Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)

Semester: Autumn, 2020

ASSIGNMENT No. 1
Q. 1 Highlight the electricity resources of Pakistan. Also provide some suggestion to increase our
electricity to fulfill the needs in future.
Pakistan’s energy resources consist of fossil fuels (coal, gas and oil), uranium and renewable energy
(hydropower, wind, solar, wood, etc). The fossil fuels reserves and potential renewable energy of Pakistan are
reported in Table 3. Pakistan does not have adequate oil reserves and has to import large quantities of crude oil
and petroleum products to meet more than 80% of its oil requirements. The natural gas reserves of the country
are limited, however the coal reserves are large but yet undeveloped.
The hydro power potential of Pakistan is estimated to be 50,000 MW. Around 13.7% of the estimated potential
has been exploited. The hydro potential is located in mountainous regions, away from load centers. High
investment cost (for electricity generation and transmission), socio-political issues, such as water allocation
among the provinces and resettlement of people, are some of the reasons for not exploiting the potential to its
full capacity. Pakistan has a considerable potential for wind energy. The economically exploitable wind
potential is about 50,000 MW.
TABLE 3. ESTIMATED ENERGY RESOURCES
Fossil Fuels Nuclear Renewable
  Solid Liquid Gas Uranium Hydro Wind
Total amount in specific units 3,450 49.78 20.44 n.a. 50.0 50.0
Total amount in exajoule (EJ) 68.3 2.2 19.4 n.a. 2.3 1.4
 Specific units for solid & liquid: million tonnes, gas: trillion cubic feet, hydro and wind: GW
 Solid consists of only coal. It has been converted to energy at 19.8 GJ/tonne.
 Liquid consists of crude only. It has been converted to energy at 44.2 GJ/tonne.
 Natural gas has been converted to energy at 950 GJ/million cubic feet.
 Hydro power potential has been converted to energy at 50% plant factor and 10,550 GJ/GWh.
 Wind power potential has been converted to energy at 30% capacity factor and 10,550 GJ/GWh.
 Sources: (HDIP: 2013 and (WAPDA: 2011).
1.2.2. Energy Statistics
The energy supply statistics are given in Table 4. During the last decade, the indigenous oil production has been
at a level of about 55,000-77,000 barrels per day (equivalent to about 16-21% of the country's oil consumption).
Pakistan's natural gas production in year 2012-13 was 4,126 million cubic feet per day.
TABLE 4. ENERGY STATISTICS (EXAJOULE)
Average
annual growth rate (%)
1970 1980 1990 2000 2005 2010 2013 2000 to 2013
Energy consumption

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

Total 0.33 0.67 1.24 1.90 2.45 2.77 2.85 3.2

Solid 0.02 0.06 0.09 0.09 0.19 0.20 0.17 5.0
Liquid 0.17 0.20 0.50 0.83 0.73 0.88 0.94 0.9
Gas 0.11 0.25 0.47 0.77 1.23 1.36 1.37 4.5
Nuclear - - - - 0.03 0.03 0.05 20.6
Hydro 0.03 0.16 0.18 0.20 0.27 0.30 0.32 3.6
Imported electricity 0.001 0.003 0.004 16.7**
Energy production
Total 0.18 0.46 0.83 1.16 1.77 1.91 1.98 4.1
Solid 0.02 0.03 0.06 0.06 0.09 0.07 0.06 0.03
Liquid 0.02 0.02 0.12 0.13 0.15 0.15 0.18 2.5
Gas 0.11 0.25 0.47 0.77 1.23 1.36 1.37 4.5
Nuclear - - - - 0.03 0.03 0.05 20.6
Hydro 0.03 0.16 0.18 0.20 0.27 0.30 0.32 3.5
Net Imports
Total 0.15 0.22 0.41 0.74 0.68 0.86 0.87 1.4
Solid 0.00 0.03 0.03 0.03 0.10 0.14 0.11 11.0
Liquid 0.15 0.19 0.38 0.71 0.58 0.73 0.76 0.6
Electricity 0.001 0.003 0.004 16.7**
*Nuclear power was introduced after 1970.
- Less than 0.005 exajoule
** Growth rate during the period 2005-2013.
Notes:-
1. Years in this Table are financial (i.e. from 1st July – 30th June)
2. Energy consumption = Primary energy production + Net import (import – export).
3. Solid fuel consists of coal and lignite.
4. Import of electricity was started in the year 2003
Sources: (GoP: 1978) and (HDIP: 2013).
Coal Production in 2012-13 was 3.2 million tonnes, while 3.7 million tonnes of coal were imported to meet the
industrial requirement. The development of the coal mining industry in Pakistan, particularly for power
generation is hampered by many constraints relating to the quality of coal, mining difficulties and
organizational constraints.
During the year 2012-13, hydropower provided 30.3% of electricity in Pakistan. Although Pakistan has
relatively high endowment of hydropower potential, however only 6,826 MW (13.7%) has been exploited so
far. Some small, mini and micro hydro projects are under construction and a number of medium and large size
hydroelectric projects are either planned or proposed.
Nuclear power generation contributed 4.2% to the total electricity generation of Pakistan in the year 2012-13.
The country has three operating nuclear power plants (NPPs); KANUPP, a Pressurized Heavy Water Reactor
(PHWR) of 137 MW (de-rated 100 MW), and two Pressurized Light Water Reactor (PWR) namely

