstand how far RERs can be used to bring the country out of energy crisis. The remaining sections of the
paper will address the potential of different RERs, historical achievements of the different government and
non-governmental institutions in Pakistan towards implementing hydel, solar, wind, biomass and geothermal
energy generation projects in the country. In each subsection of the paper future directions and benefits of
using RERs are also provided based on the potential of these resources.
2 Institutional and organisational setup for renewable energy resource management in Pakistan
Various organisations and institutions are working in the country for harnessing the renewable energy re-
sources of the country. A brief of key sector organisations is covered as under:
S.A.U. Rehman et al / Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management 5(4) (2017) 357-383 359
Fig. 1 Energy flow Chart, 2014-2015
2.1 Pakistan Council of Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET)
Pakistan Council of Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET) was established in 2001 to develop and sup-
port projects related to renewable energy in the country (Awan and Khan, 2014). The organisation came into
being by merging Pakistan council for appropriate technologies (PCAT) and national institute of silicon tech-
nology (NIST), later on, named as PCRET. The PCAT had commenced working in 1996 by handling projects
and technologies related to RERs which were later on transferred to PCRET for further continuation (Raheem
et al., 2016). The principal activities of PCRET are summarised as under (Bhutto et al., 2012):
i. To conduct research, facilitate projects, provide expertise for the development of appropriate
renewable energy technologies;
ii. To come up with innovative and state of the art materials and appliances based on the principles of
renewable energy generation that can be adapted locally;
iii. To set up and advice policies and programmes pertaining to renewable energy within the country;
iv. To advance the existing renewable energy technologies and lead research further in this direction. Pa-
kistan is having a history of developing mega hydropower projects sponsored and managed by water
and power development authority (WAPDA).
Fig. 2 % age share of Fuels in primary energy supply mix (1992-2015)
The PCRET has also started working on micro hydel projects recently along with solar and wind projects
which are financed by the private sector too. Such projects are supported by different donors and owners of
both national and international companies. These project matters pertaining investment is managed by private
power and infrastructure board (PPIB), while tariff is determined by the national electric power regulatory
authority (NEPRA).
2.2 Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB)
Alternative energy development board (AEDB) was established in 2003 as a primary research and
development based body for promoting RERs in the country (Awan and Khan, 2014). The AEDB had been
tasked a target of producing 5% of electricity from alternative/renewable energy resources up to the year 2030
by the government of Pakistan (Shahbaz et al., 2012). The establishment of AEDB took place with the spirit
to fulfil roles and responsibilities such as (Bhutto et al., 2012):
i. Developing national level strategies, policies and plans for promoting the applications of alternative
and renewable energy resources;
ii. Setting up activities to accomplish the targets established by the federal government;
iii. Monitoring and evaluation of the current and future projects based on alternative or renewable energy;
iv. Assisting power production from alternative or renewable energy resources such as wind, solar,
small-hydel, fuel cells, tidal, ocean, biogas, and biomass by providing one window facility to the
parties involved;
v. Promoting public awareness and public-private partnership for running pilot projects based on
alternative and renewable energy concepts along with the provision of expertise for cost-effective and
sustainable energy technologies.
However, the AEDB despite over ten years of its establishment could not ensure a required share of
renewable energy in the overall energy mix of the country for which it was tasked with. This is mainly
attributed to the lack of investment in renewable energy sector in Pakistan, institution overlapping functions
as well other factors.
Fig. 3 Growth in installed generating capacity (GWh) of electricity
3 Status and potential of renewable energy resources in Pakistan
3.1 Mega hydropower potential and progress in Pakistan
The geographic location and topography of Pakistan provide an excellent opportunity for the country to ex-
ploit rivers for large-scale power generation projects. Currently, the hydropower potential in Pakistan is over
100,000 MW with identified sites of 55,000 MW (Javaid et al., 2011). The hydropower generation in the
country can be traced back to 1925 pre-independence period when Renala hydropower station was
constructed with an installed capacity of 1 MW (Bhutto et al., 2012). Later on, the construction of Warsak
Dam (240 MW) took place in the 1950s, Mangla Dam (1,000 MW) in 1967, Tarbela Dam (3,478 MW) in
1974 and Ghazi Brotha hydel power project (1,450 MW) commissioned in 2002 (Sabir et al., 2014). The total
installed capacity of hydropower increased 48% per year from 1960 to 2003. Nevertheless, development
regarding furthering hydropower generation has been insignificant since 2000 (Muneer and Asif, 2007). Paki-
stan had an installed capacity of 5928 MW of large (>250 MW), 437 MW of medium (>50 MW and <250
MW), and 253 MW of small to micro (<50 MW) hydroelectricity plants till 2012 (A. W. Bhutto et al., 2012).
Currently, some of the large-scale hydropower generation projects are under different stages of implementa-
tion which include, Diamer Basha (4,500 MW), Bunji (5,400 MW), Kohala (1,100 MW), Damir Basha (3,800
MW) and Neelum Jhelum (1,000 MW) (Javaid et al., 2011). However, the historical development of power
production shows that electricity generation from hydel sources has been undermined (Figure 3) compared to
thermal power production. This indicates that the governments over the years preferred relying on short-term
thermal power plants (Raza et al., 2016).
The fraction of hydropower in the total electricity generation decreased from 70% in 1960 to 30% in 2015.
It has been estimated that out of the total existing potential of 40 GW only 16% has been put into use. This is
due to limited capital availability, considerable construction time and political instability in the country
(Muneer and Asif, 2007). The current share of hydropower in the total energy mix is about 11%, i.e. 7,030
MW which has been planned to increase to 32,100 MW by 2030 to make it then 20% of the total energy mix.
In order to achieve this target, about 8000 MW capacity of a small/medium run of river power plants will be
constructed along with four large-scale multi-objective dams. These large-scale hydropower projects as per
plans are namely Kalabagh (3800 MW), Bhasha (4600 MW), Bunji (5400 MW) and Dasu (3800 MW) dams
(Malik and Sukhera, 2012).
3.1.1 Upcoming mega hydropower projects in Pakistan
There exist around 800 potential sites to develop for large-scale hydropower generation plants mainly located
in the Indus basin. These sites are suitable for large, medium and small-scale hydropower projects. Out of
these sites, 134 are currently active while 151 sites are under planning and construction stages. Similarly, the
remaining 515 sites are those which will be considered in future for hydropower development. There are
around 13 hydropower projects expected to be operational by 2023 with a total capacity of 20,733.4 MW and
11 projects under feasibility assessment stages having 6,564.65 MW capacity (Shaikh et al., 2015). The de-
tails of existing major hydel power project are given below (Table 1) which have a cumulative installed ca-
pacity of 7,030 MW.
Table 1 Existing hydel power stations in Pakistan
S. No Station Waterway Location Installed Commissioning

(River/Canal) Capacity Date
(MW)
1 Tarbela Indus (Reservoir) Swabi/Haripur 3478 Jul. 1977
2 Ghazi Barotha Indus (downstream Tarbe- Attock 1450 Jul. 2003

la)
3 Mangla Jhelum (Reservoir) Mirpur/AJK 1000 1967/1969
4 Warsak Kabul (Reservoir) Warsak 242.96 Mar. 1981
5 Chashma Indus (Chashma Barage) Mianwali 184 May. 2001
6 Duber Khwar Indus Tributary Kohistan 121 Mar. 2013
7 Jinnah Indus, Jinnah Barrage Mianwali 96 Jan. 2012
8 Khan Khwar Ranyal Shangla 72 Nov. 2010
9 Rasul UJC* Mandi Bahauddin 22 Jul. 1952
10 Dargai Swat** Malakand 20 Dec. 1952
11 Nandipur UCC*** Gujranwla 13.8 Mar. 1963
12 Shadiwal UJC* Gujrat 13.5 Jan. 1961
13 Chichoki UCC*** Sheikhupura 13.2 Aug. 1959
14 K/Garhi Kuchkot**** Bannu 4 Feb. 1958
15 Renala LBDC***** Distt. Okara 1.1 Mar. 1925
16 Chitral Ludko Chitral City 1.0 1975
17 Jabban Barkit Tunnel Malakand 22.0 Jul. 2013
18 Gomal Zam Dam Gomal River South Waziristan 17.4 Jun. 2013
19 Jagran-I Jagran River Neelum Valley, AJK 30 Since 2000
20 Others 14
Total Installed Capacity 7030
*: Upper Jhelum canal from River Jhelum; **: Swat Canal from River Swat; ***: Upper Chenab Canal from River Chenab; ****: Kachkot
Canal from River Kurram; *****: Lower Bari Doab Canal from River Ravi.
There are many mega hydropower projects under different stages of construction and planning such as
Neelum–Jhelum, Diamer Basha and Dasu dam among others (Ahmed et al., 2016). The detailed description
of future mega hydropower installations are given in (Table 2) below.
3.1.2 Small hydropower potential and progress in Pakistan
Small hydropower or micro-hydel is another form of RERs which is considered highly suitable for remote
and hilly areas where natural waterfalls and springs are numerous. The micro-hydel schemes are considered
as a separate category due to its scale. Though there exists no international standard, still most of these pro-
jects capacity ranges between 2.5 to 25 MW and are considered micro-hydel or small hydropower projects
(Bhutto et al., 2012). According to estimates, a cumulative potential of 1200 MW of small hydropower plants
exist in the country. The north-western parts of the country are richest in terms of the cumulative micro-hydel
potential of 400 MW. The plant capacity for such power units varies from 100-500KW. At the moment only
5% of the identified small hydropower plants have been developed which sums up to a total 50 MW power
generation capacity from around 300 projects. Most of these projects are funded by international donor agen-
cies and non-government organisations such as European Union (EU), AEDB, Aga Khan Rural Support Pro-
gramme (AKRSP), Malakand Rural Development programme, Asian Development Bank, and PCRET
(Sheikh, 2010). The province-wise details of different small hydropower projects under various stages of im-
plementation are given as under (Table 3).
Table 2 Under-construction and future mega hydropower projects in Pakistan
S. Station Waterway Installed Status/DOC*

