NEPRA advises CPPA to raise renewable energy share

KARACHI: National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has advised Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) to liaison with all relevant stakeholders to increase share of renewable energy (RE) in the overall energy mix until the RE quota was finalised in Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP).

It may be mentioned here, CPPA, the electricity market operator, has stopped entertaining Power Acquisition Requests (PARs) for RE projects.

“Instead of taking the position that IGCEP has not been approved and the quota of RE has not been determined, the authority considers that CPPA must liaison with all the relevant stakeholders so that the share of RE is ascertained in light of initiatives being taken to increase the share of RE in the overall energy mix of the country,” a document noted.

NEPRA considers RE very attractive in terms of decreasing cost, which would result in reduction of the overall energy cost for the system thus benefitting the end consumers of all kinds. The costs for RE technologies decreased to a record low last year.

The global weighted-average cost of electricity from concentrating solar power (CSP) declined by 26 percent, bioenergy by 14 percent, solar photovoltaics (PV) and onshore wind by 13 percent, hydropower by 12 percent and geothermal and offshore wind by 1 percent, respectively.

Cost reductions, particularly for solar and wind power technologies, were set to continue into the next decade. According to International Renewable Energy Association (IRENA)’s global database, over three-quarters of the onshore wind and four-fifths of the solar PV projects that were due to be commissioned next year would produce power at lower prices than the cheapest new coal, oil or natural gas options.

Government of Pakistan is contemplating an aggressive plan to increase the share of RE in the energy mix of the country to 20 percent by 2025 and to 30 percent by 2030 from the current level of less than 5 percent. Meanwhile, NEPRA has granted a generation license to Solution De Energy (Private) Limited (SDeEPL) for its 100MW solar power plant being set up at Quaid-e-Azam Solar Park (Extension) with an investment of approximately $90 million.