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

CHASNUPP unit-1 (C-1) of gross capacity 325 MW and CHASNUPP unit-2 (C-2) of gross capacity 330 MW.
Two more PWR type nuclear units C-3 and C-4 each of 340 MW gross capacity are under construction at the
Chashma site and are expected to be commissioned in 2016 and 2017, respectively.
PAEC continues to invest in HR capacity building initiatives and has made steadfast progress in strengthening
its Human Resource Development Institutes (HRDIs) to fulfill the manpower requirements of the expanding
nuclear power programme of the country. The HRDIs of PAEC have been making a significant contribution to
development of human resource in the field of science and technology in the country, in particular, in
applications of nuclear science and technology. PAEC hires the talent from a pool of nationally approved and
chartered universities and technical and vocational training institutes. The following HRDIs of PAEC turn out
the recruited young scientists, engineers and technicians from various disciplines every year with award of post-
graduate degrees and training certificates/diplomas.
The Pakistan Institute of Engineering and Applied Sciences (PIEAS) is the major HR provider for PAEC
programmes in science and engineering as well as in the medical sector. PIEAS offers Master and Ph.D. degree
programmes in Nuclear Engineering, Systems Engineering, Process Engineering, Materials Engineering,
Mechanical Engineering, Medical Physics, Radiation Physics, Computer Science, Nuclear Medicine and
Radiation & Medical Oncology. PIEAS also offers BS programs in electrical and mechanical engineering.
Besides the degree programmes, PIEAS also conducts management courses for both middle and senior
management officials and organizes training courses in various specialized areas. PIEAS is ranked as No. 1
engineering institution by Higher Education Commission Pakistan, while having a ranking of 106th place in QS
Asian University Rankings 2014.
The Karachi Institute of Power Engineering (KINPOE) offers Master Degree programme in nuclear power
engineering and one year diploma in nuclear technology to engineering and science graduates. It also offers a
post diploma training programme in nuclear technology for technicians.
The CHASNUPP Centre of Nuclear Training (CHASCENT) provides one year training in NPP technology to
engineers and technicians. It also provides post diploma training programmes to technicians. The retraining of
plant operation personnel is being conducted in this centre on regular basis to refresh their knowledge and
licensing requirements.
The National Centre for Non-Destructive Testing (NCNDT) provides training in non-destructive testing
techniques to engineers and technicians of PAEC and industry.
The Pakistan Welding Institute (PWI) provides training in industrial welding techniques to professionals of
PAEC and industry.
The School of Mineral Technology (SMT) is providing training in the field of drilling, mining, logging and
prospecting of minerals.
The Directorate of Human Resource Development (DHRD) imparts orientation training programmes for all the
officers recruited in PAEC to acquaint them with the working of PAEC, its organizational structure, its

