KARACHI:
National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority’s (NEECA) Energy Saving Policy 2022 is riddled with inconsistencies and oxymoronic statements, which clearly shows that the main focus of this policy is not to reduce energy costs, but to promote the solarisation of government buildings. According to the policy, Pakistan’s energy production is 41,500 megawatts (MW). The maximum energy usage is during peak hours in the summer up to 30,000 MW and the usage is comparatively lower during other seasons.
Considering this, energy production should be reduced to improving efficiency. However, NEECA has resorted to the solarisation of government and private buildings to increase production, which will further increase costs. The policy highlights the constrained transmission and distribution network at 22,000 MW but fails to provide a plan to increase this capacity. Similarly, the policy promotes the solarisation of buildings but does not highlight the fact that solar energy is only produced during sunlight hours. It also fails to highlight the fact that efficiency can be increased by installing battery storage at the grid level or at each building at cheaper rates.
The only good suggestion of the policy was to improve the efficiency of motors, boilers and gas generators in the industrial sector. However, it does not suggest how this can be achieved. Similarly, its suggestions to reduce line losses in the power and gas sectors are optimistic wishes without any explanation of how it will be done. To summarise, NEECA’s Energy Saving Policy 2022 primarily emphasises the installation of solar panels at additional costs to increase energy production and it assumes that this will help improve energy saving, energy efficiency and costs for Pakistan.
Shahryar Khan Baseer
Peshawar
Published in The Express Tribune, December 23rd, 2022.
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