The Engineering Development Board (EDB) announced that 1250 MW of electricity will be added to the national grid annually through solar energy. By doing so, solar energy would be taken to up to 10,000 megawatts (MW) by 2031.
EDB is a key policy-making engineering arm of the Ministry of Industries.
The document by the EDB revealed that currently, Pakistan has 600 MW of solar energy capacity, which is planned to be increased to 10,000 MW in roughly nine to ten years. The EDB said that government buildings and electric and diesel-powered tube wells are decided to be converted to solar power during the first phase.
In addition, 1250 MW of electricity will be included in the national grid each year through solar energy. As per the EDB, the installed power capacity of Pakistan from several sources is 41,557 MW including 24.7% of electricity from water, 23.8% from Re-Gasified Liquified Natural Gas (RLNG), and 14.3% from furnace oil.
Likewise, 12.8% of electricity is produced from coal, 8.8% from nuclear energy sources, and 8.5% from gas, as per the EDB.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, in this regard, gave in-principle approval for establishing 2000 MW solar power projects in the public sector. A meeting was held to discuss the transformation of fuel-powered power plants to solar energy.
The meeting was informed that the work to select the location for the new solar-powered power plants in the country has started. For this purpose, a place near Muzaffargarh has also been identified where a 600 MW solar-powered power plant will be built.
The meeting was also apprised that the framework and tariff for investment in the solar energy sector are being worked-on. National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) is in consultation with other organizations to achieve the project. Besides, the details of the Investors Conference, conducted on 14th September, were also shared with the members of the meeting.