CM vows to meet energy demand

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah announced on Tuesday that the provincial government had achieved almost all the goals set under the 2015 power policy.

“We have achieved almost all goals set under the power policy of government of Sindh, launched in 2015, by tapping the Thar coal resource, brought private investment in the gas and renewable energy sector, and successfully implemented the Alternative Energy Policy 2006 over the last few years,” he said while presenting the Sindh budget for fiscal year 2022-23.

As a result, “we have achieved several targets set for 2021-22 and have planned a number of goals for 2022-23.”

The major target of the government of Sindh was the exploitation of indigenous resources for the generation of electricity and fulfilling the energy demand of the underserved and unserved areas of the province, he said.

“We plan to make Sindh fully self-sustaining in the energy sector and for this the government of Sindh will soon launch a new power policy as well as a policy framework for the mini and micro-grid through the solar and hybrid technology, which shall meet the current electricity shortfall within the provincial boundary.”

He announced that the non-development budget for the energy sector had been increased from Rs23.27 billion for FY22 to Rs30.37 billion for FY23.

The Sindh government, through the Directorate of Alternative Energy, has developed the Sindh Waste to Energy Policy 2021, “which is the first of its kind in Pakistan”, said the CM.

Under this policy, the Energy Department has issued four Letters of Intent (LOIs) to the waste to fuel power developer.

During 2022-23, the Energy Department has planned to solarise primary health facilities in 10 districts, ie Karachi, Hyderabad, Tando Mohammad Khan, Thatta, Sujawal, Umerkot, Tharparkar, Sukkur, Qamber Shahdadkot and Jacobabad, and government schools in 10 districts, ie Dadu, Shikarpur, Shaheed Benazirabad, Larkana, Tharparkar, Umerkot, Sanghar, Qamber Shahdadkot, Badin and Sujawal.

The Sindh government is also planning to solarise water pumping units in Tharparkar, prisons, public health facilities/ stations in Sindh and for the purpose funds to the tune of Rs472 million have been allocated in the budget.

The CM said that his government was planning to initiate a biogas programme throughout the province for the provision of biogas plants, In this programme, subsidy will be offered to the households having the required number of animals or manure for producing biogas for cooking purposes.

Currently, the Sindh Transmission and Despatch Company (STDC) is working on the evacuation of 275 megawatts of renewable energy from five wind power plants in Jhimpir to the K-Electric network.

The infrastructure for the scheme – the transmission line network and a grid station – will be constructed by the STDC and the tariff will be awarded by Nepra.

The project is at advanced stages and a non-disclosure agreement has already been signed between K-E, STDC and the five wind power projects.

The province’s Energy Department is executing the Greater Water Bulk Supply (K-IV) project through the STDC. For this purpose, the construction of a 132-kilovolt grid station near the K-IV pumping station and the construction of around 20km, 132kv double-circuit transmission line under the loop-in and loop-out arrangement between HESCO Jhimpir and Thatta grid for the supply of 50MW to the K-IV pumping station is underway at an estimated cost of Rs1.7 billion.

For the K-IV project, 80% of loan allocation will be financed through the Sindh Energy Holding Company or the government of Sindh.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15^th, 2022.

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