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

policies/procedures and to impart better understanding about their future work and responsibilities, and
associated benefits.
Q. 2 Analyze the Industrial policies of Pakistan and the role of Policies in the economy of Pakistan.
The country has immense reserves of various minerals and natural resources. Important minerals found in
Pakistan are gypsum, limestone, chromites, iron ore, rock salt, silver, gold, precious stones, gems,
marble, copper, coal, graphite, sulphur, fire clay, silica. The salt range in Punjab Province has the one of the
largest deposit of pure salt founded in the world. Balochistan province is a mineral-rich area having substantial
mineral, oil and gas reserves which have not been exploited to their full capacity or fully explored, recent
government policies have begun to develop this region of the country and to tap into the immense resources
found there. The province has significant quantities of copper, chromite and iron, and pockets of antimony and
zinc in the south and gold in the far west. Natural gas was discovered near Sui in 1952, and the province has
been gradually developing its oil and gas projects over the past fifty years.
Major reserves of copper and gold in Balochistan's Reko Diq area have been discovered in early 2006. The
Reko Diq mining area has proven estimated reserves of 2 billion tons of copper and 20 million ounces of gold.
According to the current market price, the value of the deposits has been estimated at about $65 billion, which
would generate thousands of jobs.
The discovery has ranked Rekodiq among the world's top seven copper reserves. The Rekodiq project is
estimated to produce 200,000 tons of copper and 400,000 ounces of gold per year, at an estimated value of
$1.25 billion at current market prices. The copper and gold are currently traded at about $5,000 per ton and
$600 per ounce respectively in the international market. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province accounts for at least
78% of the marble production in Pakistan. Pakistan is home to some of the most finest and purest grades of
marble, granite and slate found in the world. Much of the grades A Marble that is exported out of European
countries like Italy actually have their origins in Pakistan which previously lacked fine polishing and processing
machinery. The Government has taken steps to invest in this crucial sector with the recent establishment of
a Marble City within Balochistan.
Pakistan's first oil field was discovered in the late 1952 in Balochistan near a giant gas field at
suo Sui in Balochistan. The Toot oilfield was discovered in the early 1960s Islamabad in the Punjab. Production
has steadily increased since then.
Pakistan's first gas field was the giant gas field at Sui in Balochistan which was discovered in the late
1952.  Pakistan is also a major producer of Bituminous coal, Sub-bituminous coal and Lignite. Coal mining
started in the British colonial era and has continued to be used by Pakistani industries after independence in
1947.
In FY 2002-03, real growth in manufacturing was 7.7%. In the twelve months ending 30 June 2004, large-scale
manufacturing grew by more than 18% compared to the previous twelve-month period. The textile and garment
industry's share in the economy along with its contribution to exports, employment, foreign-exchange earnings,