No (River/Canal) Capacity (MW)
1 Bara Dam Project Bara River 5.8 MW PC-I is under finalisation
(38.1 GWh)
2 Basho Hydro Power Project Indus river 40 MW PC-I under preparation
(165 GWh)
3 Bhimber Dam Bhimber Nullah 2 MW arranging funds
4 1) Bunji Hydropower Project Indus River 7100 MW Principally cleared by CDWP† on
(24760 GWh) 02.12.2015 for approval of ECNEC‡.
5 2) Chiniot Dam Project Chenab River 69 MW Approved/ Desk study is in progress.
6 3) Chitral Hydel Power Lutkho River 5 MW PC-1 approved, waiting for funds
Enhancement (42.08 GWh)
7 B. Daraban Zam Dam Khora River 750 KW PC-I yet to be approved
8 C. Dasu Hydropower Project Indus River Stage -1 = 2,160 MW Expected completion February,2023
12,222 (GWh)
Stage-2 = 2,160
MW 9,263(GWh)
9 Diamer Basha Dam Indus River 4500 MW June 2020 (As per PC-I)
19208 GWh
10 D. Garuk Dam Project Garuk River 300 KW Waiting for funds
11 E. Golen Gol Hydropower Golen Gol River 108 MW Expected August 2017
Project
12 1) Harpo Hydropower Harpo Nul- 34.5 MW Funding approved
Project lah/Indus River (170 GWh)
13 F. Hingol Dam Project Hingol River 1.37 MW PC-1 & Tender Documents is in
progress
14 G. Keyal Khwar Hydropower Keyal Khwar/ 128 MW 12th August 2020
Project Indus River (418 GWh )
15 H. Kurram Tangi Dam Kurram river 83.4 MW construction of Stage-I in progress
Project (350 GWh)
16 II. LOWER PALAS VALLEY Indus River 665 MW To be being implemented under Pub-
(CHOR NULLAH) (2590 GWh) lic Private Partnership (PPP) mode
17 A. Lower Spat Gah Indus River 496 MW PC-I is under approval with Planning
Hydropower Project (2007 GWh) Commission.
18 B. Mohmand Dam Swat River 800 MW Engineering design and preparation
Hydropower Project of PC-1 & tender documents are in
progress
19 C. Nai Gaj Dam Nai Gaj River 4.2 MW June 17, 2018 (expected)
20 D. Naulong Storage Dam Mula River 4.4 MW 30-09-2018 (As per 2nd revised PC-
I)
21 E. Neelum Jhelum Neelum River 969 MW February 2018
HydroElectric Project (5,150 GWh)
22 F. Patan Hydropower Project Indus River 2400 MW Feasibility Study Report is being
(12500 GWh) finalized by the consultants.
23 G. Pelar Dam Project Nal River 300 KW Waiting for availability of funds
24 H. Phandar Hydropower Ghizar River 80 MW PC-I has been updated
Project (375 GWh)
25 I. Shyok Dam Multipurpose Shyok River 640 MW Project cost approved. Feasibility
Project Study in process
26 J. Tank Zam Dam Project Tank Zam River 25.5 MW Waiting for approval of Revised
PC-I and funds
27 K. Tarbela 4th Extension Indus River 1410 MW 14th August 2017
Hydropower Project (3840 GWh)
28 L. Tarbela 5th Extension Indus River 1410 MW Funds (loans) approved (Loan clos-
Hydropower Project (3 X 470 MW) ing date is 30.06.2022.
S. Station Waterway Installed Status/DOC*

