Pakistan, China to work on biomass project

This is part of Punjab govt’s campaign to promote clean energy.

FAISALABAD:

Guangzhou Institute of Energy Conservation (GIEC) of Chinese Academy of Sciences and the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) will work together on a biomass project to cope with energy crisis and promote clean energy in Pakistan.

This was discussed and agreed in a meeting held at the UAF, where a Chinese delegation, led by Chuang Zhi Wu, President of GIEC, met UAF Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Iqrar Ahmad.

The initiative is being undertaken as part of the Punjab chief minister’s campaign targeting to promote green energy in the country.

Chuang Zhi Wu saw presence of tremendous biomass resources in Pakistan which could be used to tackle energy shortages. Work with educational institutions would help to produce valuable researches and promote clean energy, he suggested.

Wu revealed that since the inception of GIEC in 1978, many cooperative and exchange programmes had been developed with around 40 universities, scientific institutions and enterprises in 17 countries and regions.

GIEC is working in the areas of solar and clean energy, biomass, solid waste, industrial energy conservation, geothermal energy, heat pump, water and air treatment and heat chilling.

Sharing his views, the UAF vice chancellor stressed that Pakistan could produce electricity from biomass including agricultural and animal waste.

Pointing out that the university was actively working on energy projects, he said the UAF in collaboration with Apollo Limited had initiated a 3.8-megawatt solar power project to promote clean energy.

Biomass projects, being simple in nature, were closer to the rural culture which would especially facilitate farmers, he said.

Faculty of Agriculture Engendering Dean Professor Dr Muhammad Iqbal was of the view that the UAF’s new programme – BS Engineering in Energy – would help produce trained manpower that would address power shortages in the country.

He briefed the delegation about the potential for working together in the area of biogas and bioenergy.

Faculty of Agriculture Dean Dr Muhammad Arshad believed that Pakistan had the potential to produce energy from biomass on a big scale. He briefed the delegation about the scope of biomass in Pakistan.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 30^th, 2013.

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