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

investment and value added make it Pakistan's single largest manufacturing sector. The industry comprises 453
textile mills: 50 integrated units; and 403 spinning units, with 9.33 million spindles and 148,000 rotors, The
capacity utilization was 83% for spindles and 47% for rotors during 2003.
The Federal Bureau of Statistics provisionally valued large-scale manufacturing at Rs.981,518 million in 2005
thus registering over 138% growth since 2000  while small-scale manufacturing was valued at Rs.356,835
million in 2005 thus registering over 80% growth since 2000.
Pakistan's automotive industry is the one of the fastest growing industries of the country, accounting for 4% of
Pakistan's GDP and employing a workforce of over 1,800,000 people. Currently there are 3200 automotive
manufacturing plants in the country, with an investment of ₨92 billion (US$650 million) producing 1.8 million
motorcycles and 200,000 vehicles annually. Its contribution to the national exchequer is nearly ₨50
billion (US$350 million). The sector, as a whole, provides employment to 3.5 million people and plays a pivotal
role in promoting the growth of the vendor industry. Pakistan's auto market is considered among the smallest,
but fastest growing in South Asia. Over 180,000 cars were sold in the fiscal year 2014-15, rising to 206,777
units fiscal year 2015-16. Pakistan has huge potential for the technology industry, which includes software
development and electronics manufacturing. Pakistan Aeronautical Complex recently started the manufacturing
of Tablet PCs, Ebook readers, and notebooks in collaboration with INNAVTEK of China. Software
development also has a huge potential, which is being utilized as a result of numerous projects initiated by
the Government of Pakistan. After the devastating 2005 Kashmir earthquake Pakistan has instituted stricter
building codes. The cost of construction in Pakistan will increase 30 to 50% due to implementation of a new
building code which requires strengthening of structures to withstand earthquake of 8 to 8.5 magnitude. The
demand for cement has increased due to reconstruction after the earthquake. The price of cement has increased
by 50% and Pakistan government banned export of cement to lower the prices and the reconstruction costs.
Dubai Ports World, announced on June 1, 2006 that it will spend $10 billion to develop transport infrastructure
and real estate in Pakistan. Dubai Ports World is also discussing the possibility of the company taking over
operational management of Gwadar port in Balochistan.
Emaar Properties, announced on May 31, 2006 three real estate developments in the cities
of Islamabad and Karachi in Pakistan. The projects, with a total investment of $2.4 billion, will include a series
of master planned communities that will set new benchmarks in commercial, residential and retail property
within Pakistan.
In addition the conglomerate signed an unprecedented $43 billion deal to develop two island resorts - Bundal
Island and Buddo Island - over the next decade.
The Federal Bureau of Statistics provisionally valued this sector at Rs.178,819 million in 2005 thus registering
over 88% growth since 2000.
Pakistan has extensive energy resources, including fairly sizable natural gas reserves, some proven oil
reserves, coal (Pakistan has the largest coal reserves in the world, and a large hydropower potential. However,

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

the exploitation of energy resources has been slow due to a shortage of capital and domestic political
constraints. Domestic petroleum production totals only about half the country's oil needs, and the need to import
oil has contributed to Pakistan's trade deficits and past shortages of foreign exchange.
The current government has announced that privatization in the oil and gas sector is a priority, as is the
substitution of indigenous gas for imported oil, especially in the production of power. Pakistan is a world leader
in the use of compressed natural gas (CNG) for personal automobiles.
The short-term national energy demand has expanded significantly since 2001 due to massive rise in sales of
durable goods like refrigerators, washing machines, split air conditioners, et al.. In 2004, Access Group
International announced plans to invest $1 billion over the next 5 years in solar cell manufacture and wind
farms. MOUs have been signed with Alternate Energy Development Board. In early 2005, the government
approved a 25-year Energy Security Plan to boost electric capacity eightfold.
Q. 3 Discuss the major oil refineries of Pakistan and their role and contribution in the petroleum sector in
Pakistan.
This downstream energy sector report, Oil Refining Industry in Pakistan is a complete source of information on
Pakistan crude oil refining industry.
It provides refinery level information relating to existing and planned (new build) refineries such as insights and
forecasts of refinery capacities, refined petroleum products production and consumption, refinery complexity
factor and comparison against peer group countries in the respective region.
The report also covers complete details of major players operating in the refining sector in Pakistan and in depth
analysis of the latest industry news and deals.
Scope
 Outlook of Country Oil Refining Industry and refined petroleum products beyond 2018
 Forecasts of refined products production and consumption along with major refining companies, and
operators.
 Historic and Forecasted Refining capacity and secondary units capacities beyond 2018
 Key Opportunities and Restraints in country Refinery market
 Benchmark with five peer group countries on Nelson Complexity Factor.
 Market structure of Country Refining Industry, companies, capacities and market share.
 Information on planned refineries such as planned capacity, equity structure, Operator Company, expected
commissioning date and project cost.
 Refined petroleum products production and demand beyond 2018.
 Refinery level information such as refinery name, commissioned year, primary and secondary units installed
capacities along with future capacity expansions, refinery complexity factor, ownership and operator details.
 Company profiles of major refining companies including SWOT Analysis.