No (River/Canal) Capacity (MW)
29 M. Thakot Hydropower Indus River 4000 MW Feasibility Study is in progress.
Project (21,000 GWh)
30 N. Winder Dam Project 0.3 MW Within 3 years after Commence-
ment
* † ‡
: Date of commissioning; : CWDP: Central Development Working Party, : ECNEC: Executive Committee of the Na-
tional Economic Council
Table 3 Details of small hydropower projects under development (Rauf et al., 2015)
Name of prov- Public sector pro- Private sector pro- Projects with feasibility Projects with Pre-feasibility
ince jects (MW) jects (MW) study (MW) study/ raw sites (MW)
Above Below Above Below
50 MW 50 MW 50 MW 50 MW
KPK 635 84 58 143 13,584 426
Punjab 96 Nil 3720 32.17 Nil 349.65
AJK 973.8 828.7 420 48.2 1152 177
Northern Areas 18 Nil 505 71.5 10,905 814
Sindh Nil Nil Nil 49.5 80 48.55
Balochistan Nil Nil Nil 0.5 Nil Nil
TOTAL 1722.8 912.7 4703 344.87 25,721 1815.2
There were about 30 micro-hydel projects in feasibility stages in 2010 of the capacities ranging between
0.1 to 2 MW. AEDB had developed these projects by receiving financial assistance from GTZ, ADB, GEF,
UNDP and Agha Khan Foundation. A lot of rural areas in northern Pakistan has been electrified by PCRET
lead projects of 5–50 kW each with a cumulative capacity of 5 MW (Sheikh, 2010). Similarly, PCRET has
developed 290 small hydropower projects in the federally administered tribal areas (FATA) and the northern
areas with a total capacity of 3.5 MW each plant ranging from 3 to 50 kW with collaboration from local peo-
ple. One of the leading non-government organisation is the AKRSP which have installed 171 micro-hydro
units that provide electricity to about 17,000 houses in the distant and inaccessible areas of northern Pakistan.
The PCRET has set a target to electrify 100,000 houses by 2020 using small hydropower projects in AJK,
KPK and Gilgit Baltistan by installing projects of the cumulative total capacity of 20 MW (Awan and Khan,
2014).
There is dire need and feasibility to develop micro-hydel projects in northern areas of Pakistan because of
the lack of access to the national grid in these areas. (Bhutto et al., 2012). Similarly, the canal network in the
Punjab province is extensive, and according to estimates, there are about 300 potential micro-hydel power
sites which can be harnessed to produce electricity of 350MW as cumulative capacity (Shahbaz et al., 2012).
3.1.3 Issues and challenges pertaining to hydel power development
The construction of mega hydropower generation projects is subject to numerous challenges and issues such
as high investment cost, water availability, fluctuation in river flows and long construction duration (Malik
and Sukhera, 2012). Similarly, the resettlements of displaced citizens is another challenge coped during the
development of huge dams and reservoirs (Ahmed et al., 2016). Besides this, with each hydropower project,
the nature of technical, political and social challenges varies which depends on areas and stakeholders in-
volved. In Pakistan, the Indus river delta is believed to be deteriorated due to the barrages and reservoirs de-
veloped upstream. For instance, one of the most socially and politically challenging hydropower project in
Pakistan is the Kalabagh dam. Despite government efforts, a national consensus has so far not been achieved.
Furthermore, the development specialists believe that hydro energy is not economically viable although it is
considered cheap. It is because the project cost does not include the social and environmental costs associated
with the project. Another problem related mega hydropower projects is the arrangement of financing and
funding from both local and outside sources. Even when projects are funded the project costs does not
adequately estimate the resettlement and compensation cost which is always very high. For example, the gov-
ernment of Pakistan plans to use $ 33.2 billion on the relocation matters of the Kalabagh dam by building 20
model and 27 extended villages (Bhutto et al., 2012).
There are also some technical issues related to hydropower development such as siltation in the reservoirs
which requires regular maintenance. Therefore, small check dams are constructed called silt-control dams in
the upstream of the mega dams. Similarly, other measures are also required to be undertaken for increasing
the lifetime of hydropower plants such as the construction of sluices to trap sand and silt. Some rivers are not
suitable for the development of dams due to high turbidity and suspended load (sediments), and are thus more
appropriate for runoff river plants. In case of all hydropower, power projects supplementary environmental
and land use management is compulsory such as afforestation and growing cover crops to mitigate soil ero-
sion (Sabir et al., 2013). The aforementioned technical limitations can be handled which requires expertise,
technologies and funds, all of which are limited in Pakistan and are thus regarded as issues and challenges.
3.2 Solar energy potential in Pakistan
Solar energy is one the most abundant form of RERs present in the country. Pakistan is located in the sunny-
belt and is, therefore, most suitable for harnessing the solar energy resource through a variety of technologies
(Mirza et al., 2003). The daylight duration and the sunshine period ranges from eight to ten hours over a day
in most parts of the country. The magnitude of solar radiation received by the country in the energy units
ranges from 16 to 21 MJ m-2 per day with an average amount of 19 MJ m-2 in most parts of the country
(Bhutto et al., 2012). This amount of solar energy is impressive because the lower level of 16 MJ m-2 per day
is even higher than the global mean value of 13 MJ m-2 per day (Ghaffar, 1995). The yearly mean irradiations
received by most of the cities in the country, i.e. Quetta, Karachi, Multan, Peshawar, and Lahore are 21.65 MJ
m-2 per day, 19.25 MJ m-2 per day, 18.7 MJ m-2 per day, 18.36 MJ m-2 per day and 17.0 MJ m-2 per day re-
spectively (Guaita-Pradas et al., 2015). The average sunlight exposure on a horizontal area in Pakistan pos-
sesses power potential of about 200–250 watt/m2/day due to sunlight of 1500–3000 hours deliverable as 1.9-
2.3 MWh/m2/year (Zakir et al., 2005).
The two provinces of the country, in particular, are estimated to have the highest potential for solar energy.
These provinces are the south-western province of Balochistan and the south-eastern province of Sindh. Most
parts of these provinces receive sun shines ranging from 7 to 8 h every day or nearly more than 2300–2700 h
per year (Sheikh, 2010). The national renewable energy laboratory (NREL) of United States have developed
solar maps (Fig. 4) for the first time covering the whole country which depicts that many areas in Pakistan
receive solar insolation averaging from 5 kWh m-2day-1 to 7 kWh m-2day-1 (Amer and Daim, 2011). Similarly,
the Energy Sector Management Assistance Program (ESMAP) of the World Bank-supported RERs mapping
on the countrywide scale within its Clean Energy Program framework. One of the project aimed to create a
validated solar atlas for Pakistan (Fig. 5) based on a combination of satellite data and ground measurements to
support country-driven efforts to improve renewable energy resource awareness and exploitation. There are
several country-specific, ESMAP-funded projects undertaken by the World Bank Group (WBG) that cover
comprehensive mapping and geospatial planning, including ground-based data collection. The solar resource
estimation of Pakistan was one of the first projects which were approved under the referred program.
According to Awan and Khan (2014), the estimated solar power potential in Pakistan is around 2900 GW.
The parliament house of Pakistan in the capital city was electrified through 1.5 MW of solar energy being the
first initiative towards the application of solar energy in the country in 2015. Similarly, a desert area in the
Cholistan, Punjab was the first region to be grid connected through the solar power of 100 MW capacity. The
inauguration of this 100 MW unit was undertaken in 2015. This is the believed to be first solar power park
initiative followed by the Punjab government as part of 1,000 MW Quaid-e-Azam Solar Park Company
(QASPC). Out of total capacity of QASPC, for the first 100 MW, a land area of 6500 acres has already been
allotted. Further, into QASPC, a Chinese based company has shown interest to invest for 300 MW solar pow-
er project towards achieving a planned capacity of 1000 MW (Shaikh et al., 2015).
Fig. 4 Map of Pakistan showing solar energy potential throughout the country
Fig. 5 Horizontal irradiation map from the series solar resource map developed by ESMAP
Table 4 Status and progress of solar-based power projects from 2007 onwards
Generation
Year Villages Province Capacity
(MWh/year)
Narian Punjab 53
Khorian Punjab 57
27.6 kWh 80.59
Basti Bugha Punjab 100
Lakhi Bair Punjab 135
Pinpario Sindh 100
17.2 kWh 50.22
2007 Bharomal Sindh 115
Shnow Garri Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 100
17.6 kWh 51.39
Janak Khyber Pakhtunkhwa 120
Takht Baluchistan 100
Killa Mama Macherzai Baluchistan 100 17.68 kWh 51.63
Allah Baksh Bazar Dandar Baluchistan 121
Technology Type No. of Houses Capacity
2012 Solar Module 150 15 kWh
Solar Power Backup System Light backup 3 kWh
Solar Water Heater 30 ----
Solar Cooker Box 15 standard
Solar concentrator 22 standard
2014 33 LOIs issued for a cumulative capacity of approx. 888.1 MW On-grid Solar PV
Project Name Capacity Status
Quaid e Azam Solar Park (QASP) 100 MW Commissioned
EPA* and IA† signed and under construction
Company Capacity Location
M/s Appolo Solar Pakistan Ltd. 100 MW QASP Bahawalpur
M/s Crest Energy Pakistan Ltd. 100 MW QASP Bahawalpur
M/s Best Green Energy Pakistan Ltd. 100 MW QASP Bahawalpur
Litter of Support (LoS) issued and Financial close is expected to be achieved by 31st Dec. 2015
2015
Company Capacity Location
M/s Access Electric Power Ltd 10 MW Pind Dadan Khan
M/s Bukhsh Solar Power Ltd. 10 MW Bahawalpur
M/s Sanjwal Solar Power Ltd. 5.04 MW Sanjawal
M/s Safe Power Ltd. 10.28 MW Bahawalpur
M/s Access Solar Power Ltd. 11.52 MW Pind Dadan Khan
M/s Blue Star Hydel Ltd. 1 MW Pind Dadan Khan
*EPA: Energy purchase agreement; †IA: Implementation agreement
Source: various energy yearbooks
3.2.1 Solar energy projects status and progress across the country
From the very beginning, the government’s awareness and political will for harvesting RERs remained mini-
mal. Therefore, the overall situation regarding solar energy projects is not encouraging. Thus, the role of pri-
vate sector in solar power production and promotion is felt essential in Pakistan. The country, unfortunately,
also lacks manufacturing units and raw materials required for solar energy such as photovoltaics (PV) and
solar power panels (Khan and Pervaiz, 2013). In the following sections of this paper, we will be discussing
different solar energy based projects completed by different non-government organisations in various parts of
the country (table 4). It was in 2015 when for the first time the estimated share of RERs in the power produc-
tion had appeared in the energy yearbook, which is one of the key government document of energy record
keeping in the country. Similarly, the RERs chapter in the energy yearbook was included way back in 2007
which contained the detail of projects based on different forms of RERs.
Thus, the overall contribution of solar power to the national electric grid is only 100 MW coming from
QASP, while twenty-five solar power projects of 663.6 MW cumulative capacity have been issued letter of
intents (LOI) from AEDB and are at different stages of development. NEPRA has also determined the upfront
tariff for solar power plants of 50 MW capacity in the northern region at 17.0006 cents/kWh and 16.306
cents/kWh for the southern region under its framework for private power producers in the country.
3.2.1.1 Status of solar energy harnessing in Balochistan province
One of the largest province by area of Pakistan is the Balochistan which is sparsely populated, i.e. 21 per-
sons/km2 with the majority of the population living in the rural areas. There are approximately 90% of the
rural area which are not at all connected to the national electric grid. The electric power requirement of each
household ranges from 50 to 100 watts (Bhutto et al., 2012). In 2012, around nine villages were electrified
through solar power under 100 solar energy homes' project (Shahbaz et al., 2012).
The provincial government although trying to provide solar electricity to the remote areas of the province
using PV schemes. Some villages have been electrified through small-scale solar PV systems such as 10 kW
of solar power was provided in the district Khuzdar, sub-district Zehri and 7.9 kW solar based units installed
in the district Jaffarabad. There is a project underway to provide solar power to 595 houses with a cumulative
capacity of 100 W each through solar PV in sub-district Surab, 411 households in district Kalat and 343
homes in Khuzdar district. In district Mastung, a government hospital is also proposed to be provided 14.5
kW solar power system. Similarly, the provincial government signed a memorandum of understandings (MoU)
with various companies for the installation of 300 MW solar power based schemes in Quetta city (Sher et al.,
2015).
3.2.1.2 Status of solar energy harnessing in Punjab province
Several solar power projects of small to medium scale are under construction in varies cities of the Punjab
province. These include in district Lodhran (30 MW), Cholistan (50 MW), Kasur (10 MW) and
Muzaffargarh (50 MW) (Shaikh et al., 2015). The government of Punjab is comparatively more serious in
solar power installations with the primary focus is the southern parts of the province. The non-government
agencies are also estimated to be generating 90 MW of solar power in different parts of the province. The
initiative of developing Quaide-Azam solar park (QASP) is worth mentioning which will provide 1000 MW
in different stages. Further MoUs has been signed to install around 400 solar power projects in the various
industrial zones of the province namely Faisalabad, Sialkot, Gujranwala and Lahore. The government has
also converted the power supply to various public park using solar power in Lahore city. Similarly, a scheme
is planned on Faisalabad motorway that will produce 150 MW of solar power which will be connected to the
national grid (Sher et al., 2015).
3.2.1.3 Status of solar energy harnessing in Sindh province
The installations of solar power projects in Sindh are mostly taking place under the rural electrification pro-
ject (REP). Therefore, about 49 villages of Tharkarpar district has been electrified besides other 51 villages
planned to be electrified using solar home systems. By the end of 2016, 22 solar power project with a
cumulative capacity of 772.99 MW were targeted to be completed in different parts of the province (Ahmed
et al., 2016). Beside rural electrification, opportunities exist in the agriculture sector in each province of Pa-
kistan. For instance, agricultural water pumps consume around 2500 MW of electricity from the national grid
which is about 12.5% of the total power demand in the country. If the water pumps being used for irrigation
alone are converted to standalone solar PV, then a good amount of power can be saved (Khan and Pervaiz,
2013).
3.2.2 Technologically suitable options of using solar energy in Pakistan

