Ministry pursuing policy to increase clean energy share up to 60% by 2030

ISLAMABAD: The climate change ministry is pursuing a multi-pronged policy to increase the share of renewable energy up to sixty percent in the national economy by 2030.

According to the data shared by the ministry, it achieved early successes when it convinced the government to remove the cap on solar energy share in the national grid, shelve the policy of importing coal and introduce electric vehicle policy.

The data showed that renewable energy technologies would be fully deployed so they provide a higher targeted proportion of the national energy supply mix, i.e., a minimum of 9,700 MW by 2030 as per the Medium Term Development Framework (MTDF), and helps ensure universal access to electricity in all regions of the country.

It indicated that international investors can put as much as 15 billion dollars into the plan by 2030 that can greatly help produce clean energy to promote the natural environment.

Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam said local environmental impacts of unsustainable and inefficient traditional biomass fuels and fossil fuel-powered electricity generation can be largely circumvented through clean and renewable energy alternatives.

“Our four key strategic objectives for developing renewable energy resources include energy security, economic benefits, social equity and environmental protection,” he said.

He said, “We are introducing investment-friendly incentives and facilitating renewable energy markets to attract private sector interest in renewable energy projects through competition in the power sector.”

The previous governments were focusing on investing in fossil fuel power plants but the Imran-led government is much more open to renewable energy and wants to promote it, he said.

He said that renewable energy policy is achievable and realistic, as it has been linked to forecasts of Pakistan’s energy demand till 2047.