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

 Latest mergers, acquisitions, contract announcements, and all related industry news and deals analysis.
Reasons to Purchase
 Vital source to make your strategic business decisions with our in-depth analysis based on historical and
forecasted data on refineries, countries and companies
 Identify potential opportunities for capital investments in upcoming refineries, capacity expansions and
asset investments.
 Assess merits and demerits of investing in a particular country's Refinery market against its peer group
countries.
 Strengthen your strategy formulation using the key information and data to maximize return on investments.
 Identify potential investment opportunities present across the Refinery value chain in the entire world
 Appraise upcoming refineries using our asset level information.
 Essential and latest information to keep you ahead of competitors by understanding rival companies'
business strategies.
 Make your vital financial decisions using latest news and deals information.
Pakistan’s oil sector has been booming; demand for crude oil, gasoline and diesel, has been growing and
projected to continue to grow at 10 percent per annum for the next five years (OCAC, 2018). Refineries play a
major role in our energy needs. They save Pakistan billions in foreign exchange annually, give jobs to tens of
thousands, contributing heavily to the national exchequer in duties and taxes while strengthening Pakistan’s
energy security.
However, the refining industry has received little support from the government in the last decade and is often at
the receiving end of undue criticism, including from former policy planners. This shakes the confidence of the
sector’s participants, who have already invested billions in the country, and could impede the energy industry’s
growth.
For instance, some critics of the energy industry have claimed that the sector needs government subsidies to
survive and the state shouldn’t strive for investments in oil refineries. This is misleading and incorrect:
Pakistan’s refineries do not get direct subsidies or heavy payouts from the government for their survival. Many
industries receive some form of government support; fertilisers benefit from gas subsidies, automotives receive
tariffs on vehicle imports, and banks get heavy government borrowings and low deposit mark-up rates.
Oil refineries, however, receive minimal support in the form of 7.5 percent of duty on high-speed diesel, but
since a refinery produces a number of other fuels as well, the net impact is just 2.25 percent on the whole barrel.
This modest tariff protection for a heavily capital intensive industry, which imports its raw materials is simply
inadequate.
Petroleum business model is fairly straightforward and usually profitable, although margins are underpinned by
movements in oil prices. The oil and gas production sector earns profits by extracting and selling hydrocarbons.

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

Refineries make profits processing and converting crude oil into various refined products which are sold to oil
marketing companies and other buyers. They also feed petrochemical and other ancillary industries.
In Pakistan, unlike the power and food sectors for whom significant subsidies are allotted in the annual budget,
the oil refining sector doesn’t receive any special treatment. On the contrary, its participants pay hundreds of
billions of rupees each year in taxes and duties. In FY18, four leading listed refineries contributed Rs176.9
billion to the exchequer as taxes, levies, and duties. Pakistan’s leading refineries have shown that they can turn
decent profits even in tough times. The refiners typically thrive in a weak oil price environment, since they use
crude oil as a raw material and any reduction in international oil prices lowers their cost of production. But they
can report losses when oil jumps higher.
For refiners in Pakistan, the third quarter of this calendar year was a difficult period with the price of the
international benchmark Brent crude climbing to $80 a barrel by late-September and its negative impact was
compounded by the rupee’s devaluation. But some of the biggest refiners still managed to post a profit.
Secondly, it should be remembered that in a free market economy, the state should not dictate which public
investments would be allowed. The governments might encourage investments in certain sectors for strategic
reasons, but ultimately market forces should determine which industries were the most profitable and
economically viable. For market forces, especially foreign investors, the message is loud and clear – Pakistan
needs more refineries.
Foreign investors want to set up oil refineries in Pakistan. Following Prime Minister Imran Khan’s recent visit
to Saudi Arabia, the Kingdom has agreed in principle to set up an oil refinery near Gwadar. A Chinese company
has reportedly shown interest in developing an upcountry deep conversion oil refinery. PARCO, which is a joint
venture between the government of Pakistan and the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, is already working to develop a
deep conversion refinery at Hub near Karachi. Global investors are eager to invest billions in Pakistan’s oil
refining space which is a testament to the fact that this industry promises solid returns on investment over the
long run.
Another misconception about refining is that it doesn’t create significant foreign currency savings for Pakistan.
In reality, Pakistan saves billions of rupees every year by importing cheaper crude oil and refining it at home,
instead of importing expensive refined products like petrol and diesel.
The combined capacity of five Pakistani refiners – ARL, Byco, PARCO, NRL, and PRL – is close to 420,000
barrels per day. Even if these refiners create savings of just $0.75/barrel and utilise 70 percent of capacity, then
they will still create foreign currency savings of $80 million each year, or around Rs11 billion at the ongoing
exchange rate of Rs137/$. Note that these are fairly conservative estimates and the actual positive impact of the
entire refining industry on Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves was likely to be considerably larger. People
claim refining doesn’t create many jobs. The truth is that each refinery typically employs 3,500 people,
including highly-skilled, semi-skilled and non-skilled people directly involved in the refinery operations.
Refineries also create a number of indirect jobs by utilising the services of a variety of market and non-market