Various renewable energy technological options for harnessing the solar energy in Pakistan are briefly dis-
cussed as under:
3.2.2.1 Photovoltaics
One of the best technological option to harvest solar energy is the photovoltaics (PV), PV is the most efficient
technology for converting sunlight energy into electricity. It is considered as the most economical option suit-
able for the remote and inaccessible areas having low power demand (Mirza et al., 2003). Majority of the ru-
ral areas in Pakistan have no access to grid-connected electricity and are sparsely populated. Therefore, PV
comes out to be the most suitable solution for those communities (Zakir et al., 2005). Muneer and Asif (2007)
reported that AEDB had set a target to electrify 1,000 villages out of 75,000 villages in 2010 consisting of 4
million houses with a household size of 4-5 members each. These villages were in the off-grid area and are
mostly located in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan provinces. According to other estimates, there are
around another 40,000 villages yet not connected to centralised electricity, and with the current rate of
progress, it seems challenging to electrify them (Malik and Sukhera, 2012). In the early 1980s, there were 18
PV systems with a cumulative capacity of 440 kW in different parts of the country. However, these projects
are now mostly obsolete due to lack of maintenance and expertise issues (Bhutto et al., 2012). However, there
are some success stories too such as the electrification of 3000 homes with a cumulative capacity of 200 kW
solar PVs by AEDB in districts of Kohat (KPK), D.G. Khan, Rawalpindi (Punjab), Tharparkar (Sindh), Tur-
bat/Kalat (Balochistan) which provides 80W of power to each family. Similarly, PCRET used solar PV to
electrify about 500 schools, houses, mosques through a cumulative capacity of 80 kW power. The private sec-
tor assistance in the solar PV installations ranges to be about 500 kW. It is believed that for combating energy
crisis on an emergency basis, the option of standalone micro PV projects are best suited instead of starting
any mega/macro PV project on a commercial scale (Sheikh, 2010).
The production cost of PV is gradually declining (table 5), therefore, the levelized cost of electricity pro-
duced through PV, i.e. 0.192 USD/kWh is easily affordable for a lifetime of 30 years (Sadati et al., 2015). Ali,
Zuberi et al. (2015) reported various PV models based on multiple parameters pertaining to performance and
cost. They concluded that a PV model with a capital cost of 770 USD/kW and fixed operation and mainte-
nance cost of 20 USD/kW having a lifetime of 20 years is a cost-effective option. This further implies that PV
is more economical compared to other renewable energy technologies such as those of used for harnessing
wind and biomass energy.
Due to on-going load shedding the power consumers are also considering various alternatives of the elec-
tricity. Therefore, the business of PV manufacturing and supply is rapidly growing in the country. It is
expected that the cost of PV will gradually decrease due to market competition and awareness among general
public. The manifestation of solar PV in Pakistan can be observed mostly as stand-alone schemes providing
electricity to homes in rural areas and small businesses such as public call offices and petrol pumps. However,
there are plenty of opportunities for future to extend the applications of PV projects across various sectors
such as for water pumps, for irrigation tube wells, community-owned water pumps, street lights, lightening in
public parks, traffic lamps across roadsides, advertisement billboards, emergency call service on highways,
backup battery storage devices, CCTV cameras, glass windows and rooftops of tall buildings etc. in Pakistan.
On the other hand, doors are also open for private sector companies to initiate more and more mega-projects
based on PVs in potential areas indicated by NREL and ESMAP in the solar maps of Pakistan. The power
produced through such schemes can then be connected to the national grid which will cater the power demand
on a larger scale.
3.2.2.2 Solar desalination
Solar desalination is the most suitable technology for cleaning marine water containing high salt contents.
Some parts of Pakistan such as Balochistan, Sindh and Sothern Punjab lack access to clean drinking water.
The groundwater is highly saline and is not fit for drinking. Therefore, solar desalination technology can be
used to treat saline water and make it fit for drinking purposes (Bhutto et al., 2012). The main reasons for so-
lar desalination to be used in these areas is because it is easy to install, cheaper and low-tech. The process in-
volved in solar desalination also kills bacteria and other germs, thus making it clean for drinking. In Gawader
coastal area of Balochistan province, two solar desalination plants have been installed which contains 240
stills and have the capability of cleaning 6,000 gallons of marine water every day (Mirza et al., 2003). Paki-
stan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS) have also developed a solar desalination model
having 30.56% efficiency and with optimal glass cover and stills. This model is believed to revolutionary for
the rural areas in the country and can meet the needs for clean drinking water (Bhutto et al., 2012). Thus, the
same experience can be replicated with further improvements in other parts of the country. In this context,
both government and non-government organisations can undertake projects to ensure the potable water avail-
ability across the country using solar desalination modules.
3.2.2.3 Solar water pumps
The solar water pump is a technology which is used to pull groundwater for both residential and agriculture
(irrigation) purposes. Therefore, opportunities exist throughout the country to install solar water pumps which
will take away electricity demand and will help communities in providing water smoothly due to electricity
shortfall. A locally designed solar water pump by Pakistan atomic energy commission employs a 21 ft diame-
ter paraboloid fitted with flat mirrors, boiler and a steam engine which operates with a 2 hp pump. Agricultur-
al development bank of Pakistan (ADBP) has also helped farmers and local communities by providing them
with imported PV pumps in different parts of the country (Bhutto et al., 2012). These water pumps can be
installed by in coordination, mutual cooperation and understanding within the communities. Pakistan is an
agricultural country, and most of the agricultural lands have no access to canal irrigation system. Thus, the
technology of solar water pumps will revolutionise the agricultural sector in particular in the areas where rain-
fed agriculture is practised.
3.2.2.4 Solar thermal applications
Beside conversion of solar energy to electrical energy, there are various other large number of applications
wherein solar energy can be applied directly by harvesting its heat contents. The benefits of using such
schemes include their low cost, low-tech and comparatively easy operation. These utilities include but are not
limited to cooling and heating of indoor environments, cooking, steam production, water heating for residen-
tial and manufacturing units, and drying of agricultural commodities (Mirza et al., 2003). There are various
modalities of solar thermal technologies currently in practice such as solar dryers and desalination units, solar
cookers (box and concentrated type) and solar water heaters to name a few. The applications of all these tech-
nologies exist in Pakistan but the occurrence is minimal, and till 2010 the overall installed solar thermal units
were just 10,000 (Sheikh, 2010). However, since the solar thermal applications are incredibly diverse and
essential; therefore, we will discuss them in detail as under:
(1) Solar water heaters : Although the solar water heating technology is relatively old, still its application
in Pakistan is minimal. Firstly, because of its cost and secondly due to lack of awareness and habituation of
using the natural gas based water heaters (Mirza et al., 2003). The solar water heater is pollution‐free which
utilizes the solar energy to heat water and recovers its cost within three years duration (Bhutto et al., 2012).
Besides its application in the domestic sector; solar water heaters are highly cost‐effective for industries
which consume a huge amount of hot water such as textile industry. In Pakistan textile industry is one of the
leading export earning industries which accounts for 60% of the total exports. The hot water required in the
textile industry has a temperature range of 80 oC which is an optimal range for solar water heaters to attain
appropriately. Thus, utilising these heaters can save more than 65% of the traditional energy which is used in
processes such as curing, polishing, dyeing and finishing. The approximate payback time of solar water heat‐
ing system for textile industry is about six years (Awan and Khan, 2014). Hence, solar water heaters are not
only applicable for heating water in the domestic purposes but can also replace boilers in industrial envi‐
ronments which do not require extremely hot water.
(2) Solar cooker: The efficiency of normal cooking stoves used at homes in Pakistan is extremely low, i.e.
most of them are natural gas-fired stoves wherein a substantial amount of heat loss takes place during cooking.
Therefore, the application of solar cookers in both rural and urban areas of Pakistan can save a significant
amount of conventional energy. In this context, PCRET has locally developed a model of solar cooker, and
the development of more cost-effective models is still in progress. Currently, the most popular solar cookers
are the box and concentrator-type solar cookers. Some of these locally developed solar cookers were also dis-
tributed among Afghan refugees by various non-profit organisations in Pakistan. The estimated number of
solar cooker in northern mountainous areas of Pakistan is about 2000. The applications of solar cookers
require further encouragement in these areas since most of these communities use forest wood as fuelwood.
Thus, use of solar cookers can help to protect forests and avoid deforestation (Mirza et al., 2003).
Table 5 Cost of solar energy generated from PV cells (Awan and Khan, 2014)
Year 1977 1979 1981 1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993
Cost ($/Watt) 77 40 24 17 12.5 10 6 7 6.5
Year 1995 1997 1999 2001 2003 2007 2009 2011 2013
Cost ($/Watt) 5.8 5.5 5.5 4.5 4.3 3.5 1.8 1.3 0.74
Table 6 Milestones set by PCRET from 2011 to 2020 (Bhutto et al., 2012).
Target 2011– Target 2016–

