By : Adeel Alvi
KARACHI: Officials of Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company apprised the Minister of Energy regarding needs to formulate an effective strategy for alternative sources of energy and to rely on Thar Coal in the light of global energy crisis due to Russia-Ukraine war and economic situation in Pakistan. During the briefing, it was informed that in order to meet the oil and gas needs of Pakistan, it will b necessary to rely on imported fuel for almost next five years.
The briefing said that due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, there is a fear that oil and gas could not be obtained even by paying money. It was stated in the meeting that in order to avoid this situation, it is necessary to plan in advance, for which major projects are being made to convert the alternative sources of energy i.e. energy from solar and wind and especially to utilize the huge coal reserves of Thar for electricity and gas needs.
It was informed in the briefing that imported LNG costs Rs 34 per kW while imported coal costs Rs 37 per kW. And coal from local reserves costs only Rs. 4 per kWh, so coal is the cheapest and most useful and profitable source of energy.
Sindh Energy Minister Imtiaz Ahmed Shaikh said that Thar Coal Reserves are a game changer in Pakistan’s energy needs.
He said that environmental aspect should be given top priority in plans to convert coal into energy.
He said that the Sindh government is working speedily on energy generation projects from Thar Coal as well as clean and environment friendly energy projects such as solar energy and wind power generation.