Sindh’s 500 MW Floating Solar Plant, National Solar Energy Policy For Pakistan on August 1

In an impetus to renewable energy in the country, the Sindh government has revealed its ambition to set up Pakistan ‘s first floating solar power plant. The plant will boast of a 500MW generation capacity and will be established at Keenjhar Lake. The project will cost $400 million.

The Provincial Minister of Sindh for Energy, Imtiaz Shaikh has said that this initiative, which will be realised in two years, will help provide employment opportunities and keep a check on load-shedding. Pakistan has been going through it’s most severe power crisis in years thanks to failure to procure LNG to run its power plants, besides a complete failure to add enough renewable energy beyond Hydropower.

While the country is committed to ramping up renewable energy, it is all set to launch its National Solar Energy Policy on August 1. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated, “Coalition government will soon introduce the country’s first comprehensive solar policy after approval of the CCI (Council of Common Interests).” Recently, in an Energy Task Force meeting, the decision to make the Prime Minister’s House and his Office completely solar-run in one month on an emergency basis was also announced. The announcement follows a statement by the office of the President  that the Presidential Estate runs on renewable power now. The meeting also said powerhouses powered by fuel would be converted  to solar energy. That apart, generation of solar energy on 2,000 feeders of 11kV was also considered in the meeting.

In a bid to add more investment to Pakistan’s renewable energy sector, solar power in particular, the country invited Chinese investors. The Chinese delegation of NORINCO, a state-owned company, expressed eagerness to invest in multiple such projects. It was keen to especially invest in the wind corridor in Thatta, which is a 100 MW wind power project.

In Pakistan’s energy mix stood, power generation from non-renewable energy sources stood at more than 70 per cent as of May. Among renewable energy sources, hydroelectricity seems to be leading the way at 24 per cent.

It is intriguing that the country, even under China’s ‘game changing’ CPEC initiative barely added any solar capacity at all, even as Chinese firms rule the world when it comes to solar power. China’s foisting of expensive thermal plants on Pakistan have already led to some of the highest power rates in the South Asian region for the country, impacting both industry and residents alike.