Type Present status
2015 2020
Solar water heaters manufacturing Designed and developed 05 different 10,000 units 25,000 units;
through private sector with PCRET tech- models of SWH for commercialisation (125-260 l 125-260 l/day
nical services each)
Solar dryers manufacturing through pri- Designed and developed 03 different 50,000 units 100,000 units
vate sector with PCRET technical services models of 20,100 and 500 kg capacities
Solar cooker manufacturing through pri- Designed and developed box and dish 100,000 units 200,000 units
vate sector with PCRET technical services type solar cookers for
commercialisation
PV modules production manufacturing Developed solar cell production capaci- 5 MW 20 M W
through private sector with PCRET tech- ties up to pilot scale
nical services
(3) Solar dryers: There are various agricultural and horticultural products which require drying as a part
of processing to increase the cupboard life and value addition. Thus, solar dryers can be employed in drying
these products and items which may save time and electricity, as such, cost-effective. Northern Pakistan is
famous for producing fruits of various types which are sold in dry form in various parts of the country as well
as exported. These areas have karst topography, inaccessible terrain and possess inadequate technology due to
which a substantial amount of product gets wasted every year such as apricots and peaches. Although, solar
dryers are used in these areas which help the timely processing of these products and is quite handy (Mirza et
al., 2003), however, the concerned organisation yet need to promote these technologies which will accelerate
economic activities in these areas. Solar dryers can also be used to dry meat and other products in the others
parts of the country. Ensuring access to solar dryer technology to the farmers will not only raise product quali-
ty and life but also raise country’s exports sufficiency.
The PCRET has set long-term goals to promote the solar thermal applications throughout the country (Ta-
ble 6).
3.3 Wind energy progress and prospects in Pakistan
Wind energy is another important RERs which is amply available in Pakistan. Wind turbines are used to con-
vert kinetic energy carried by the wind into electrical energy. The decision to install a wind turbine and power
stations in any area depends upon wind mapping and assessing other parameters such as wind speed, wind
directions, load curves of the load centre and selection of the most optimal wind turbine model (Awan and
Khan, 2014). Out of all these variables, the most crucial one is the wind speed which will determine the pow-
er output (Ali et al., 2015). There are various high potential sites for wind power turbines installation in the
coastal areas of Balochistan and Sindh provinces. Similarly, the potential of wind energy in desert areas of
Punjab and Sindh is also significantly good. These sites have both wind energy and land available for wind
power stations which can provide electricity supplies for local communities and may also be add-up power to
national grid (Hassan, 2005).
Pakistan Meteorological Department (PMD) collects and maintain wind data records. However, the data
recorded by PMD is not suitable for wind energy assessment since the collected data is recorded at low
heights (4m) (Muneer and Asif, 2007). In this regard, an important milestone has been achieved by USAID in
collaboration with national renewable energy laboratory (NREL) of USA. NREL developed wind energy
maps of Pakistan (Figure 6) taking in account the height of 50m thus, showing an overall potential of produc-
ing 346,000 MW electricity from various wind zones of the country. (Malik and Sukhera, 2012). However,
the estimated electricity harvested so far from wind energy is only 6.175 MW only (Awan and Khan, 2014).
One of the key challenge to harness the wind energy for power generation pertains to the development of
transmission and distribution network. As such, alternatively, wind energy can be used to produce power for
communities living in remote areas which are not connected to national grid. Since it has been estimated that
32% of Pakistan’s 125,000 villages, i.e. 40,000 villages are far away from centralised electricity; therefore,
electrification of these villages through wind energy promises an excellent opportunity for installing wind-
based power stations (Khan and Pervaiz, 2013).
The formal development of wind energy projects commenced in Pakistan only after the establishment of
AEDB in 2002. As such, in early days of AEDB, various projects were enrolled with AEDB by 16 different
companies who were the leading suppliers of wind energy plants. These efforts resulted in electricity genera-
tion of about 50 MW initially with commitments to increase the production up to 2000 MW by the year 2010
(Muneer & Asif, 2007). In addition, a total of 14 small wind turbines (6 X 500 W and 8 X 300 W) were also
imported from China in 2002 and were installed by PCRET. These turbines were installed in Balochistan
(three at Dhorajee, two at Phore and three at Mata Mandar Hinglaj, Lesbella) and in Sindh (1 at Super High-
way Karachi, three at Gujjo and two at Kharo Chan) (Hassan, 2005). Further, 120 more micro wind-turbines
were imported, i.e. 100 of 500 watts from Spain and 20 wind-turbines of 5kW from China (U. Mirza, Ahmad,
Majeed, & Harijan, 2007). In the year 2009, AEDB declared that the share of RERs in the total energy mix
would be 14%, out of which a substantial amount of energy will be obtained from wind (Awan & Khan,
2014). However, this target of AEDB was neither meet during 2009 nor to-date although efforts continue to
increase the share of electricity from wind energy plants. The current efforts to promote and complete wind
energy projects are expected deliver with about 41 wind energy projects in the pipeline with a cumulative
power generation capacity of 3000 MW. Out of which 22 companies have marked the sites for their projects
having the potential to generate 1100 MW. The land acquisition process has also been completed by 18 of
them; out of which 13 companies have submitted the feasibility report with an estimated potential of 650 MW.
As a result, by 2015 seven companies were provided with the generation licenses to commence the construc-
tion works with one project commissioned recently and has commenced producing electricity. A the moment,
all the stakeholders are struggling hard to achieve the target of producing 5% of electricity from wind energy
by 2030 as per renewable energy policy laid down by the government in 2006 (Rauf et al., 2015).
According to the latest estimates provided in the energy yearbook of 2015, wind energy is top of the list
among all RERs. The amount of electricity produced from wind source is 255 MW which is higher than solar
PV (100 MW) and bagasse (83 MW). There are several wind energy projects in different stages of develop-
ment (table 7) in various parts of the country. The number of ongoing wind power projects are 14 with a
cumulative capacity of 664 MW which are expected to be completed in 2017-18. The power thus produced
will be supplied to the national grid and the upfront tariff determined by NEPRA for these projects is the US
cents 13.52 per kWh.
3.3.1 Wind energy potential across Pakistan
All the provinces of Pakistan are blessed with different RERs. In case of wind energy, the coastal areas of
Sindh and Balochistan provinces along with the desert zones of Punjab and Sindh are rich in terms of wind
energy potential. According to some estimates around 50,000 MW of electricity can be produced if wind tur-
bines are installed alone in the coastal corridor of Sindh and Balochistan provides which is 180 km long and
60 km wide (Shahbaz et al., 2012). The wind speed of 5-7 m/s in these areas poses technical feasibility to de-
velop wind energy projects which are estimated to produce 20,000 MW of power. Despite this huge potential,
there was little consideration given to develop wind energy projects in the country which were merely pro-
ducing only 500 W till 2003. Although, some tiny plants with a capacity less than 500 W were also in opera-
tion for pumping water in Sindh and Balochistan at that time. However, from there onwards, PCRET devel-
oped about 130 units each with carrying capacity of 0.5–10 kW and a total of 143 kW of installed capacity by
2009 (Sheikh, 2009).
Fig.6 Wind power potential map of Pakistan
It is encouraging that following establishment of PCRET and AEDB, the pace of research and
development have increased, and different studies were undertaken to assess the potential of RERs including
wind energy. Some very good quantitative estimates of wind energy in the country can be obtained from the
tools and maps developed by ESMAP and NREL. Besides maps, the wind energy potential can be defined in
terms total installable capacity per kilometre square of the windy area taken as a percentage of the total land
area of the whole country. The wind energy potential in this way comes out to be 5 MW/km2 for Pakistan
with the overall suitability of 9% of the total land (table 8). The cumulative wind power generation potential
is thus above 349,000 MW (Shami et al., 2016), while the total wind energy potential estimated by NREL is
346,000 MW (346 GW).
It is evident from data in Table 8 that highest potential of wind energy exists in Balochistan province with
a total land of 12,000 km2 lying in good to excellent class having the potential to generate 64,000 MW of
electricity. In Sindh, the magnitude of the potentially available windy area is too high, i.e. 17,000 km2 and
with a potential to produce 88,000 MW of electricity. However, if we only consider good to excellent tech-
nical parameter even then 27,000 MW of power can be generated from the area available in Sindh province.
Since KPK is not located in the coastal zone, so the wind energy potential in KPK is comparatively low but
still have high wind energy potential than Punjab due to its terrain.
Table 7 List of completed and ongoing wind energy projects from 2007 onwards
Year Province Villages No. of Capacity Generation