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

actors, such as private contractors who provide transportation services. Therefore, Pakistan’s refineries utilise
tens of thousands of direct and indirect employees.
Refineries are wrongly criticised for running antiquated facilities. False! PARCO has built one of the most
modern refineries in the world near Multan. NRL’s plants were built in the 1970s, but since revamped and
upgraded its facilities. ARL overhauled in 2016. Byco Petroleum installed equipment which was previously
operating in the west, but its facilities are still younger than most other players in the industry. Although
occasionally production may get disrupted, as in any other chemical process based facility, by and large
refineries run smoothly and dependably.
Q.4 Highlight the hydel and thermal power projects in Pakistan. Also discuss the production of
electricity and its distribution.
Straddling the Indus Valley, Pakistan is endowed with considerable water resources. According to Pakistan’s
Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), there is 60,000 MW of hydropower potential in the
country, of which only 7,320 MW has been developed.
Pakistan’s untapped hydropower potential largely lies in the mountainous north along the Indus River in the
provinces of Gilgit-Baltistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, as well as the Jhelum River in the provinces of Punjab
and Azad Jammu and Kashmir.
Pakistan is currently amid an energy crisis. Some 51 million Pakistanis lack access to electricity, while a further
90 million suffer from unreliable power supply and load-shedding on a daily basis, which is having a serious
impact on the economy.
An over-reliance on imported fuels for thermal generation subject to price fluctuations is at the core of the
energy crisis, and the government remains under significant pressure to address an annual average power deficit
of 4,000 MW. Hydropower once underpinned the country’s power sector, accounting for 45 per cent of power
generation in 1991, but this share has dropped to around 28 per cent, as short-term planning preferred thermal
power plants.
However, hydropower is poised for a resurgence and will play a significant role in addressing this power deficit,
with some studies estimating the proportion of hydropower in the total electricity generation to increase to more
than 40 per cent by 2030.
There is a great emphasis of the present government on the development of hitherto untapped hydropower
potential, and to fulfil this ambition, the government has relied heavily on foreign investment from private
investors, foreign governments and multilateral development banks.
A number of hydropower plants were completed or commissioned in 2016 including Ranolia (17 MW), Daral
Khwar (37 MW) and Machai (2.6 MW), all located in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.
Several micro hydropower projects were also installed as part of an initiative led by the government of Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa, with the support of the Asian Development Bank, to install some 1,000 micro plants. Expected to

