Nepra awards two licences for renewable energy generation

KARACHI: The government has awarded licences to two foreign companies for wind and solar energy generation of cumulative 23.8 megawatts with the two projects estimated to cost around $30 million, an official document showed.

National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) awarded generation licence to ENI New Energy Pakistan for its 10 MW solar power plant and Burj Wind Energy for 13.8 MW wind power plant in Sindh.

ENI is engaged in oil and natural gas exploration, field development and production, and also in the supply, trading and shipping of natural gas, liquefied natural gas, electricity and fuels, and operates across the entire energy chain, including renewable energy.

ENI New Energy has been incorporated to operate in the renewable energy sector of the country and the first project it took was a solar-based generation facility of 10 MW to supply electricity to the Bhit Gas Field/Kirthar joint venture.

The total cost of the new project is approximately $10 million, which will be financed through equity contribution of the sponsors: ENI International BV, ENI Oil Holdings BV and ENI Pakistan Limited with 99.98 percent, 00.01 percent and 00.01 percent, respectively.

“The proposed project will result in optimum utilisation of the renewable energy, which was earlier untapped, resulting in pollution free electric power,” the Nepra said in the document. “Solar is an indigenous resource and such resources should be given preference for the energy security.”

Burj Wind Energy is sponsored by Burj Capital UAE, which is a developer, investor and co-owner of renewable energy power plants around the world. It has led significant investments in over 2,000 MW of wind, hydro and efficient natural gas-based generation facilities in association with Engie, Total, Aditya Birla and African Finance Corporation across South Asia, Africa and Latin America.

The group has already constructed a 50 MW of wind-based generation in the name of Jhimpir Power Limited in Sindh. The said generation facility was commissioned on March 16, 2018 and has so far dispatched around 100 gigawatt hours of units to the national grid.

The total outlay of its new project is $19.903 million, which will be financed through a combination of debt and equity in a ratio of 80:20 which is in line with the benchmark set out in the Renewable Energy Policy and the determinations of the authority, Nepra said.

The sustainable and affordable energy/electricity is a key prerequisite for socioeconomic development of any country. In fact, the economic growth of any country is directly linked with the availability of safe, secure, reliable and cheaper supply of energy/electricity.

“Nepra is of the considered opinion that for sustainable development, all indigenous power generation resources including renewable energy must be developed on priority basis,” it said in the document.