Houses (kWh) (MWh/Year)
Sindh Goth Gul Muhammad Khaskheli 12 52 91
Goth Jumo Khan Khaskheli 60
Goth Ismail Khaskheli 1 5
Goth Ismail Mahpar 8
Goth Mohd Hasan Khaskheli 14
Goth Allah Dino Mahpar 14
Hot Khan 10
Goth Sher Muhammad Hamaiti 48
Goth Daandaari 250
2007 Goth Lukman 20
Goth Sammo 19
Goth Ali Hasan Paareri 120
Balochistan Goth Meer Isa 3 8 13
Goth Ramzan 15
Goth Haji Sher Muhammad 35
Goth Yaaqoob 18
Goth Mir Abdullah 8
Lasbela 32
Sindh Micro-Wind Turbine 150 262.8
Capacity
Generation (GWh/Year)
Technology Province (MW)
FFC Energy Limited Sindh 49.5 136.811
2014
Zorlu Energi (Pvt.) Ltd. Sindh 56.4 160.234
Three Gorges first Wind Farm Pakistan Limited Sindh 49.5
Foundation Wind Power-I Ltd. Khuttikun, Gharo Sindh 50
Foundation Wind Power-II Ltd. Khuttikun, Gharo Sindh 50
Financial close issued and under construction
Project Name Capacity (MW) Province Expected COD†
Sapphire Wind Power Company 50 Sindh Dec. 2015
Sapphire Wind Power Company 50 Sindh Jun. 2016
2015
Yunus Energy Ltd 50 Sindh Sep. 2016
Metro Power Ltd 30 Sindh Sep. 2016
Tapal Wing Energy Ltd 50 Sindh Sep. 2016
Gul Ahmed Energy Ltd 99 Sindh Sep. 2016
United Energy Ltd 50 Sindh Sep. 2016
Master Wind Energy Ltd 50 Sindh Sep. 2016
Tenaga Generasi Ltd 50 Sindh Sep. 2016
†: Commissioning date; Source: various energy yearbooks
3.3.2 Status of wind energy projects in Sindh
It is encouraging to note that owing to rich potential of wind energy in the Sindh province, the highest number
of wind energy projects are currently operational in the province. In this context, the renewable energy policy
of 2006 is important to mention since it provides due protection to the investors in the wind energy based pro-
ject. The idea of “wind risk” incorporated in the policy provides a safe passage for investors to carry on the
projects despite the variable nature of wind (Amer and Daim, 2011). As such, under this policy, first major
wind power station was commissioned at Gharo, Sindh in 2009 by AEDB. Later on, around 40 wind turbines
were installed in the Karachi city, with a cumulative capacity of about 10 MW (Sheikh, 2009). There are two
sites in the province of Sindh which have been thoroughly studied and are regarded as the most suitable loca-
tion for wind power plants. One of these locations is Gharo-Keti Bandar zone, and the other site is Jhimpir.
The first zone is a 60 km coastal belt which is 170 km in depth and having the potential to generate 50,000
MW of electricity (Amjad et al., 2012). Some estimates suggest that 11,000 MW out of this potential can be
harvested suitably while taking into account the 25% capacity factor. It is due to this reason that Gharo has
become the focus of both national and international companies for wind power projects (Shaikh et al., 2015).
The salient features of Gharo include the wind speed which is around 6.86 m/s at 50 m above the ground level
with a power density of 408.6 W/m2/year. (Amjad et al., 2015). Therefore, AEDB, PCRET and other agencies
are planning wind energy based power project around 700 capacity from Gharo site (Ahmed et al., 2016). The
other success stories of wind energy in Sindh is coming from Jhimpir, a location where seven projects are
under construction with each project of the 50 MW capacity. The already completed wind energy projects at
Jhimpir were developed by Fauji fertiliser company energy limited (FFCEL) (Sadati et al., 2015) and Zorlu
energy Pakistan. In total, more than 106 MW of power has been added to the national grid by projects com-
pleted by FFCEL and Zorlu Energy (Rauf et al., 2015). The total cost of Jhimpir wind power plant was USD
136 million (Shaikh et al., 2015) and has the further potential of 50,000 MW because of average wind speed
of 7 m/s (Rauf et al., 2015). The installation cost of wind energy projects lies between 40 and 50 million Pa-
kistani Rupees (PKR) per MW. Thus, the levelised cost of electricity produced from wind ranges from 2.50 to
3.00 PKR per kWh (Shami et al., 2016).
Table 8 Wind resource assessment of Pakistan's three provinces (Shami et al., 2016)
Sindh
Wind power Resource Land area Windy area Potential install
class potential (km2) (%) of total area able capacity (MW)
3 Moderate 12,349 8.76 61,745
4 Good 4640 3.29 23,200
5 Excellent 703 0.50 3515
6 Excellent - - -
7 Excellent - - -
Total 17,692 12.55 88,460
KPK
Wind power Resource Land area Windy area Potential install
class potential (km2) (%) of total area able capacity (MW)
3 Moderate 7754 10.41 38,770
4 Good 3105 4.17 15,525
5 Excellent 703 0.94 3515
6 Excellent 129 0.17 645
7 Excellent 18 0.02 90
Total 11,709 15.71 58,545
Balochistan
Wind power Resource Land area Windy area Potential installable ca-
class potential (km2) (%) of total area pacity (MW)
3 Moderate 16,487 4.75 82,435
4 Good 7709 2.22 38,545
5 Excellent 2722 0.78 13,610
6 Excellent 1891 0.54 9455
7 Excellent 420 0.12 2100
Total 29,229 8.41 146,145
Table 9 Cooking fuel used in Pakistan (Bhutto et al., 2011)

Cooking fuel Urban Areas (%) Rural Areas (%)
Wood 19.55 68.71
Oil/Natural gas 77.84 7.41
Electricity 0.05 0.07
Others 2.56 23.81
3.3.3 Status of wind energy projects in Balochistan

Balochistan is a thinly populated province in the country and according to some estimates contain about
13,700 villages out of which only 3,154 villages are connected to national rid (Hassan, 2005). The progress of
wind energy projects in Balochistan is low as compared to Sindh. As such, there are only few examples of
some completed and ongoing wind energy projects in Balochistan such as the development of a community
based wind-diesel hybrid power generation project with the help of Empower Consultants of New Zealand in
Sibbi district. This project was launched after a request from Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC).
Similarly, the Ministry of Environment had launched a project called ‘‘Commercialisation of wind power
potential in Pakistan’’ in collaboration with Global Environment Facility (GEF), Nordic Trust Fund, and
UNDP. The estimated cost of this project was USD 471,900, and the purpose was to promote and facilitate
wind energy projects in remote areas of the country (Mirza et al., 2007). The AEDB has also made some
progress regarding wind energy projects in Balochistan by installing small turbines of 500W each in different
universities of the province (Sheikh, 2009). In addition, by the year 2012, PCRET provided wind power to
1600 houses from 155 wind turbines with a cumulative capacity of 143 kW and each wind turbine sizing be-
tween 0.5-10 kW (Malik and Sukhera, 2012). Although, the pace of wind energy based projects is very low in
Balochistan province, despite sufficient potential, however, the current economic activities and future plans
under the framework of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEEC), the opportunities and avenues for
boosting wind energy in Balochistan are apparent.
Table 10 Consumption of various biofuels in Pakistan for 2010 (Butt et al., 2013).
Biomass input Consumption [Mt] Energy [PJ] Share [%]