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

have a total installed capacity of 100 MW, these micro projects are designed to support rural, off-grid
communities by providing affordable and reliable electricity.
Numerous projects are currently under planning and construction in the private sector, overseen by the Private
Power & Infrastructure Board, including Karot (720 MW), Suki (870 MW) and Kohala (1,124 MW). These
projects are part of the China–Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) – a collection of infrastructure projects
supported by the Chinese Government to strengthen Pakistan’s economy and enhance the economic
connectivity between both countries.
The run-of-river Patrind hydropower project is another being led by the private sector, a Korean consortium
including Star Hydro Power, K-water and Daewoo Engineering & Construction Company.
Scheduled for completion in 2017, the project has also received loans from the Islamic Development Bank,
International Finance Corporation, Asian Development Bank and the Export-Import Bank of Korea.
The regulatory regime for private sector investors includes substantial incentives such as generous return on
equity, tax concessions and hydrological risk cover.
Current public sector projects under construction and overseen by WAPDA include Golen Gol (106 MW),
Neelum-Jhelum (969 MW), Dasu (4,320 MW) and the extension of the Tarbela plant.
The construction on the fourth extension of the 3,478 MW Tarbela hydropower plant located on the Indus River
continues, with completion likely in 2017. The Tarbela Dam is the largest earth-filled dam in the world, and the
fourth extension to the hydropower plant will lift its installed capacity to 4,888 MW. The World Bank and the
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank have also announced USD 720 million in co-financing to help fund the
fifth extension to the plant, which will add a further 1,140 MW in capacity.
Pakistan aims at achieving 5-6% of its total on-grid electricity supply from renewables (excluding large
hydropower) by 2030. Total installed power capacity stood at 26 GW at year-end 2016, of which 4.2 % was
renewable energy.[9]
Pakistan is blessed with a high potential of renewable energy resources, but so far, only large hydroelectric
projects and few wind and solar projects have harnessed this potential. Renewable Energy accounts for 1136
MW presently installed capacity of solar PV, wind and biomass based power projects. Possibilities also exist in
promoting greater use of wind, solar and biomass project.[5]
Previously Government of Pakistan (GoP) had announced various policies and enabling environments such as
feed-in tariff/upfront tariff, tax incentives, net metering, long term refinancing facility and micro-financing
schemes for promoting corporate sector investment in the renewable energy (RE) sector. Taking the market
growth, technological developments, recent cost reductions and new financial mechanisms into account, the
GoP decided to liberate the market and instigate more competition amongst the private sector players for
delivering electricity from RE resources (i.e. wind/solar) at optimal tariff rates. Accordingly, the GoP
introduced tenders to call for competitive/reverse bidding for the RE power projects and the first phase of
bidding for wind power projects has been initiated.

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
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1. For wind power project, the regulator recently has announced a benchmark levelized tariff as:
- for 100% foreign financing US cents 6.7467/kWh
- on 100% local financing,  US cents 7.7342/kWh.
Large Hydropower has proved to be the cheapest source of electricity. Despite the high availability of hydro
power resources low investments in this sector hamper the utilization of this potential source.[5]
Smaller (less than 50 MW) sites are available throughout the country. The micro - hydropower sector has been
relatively well established yet. Since the mid-80s micro-hydro power plants supply electricity to some 40,000
rural families. Most of the plants are community-based and situated in the Northern Areas and Chitral. [20] Small
Hydropower is considered as another promising option for off-grid generation of electricity. Provincial
governments mainly handled the small hydropower sector: in 2014, 128 MW has been operational in the
country, 877 MW is under installation and around 1500 MW is available for further development. [5] The
potential for micro hydro (up to 100 kW) is estimated at 350 MW in Punjab and 300 MW in northern Pakistan
Q. 5 Write the benefits and disadvantages of the rapidly increasing population growth rate of the
country.
In the past, infant and childhood deaths and short life spans used to limit popula-tion growth. In today's world,
thanks to improved nutrition, sanitation, and medical care, more babies survive their first few years of life. The
combination of a continu-ing high birth rate and a low death rate is creating a rapid population increase in many
countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa and people generally lived longer. Over-population is defined as
the condition of having more people than can live on the earth in comfort, happiness and health and still leave
the world a fit place for future generations.What some people now believe that the greatest threat to the future
comes from overpopulation.
It took the entire history of humankind for the population to reach 1 billion around 1810. Just 120 years later,
this doubled to 2 billion people (1930); then 4 billion in 1975 (45 years). The number of people in the world has
risen from 4.4 billion people in 1980 to 5.8 billion today. And it is estimated that the population could double
again to nearly 11 billion in less than 40 years. This means that more people are now being added each day than
at any other time in human history.
Looking ahead, world population is projected to exceed 6 billion before the year 2000. And according to a
report by the United Nation Population fund, total popu-lation is likely to reach 10 billion by 2025 and grow to
14 billion by the end of the next century unless birth control use increases dramatically around the world within
the next two decades.
Both death rates and birth rates have fallen, but death rates have fallen faster than birth rates. There are about 3
births for each death with 1.6 births for each death in more developed countries ( MDCs) and 3.3 births for each
death in less de-veloped countries( LDCs). The world's population continues to grow by 1 billion people every
dozen years.

