Sindh appeals to PM to grant permission for 35 wind energy projects

Minister for Energy Imtiaz Ahmed Shaikh has appealed to Prime Minister Imran Khan to issue directives to the relevant federal agencies to readily grant permission to 35 upcoming wind power projects to be installed in Sindh having the capacity to generate 4,000 megawatts of clean electricity.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, the energy minister said Sindh had abundant natural resources in the form of wind, solar power, coal and natural gas that could be readily exploited to overcome the country’s energy shortfall. “The Centre should rely on Sindh as we are well in a position to overcome the electricity crisis prevailing in the country,” he said.

Shaikh claimed there were dozens of upcoming energy projects in Sindh, especially those based on renewable energy sources, but the relevant federal agencies had been consistently impeding either their commencement or completion.

He suspected that the “oil mafia” in the country was behind “such unjust and unfavourable policies” of the federal authorities that was not allowing the completion of more alternative energy projects in Sindh.

According to the minister, the commencement of new wind energy projects would be a major step towards the goal of supplying inexpensive electricity to people who have to bear unbearable increase in oil prices and power tariff.

He said Sindh had the most natural gas reserves in the country as compared to the other provinces, but even then it had been receiving just 1,100 MBTU gas supply quota that is much less volume of gas than the actual share of the province from the country’s gas system.

He said that despite having abundant natural energy resources, Sindh was consistently being ignored by the Centre when it came to the the formulation of national energy policies whether it was the previous federal government or the present government. “Sindh has never been taken on board by the Centre when it comes to adoption of government policies for the energy sector,” he said. “Sindh is like the energy hub of the country as the province provides complete solution to the energy crisis. It is home to up to 99 per cent coal reserves and 30 per cent oil reserves in the country and also has the ability to generate wind and solar powered electricity.”

He said there were several agencies and entities related to the energy sector, including the National Transmission & Dispatch Company and Oil and Gas Development Company, where the province had no representation at all. No permission had been granted during the last five years for the drilling of new oil wells in the province, he added.

Shaikh said the recent hike in electricity tariff as ordered by the present federal government would directly affect power consumers. Despite being natives of a province rich in natural resources, Sindh’s residents have to endure hours-long power outages daily, he added.

The energy minister informed that the electricity generation from the Thar coal project would begin from January.

Speaking about the government’s initiatives, Shaikh said the Sindh Energy Department had launched a programme with support of World Bank to provide electricity to schools and basic health units in far away and off-grid areas of Sindh through the option of solar power. Such solar power projects having total value of $100 million would be rolled out in Sindh with the support of World Bank.