Fuelwood 21.144 312.544 32.6
Dung 43.800 226.924 23.89
Bagasse 14.500 125.604 13.27
Cotton stalks 3.86 68.7 7.16
Local biomass/shrubs 1.678 23.906 2.52
Rice husk 1.250 4.186 0.44
Other crop residues 35.254 192.7 20.09
Total 121.486 954.564 100
3.4 Biomass energy potential in Pakistan
Biomass energy is a traditional form of energy used in various ways in Pakistan. Since the majority of the
country’s population is living in rural areas and associated with the agriculture thus ample amount of biomass
is produced (Ghaffar, 1995). Biomass energy products from the agricultural sector are in the form of crop res-
idues, i.e. sugarcane bagasse and rice husk and animal waste (animal dung) (Amer and Daim, 2011). There-
fore, the immediately available forms of fuels are dung, crop residues and firewood. These fuels constitute a
greater portion of energy products used in daily life across rural areas of Pakistan (Table 9). A typical family
in rural area consume about 2,325 kg of firewood or 1,480 kg of dung or 1,160 kg of crop residues per year.
(Mirza et al., 2008).
A significant amount of biomass energy is also produced from livestock in the form of animal waste. It has
been estimated that there are around 172.2 million animals in the country with a combined population of 72
million cattle and buffaloes (Zuberi et al., 2015). However, animal waste is not processed further to put it into
other uses and is used mostly for cooking purpose alone. It has been reported in the economic survey of Paki-
stan that in the year 2009-2010, around 263,000 m3 of forest wood was used as fuelwood for cooking purpose
in the rural areas (Bhutto et al., 2011). Due to lack of alternate energy resources and persistent poverty, it is
safe to assume that dependency of rural communities on fuelwood will remain high (Table 10). It is due to
this reason that, Pakistan has the second highest deforestation rate in the world (Butt et al., 2013).
There are excellent prospects for Pakistan to use crop residue as a source of biomass energy keeping in
view that country is among the top 5 sugarcane producers in the world. The amount of sugarcane produced
from the 80 sugar mills of Pakistan is about 50 million tons annually. As such, the sugarcane residue (bagasse)
obtained in the process is estimated to be around 10 million tons with a potential to generate 3000 MW of
electricity (Amer and Daim, 2011; Zuberi et al., 2013). It is significant to note that the average annual produc-
tion of bagasse for last five years remained 13,569,180 million tons. Therefore, the estimated potential of
power generation from this huge amount of bagasse is equivalent to 1304 MW/h while the current extraction
is only 478 MW/h only (Ahmed et al., 2016).
Recent attempts to promote biomass energy projects in the country include but are not limited to the joint
venture of AEDB with NREL of USA and Riso, together they assessed the possibility of centralised and
large-scale utilisation of the biomass potential. They agreed on the installation of a bagasse based cogenera-
tion facility of 1800 MW potential along with waste to power generation plant of 500 MW (Shaikh et al.,
2015). The assessment studies of other researchers such as Raheem et al. (2016) concludes that total crop res-
idues produced every year in the country are about 69.5 million tons thus having the potential to generate
45,870 million kWe per year (equivalent to 12,741 MW). As such, the biomass energy alone can suffice 85%
of the energy needs of the country. This is still a conservative figure and does not include animal waste and
industry-based crop residues. Another important study performed by Biberacher et al. (2015) used the bio-
sphere energy transfer hydrology (BETHY/DLR) model to assess time-series of bioenergy potentials (2001–
2010) based on net primary productivity (NPP) from agricultural side products in Pakistan. They introduced
ASECO, a new biomass power plant location optimisation tool to identify potential power plants and their
supply range. A total of 174 possible power plant locations were pre-selected from 57 out of 115 districts
where significant biomass potential was available in the country (Figure 7). Thus, based on the estimates of
biomass energy potential and detailed description of the optimal locations in the country, a window of oppor-
tunity exists for both government and non-government organisation to promote biomass energy projects.
3.4.1 Biogas potential in Pakistan
Biogas is produced as a result of anaerobic digestion of biodegradables substances such as farm products
waste, agricultural wastes, animal dung, aquatic weeds, manure, and municipal waste (Rauf et al., 2015). The
process involves the conversion and degradation of organic matter present in these materials by
microorganisms as a result of which organic fertilisers are produced along with methane (Awan and Khan,
2014). The history of biogas production in Pakistan is quite old, and it goes back to 1959. A biogas scheme
was initiated in 1974 by the then Directorate General of New and Renewable Resources (DGNRER) under
the ministry of petroleum and natural resources from 1974 to 1987. This resulted into development of 4,137
biogas units throughout the country. These plants were capable of producing 3,000 to 5,000 cubic feet of
biogas per day for cooking and lighting purposes (Mirza et al., 2008). Later on, the biogas support program
(BSP) was initiated by the Government of Pakistan in 2000. The BSP achieved its target of installing 1200
biogas stations till 2011. However, BSP set a new target of adding 10,000 more units in 5 years which was
estimated to be 27% of total Pakistan’s potential (Amjid et al., 2011).
Biogas is a highly suitable form of energy for rural areas and can be easily utilised with the collaboration
of the communities. According to Mirza et al. (2008) the animal excreta produced in the country can be used
to generate 12 million cubic meters of biogas per day which can meet the energy requirements of 28 million
rural population, along with the production of 21 million tons of bio-fertiliser annually. Moreover, the biogas
produced from the dungs has three times higher heat contents as compared to direct burning (Awan and Khan,
2014). Similarly, based on the total amount of animal dung produced in the country, 23.25 million m3 of bio-
gas can be obtained per day under the prevailing temperature conditions in Pakistan (Bhutto et al., 2011).
Thus, all the prerequisites are highly favourable for biogas production in the country including a number of
animal excreta, the average climatic conditions and the percentage amount of methane produced in a typical
biogas plant. Zuberi et al. (2013) reported that considering the higher heating value (HHV) of methane in Pa-
kistani biogas, the overall HHV of the biogas produced would be 22,354-26,080 kJ/m3 of biogas. This amount
of biogas energy can produce 4,761 to 5,554 MW of electricity. A recent estimate of Raheem et al. (2016) is
that Pakistan has the potential to produce biogas of 9 million m3 per day (Table 11). Thus, the biogas produc-
tion potential in Pakistan is not only high but feasible to harness.
Scenario 2: Only the

most suitable biomass
plant locations among
the whole country
contribute to the overall
Bioenergy target.
Fig. 7 Optimal biomass power plants locations with assigned biomass supply areas (red areas)
Table 11 Methane yield and energy from different feedstock in Pakistan (Raheem et al., 2016)
Feedstock type Collection (million Collective efficiency

Methane yield (m3/t) Energy (PJ)
ton) (%)
Buffalo 109.5 50 50 82
Cattle 116.07 87
Horses 1.28 0.96
Crop residue
Cotton 0.55 40 2 4
Rice 10.56 14 58
Wheat 34.1 200 150
Maize 9.05 250 62
Gram 0.76 – 4.8
MSW 29.18 100 8.48 (MJ)
3.4.2 Biogas production status in Pakistan

Biogas production is comparatively mature in Pakistan as we can see from the history of efforts made in dif-
ferent periods. Such efforts include the installation of about 1200 biogas plants by PCRET in 2008 involving
local households who shared half of the cost (Mirza et al., 2008). In the same year, PCRET installed 2500
biogas plants out of which 1700 plants were installed in Punjab, 300 in Sindh, 113 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa,
20 in Federal capital, 71 in Balochistan and 50 in Azad Kashmir (Raheem et al., 2016). Furthermore, large-
scale biogas plants for community needs were also launched in low-income areas of Islamabad which provid-
ed energy to 20 households. A large sized biogas facility of 1,000 m3 capacity was also made available at cat-
tle colony, Karachi, Sindh (Mirza et al., 2008). Earlier, the utilisation of biogas energy was limited to cook-
ing and heating, however, following power crisis which emerged in the country in 2007, the necessity to use
biogas for commercial production of electricity become significant. Therefore, biogas plants with higher ca-
pacity 10m3, 15m3, 20m3 production per day were introduced and were installed at Sialkot, Narowal, Jhang
and other areas of the Punjab province (Malik and Sukhera, 2012). In 2010, AEDB planned an energy
production project employing biogas of ample capacity at Landhi, cattle colony, Karachi, Sindh for generat-
ing 30 MW of electricity (Sheikh, 2010). Similarly, a Letter of Intent (LOI) was also issued for the installa-
tion of 12 MW plant in Jhang, Punjab and 9 MW at Pak Ethanol Pvt. Ltd., Sindh, both plants will generate
electricity from agriculture waste (Ahmed et al., 2016). The latest plans of PCRET includes the installation of
50,000 biogas units by 2020 which will have the capacity to produce 0.3 million m3 of biogas per day
(Raheem et al., 2016).
The highest amount of production potential of biogas is reported by PCRET, i.e. 19.125 million m3/day
which is sufficient enough to fulfil the cooking requirement of a population of 50 million. Thus 44% of rural
masses can use this amount of biogas for domestic heating and cooking (Malik and Sukhera, 2012). The an-
cillary benefit of using biogas is the production of organic fertiliser which amounts 35.04 million tons during
the biogas production (Shahbaz et al., 2012). A recent work by Uddin et al. (2016) reported that PCRET had
completed the installation of about 4,109 biogas plants (Table 12) at the cost of PKR 38 million which can
replace the amount spent each month on buying organic fertilizer, wood, liquefied petroleum gas and kero-
sene oil.
Rasheed et al. (2016) stated that, although the development of biogas projects started in the 1980s, the fu-
ture development of biogas still depends on whether it may substitute natural gas and LPG or not. They pro-
posed a model for the cost-benefit analysis (CBA) of a novel anaerobic bioenergy plant. Based on such de-
signs and CBAs the growth of biogas in future can be assessed in the country. However, having observed the
potential of biogas in Pakistan, the prospects are bright, and with the government, support and stakeholders’
participation, the biogas can become a leading form of RER in the country.
3.5 Geothermal energy
There are around 30 countries in the world using geothermal energy such as China, USA, Japan, Italy, and
Iceland. In South Asia, China is leading in the geothermal energy technology and is benefiting from it in Ti-
bet followed by India which has a geothermal station at Puga valley. There are plenty of locations in Pakistan
where the potential for geothermal energy exists (Table 13). This potential of geothermal energy is a geologi-
cal phenomenon and is purely natural. This is evident from the existence of a lot of hot springs in northern
areas of the country and in Sindh province. In Punjab, the thermal springs and seepages follow the alignment
of the syntaxial bend. The “Hamun-e-Mashkhel” is a graben structure in Balochistan province also shows
geothermal affinity. The highest surface temperature recorded in the Hunza valley is 210 oC, and preliminary
studies indicate a higher subsurface temperature. A large concentration of geothermal manifestations also
occur in Dadu District of the Sindh province (Bakht, 2000).
The application of geothermal energy has not been reported so far in Pakistan, though there are a lot of hot
springs with temperature ranging from 30 to 170 of in various parts of the country, e.g. in the vicinity of Kara-
chi and the Pakistan’s part of Himalayas (Sheikh, 2010). According to Zaigham et al. (2009), the potential of
geothermal energy in the county is high owing to the facts that (i) a great progression of alteration zones and
fumaroles, (ii) existence of numerous high-temperature springs, (iii) symptoms of Quaternary volcanism.
However, more studies need to be undertaken to explore in further detail and estimate the technically viable
potential of geothermal energy and the optimal sites. In order to take advantage of the geothermal energy and
convert it into power, the most optimal sites need to be located at first. This requires identification of high-
temperature granitic body inside the earth with the shallowest depth possible which mostly happens to take
place from 3 to 7 km down the earth. The earth surface temperature in different parts of the country can be
observed from the map (Figure 8) which is based on data from about 200 nodal data points which is a 22
years average (Zaigham and Nayyar, 2010).
Table 12 Biogas plants Installed by PCRET in Pakistan from 2002 to 2012 (Uddin et al., 2016)
Biogas plants installed