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

On one hand, some politicians call for countries, especially MDCs to increase their population size to maintain
their economic growth and military security. On the other hand, critics denote that one out of five people living
here today is not properly supported and believe that the world is already limited in resources.
These critics maintain that slowing world population growth is one of the most ur-gent issues Those who
believe that the world is overpopulated argue that if we don't sharply lower birth rates, we are raising death rates
by default
Until recently, birth rates and death rates were about the same, keeping the population stable. People had
many children, but a large number of them died before age five.During the Industrial Revolution, a period
of history in Europe and North America where there were great advances in science and technology, the
success in reducing death rates was attributable to several factors: (1) in-creases in food production and
distribution, (2) improvement in public health (water and sanitation), and (3) medical technology
(vaccines and antibiotics), along with gains in education and standards of living within many developing
nations.Without these attributes present in many children's lives, they could not have survived common
diseases like measles or the flu. People were able to fight and cure deadly germs that once killed them. In
addition, because of the technology, people could produce more and different kinds of food. Gradually,
over a period of time, these discoveries and inventions spread throughout the world, lowering death rates
and improving the quality of life for most people.
Rapid human population growth has a variety of consequences. Population grows fastest in the world's poorest
countries. High fertility rates have historically been strongly correlated with poverty, and high childhood
mortality rates. Falling fertility rates are generally associated with improved standards of living, increased life
expectancy, and lowered infant mortality. Overpopulation and poverty have long been associated with increased
death, and disease. People tightly packed into unsanitary housing are inordinately vulnerable to natural disasters
and health problems.
However, most of the world's 1.2 billion desperately poor people live in less developed countries ( LDCs).
Poverty exists even in MDCs. One in five Soviet citizens reportedly lives below the country's official poverty
line. In the United States, 33 million people - -one in eight Americans are below the official poverty line. The
rapid expansion of population size observed since the end of World War II in the world's poorest nations has
been a cause of their poverty.
Poverty is a condition of chronic deprivation and need at the family level. Poverty, is a major concern of
humankind, because poverty everywhere reduces human beings to a low level of existence. Poor people lack
access to enough land and income to meet basic needs. A lack of basic needs results in physical weak-ness and
poor health. Poor health decreases the ability of the poor to work and put them deeper into poverty.
Instead of allowing poverty to persist, it is important to limit our number be-cause in dense populations too
many lack adequate food, water, shelter, education and employment. High fertility, which has been traditionally

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 Course: Geography of Pakistan –II (4656)
Semester: Autumn, 2020

associated with pros-perity, prestige, and security for the future, now jeopardizes chances for many to achieve
health and security.
Rich and poor countries alike are affected by population growth, though the population of industrial countries
are growing more slowly than those of develop-ing one. At the present growth rates, the population of
economically developed countries would double in 120 years. The Third World, with over three quarters of the
world's people, would double its numbers in about 33 years. This rapid doubling time reflects the fact that 37
percent of the developing world's population is under the age of 15 and entering their most productive
childbearing years. In the Third World countries (excluding China), 40 percent of the people are under 15; in
some African countries, nearly half are in this age group.
The world's current and projected population growth calls for an increase in efforts to meet the needs for food,
water, health care, technology and education. In the poorest countries, massive efforts are needed to keep social
and economic conditions from deteriorating further; any real advances in well-being and the quality of life are
negated by further population growth. Many countries lack adequate supplies of basic materials needed to
support their current population. Rapid population growth can affect both the overall quality of life and the
degree of human suffering on Earth. 

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