Province Biogas plants installed (2002–07)
(2007– 12)
Islamabad 258 30
Punjab 820 1700
KPK 194 155
Sindh 264 300
Balochistan 60 80
AJK 00 50
Total 1596 2513
Table 13 Temperature estimates based on different quantitative thermometers (Bakht, 2000)
SiO2 Na-K-Ca Na-K-Ca

Surface
S.No Location Na-K (Mg correct-
Adiabatic Conductive β = 1/3 β= 4/3 Temp (Co)
ed)
1 Chilas 83.0 79.4 215.5 171.7 75.3 66.6 20
2 Jaglot 85.4 82.1 56.9 56.9 127.7 84.8 65
3 Jaglot 88.7 85.9 85.0 148.6 160.1 43.2 20
Jaglot gah Surface water sample
4 Murtazabad 93.8 91.7 212.7 220.4 235.3 133.0 75
5 Murtazabad 110.0 110.5 240.6 226.6 221.3 89 80
6 Murtazabad 119.6 121.7 312.7 235.2 175.4 72 26
7 Murtazabad 122.5 125.1 209.3 219.3 236.9 76.0 91
8 Hakuchar 115.6 116.7 252.3 191.3 97.9 53.4 50
9 Hakuchar 116.6 118.2 251.2 0.0 0.0 95.3 49
10 Budelas 113.4 114.2 159.1 116.6 116.6 23.7 39
11 Budelas 119.0 121.0 153.8 104.5 104.5 75.6 40
Fig. 8 Map of 22 years average annual earth-skin temperature of Pakistan (Zaigham & Nayyar, 2010)
The geothermal energy options in Pakistan can be classified into three geothermal environments, i.e. the
geo-pressurised systems related to basin subsidence, the suture-related systems, and the systems related to
Neogene–Quaternary volcanism. Geothermal energy projects can help a country like Pakistan by providing an
extra source of renewable energy which will reduce the energy import burden. (Rauf et al., 2015). It is evident
from this brief review that certain parts of the country possess high geothermal energy potential such as the
south-eastern part with earth skin temperature ranging from 31 to 260C. As such, there is a high likelihood
that geothermal energy stations in these areas can be installed and would be a cost-effective solution in future.
4 Conclusion and recommendations for future
Pakistan is currently facing significant challenges regarding energy shortfall which has affected every walk of
life. With an increasing growth in energy demand of 11-13% per year, the government must diversify, accel-
erate and ensure energy supply. Having observed that the past and current trends in energy demand and sup-
ply, the solution for future appears to be in the systematic induction of various forms of RERs in the national
energy mix. The primary policy flaw observed in the current energy system is the production of electricity
from oil and gas-fired power plants which is more than 60% of the overall energy mix. Thus, the solution is to
gradually replace thermal power plants with indigenously available RERs which are abundant and possesses
huge potential. However, after carefully observing the nature of future energy projects in the country, it still
cannot be established that the country’s energy management is going in the right direction. It is because none
of the upcoming energy projects based on RERs is impressive except about 30 mega hydropower projects
which have a cumulative capacity of approximately 29,300 MW and some 700 MW wind energy projects in
Sindh province. In case of a mega hydropower project, the uncertainty in future persists because of the inex-
actness in the time of completion of these projects.
Based on the systematic review of RERs undertaken in this study, it is concluded that there is great poten-
tial to harness various RERs of the country. However, none of these resources can be harnessed immediately
for various administrative and instructional limitations. Further, each of renewable resources namely hydel,
solar, wind, biomass, biogas and geothermal carry some constraints such as installation and implementation
cost, lifespan issues (short-term and long-term), energy cost, operation and maintenance cost, and raw materi-
als availability. Therefore, in such a situation the government need to prioritise renewable energy projects by
developing long-term policies leading to locally adaptable energy plans. Such plans and policies can be
derived from a long-term national scale multi-objective energy optimisation model, which can put all the con-
straints on one page. Hence, we recommend that although Pakistan is having a great potential for almost all
types of RERs; but hydel energy is the one that best suits the country requirements. The current infrastructure,
research potential, industrial setup and self-efficiency towards solar and wind energy in the country are negli-
gible, and any emergency based investment in these sectors will lead to a flow of capital outside the country
which is again not an indigenous solution. Therefore, the future energy mix should include more than 60% of
hydropower which was once an ideal energy mix for the country in the past. This is the only renewable ener-
gy option which can create job opportunities and for which human capital and other raw materials are domes-
tically available. Furthermore, this will simultaneously secure three enormous resources that every country
need, i.e. energy, food and water. Pakistan has been severely damaged by megafloods in 2010, 2011, 2012
and 2013 consecutively and similarly by drought in 2014 which is the really alarming situation for a climate
change a vulnerable country like Pakistan. Thus, the country shall invest more and more in the hydro sector
and keep the pace of research pertaining to solar and wind energy as fast as possible so that it becomes indig-
enously self-sufficient and economically viable for all types of RERs in the near future.
Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2016YFC0502209), the National
Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 51522901), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central
Universities. The authors would also extend the appreciation to the anonymous reviewers and editors for their
constructive comments for improving the paper.
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Overcoming Electricity Crisis in Pakistan: An Overview of the Renewable Energy

Article · December 2017

Syed Aziz Ur Rehman Yanpeng Cai

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Nafees Mohammad Gordhan Valasai

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Kabul River View project

Immobilization of heavy metals through biochar. View project

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Journal of Environmental Accounting and Management

Overcoming Electricity Crisis in Pakistan: An Overview of the Renewable Energy

Submission Info Abstract

Fig. 1 Energy flow Chart, 2014-2015

2.1 Pakistan Council of Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET)

Fig. 2 % age share of Fuels in primary energy supply mix (1992-2015)

2.2 Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB)

Fig. 3 Growth in installed generating capacity (GWh) of electricity

3 Status and potential of renewable energy resources in Pakistan

3.1 Mega hydropower potential and progress in Pakistan

S. No Station Waterway Location Installed Commissioning

2 Ghazi Barotha Indus (downstream Tarbe- Attock 1450 Jul. 2003

Table 2 Under-construction and future mega hydropower projects in Pakistan

S. Station Waterway Installed Status/DOC*

S. Station Waterway Installed Status/DOC*

3.2 Solar energy potential in Pakistan

3.2.2 Technologically suitable options of using solar energy in Pakistan

Target 2011– Target 2016–

3.3 Wind energy progress and prospects in Pakistan

Fig.6 Wind power potential map of Pakistan

Year Province Villages No. of Capacity Generation

Table 9 Cooking fuel used in Pakistan (Bhutto et al., 2011)

3.3.3 Status of wind energy projects in Balochistan

Biomass input Consumption [Mt] Energy [PJ] Share [%]

3.4 Biomass energy potential in Pakistan

Scenario 2: Only the

Feedstock type Collection (million Collective efficiency

3.4.2 Biogas production status in Pakistan

3.5 Geothermal energy

Biogas plants installed

SiO2 Na-K-Ca Na-K-Ca

4 Conclusion and recommendations for future

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