ISLAMABAD: The government is planning to electrify 400 villages through solar power as the country is blessed with a huge solar potential of more than 5-6 KWH/m?/day of irradiation in many areas.
Launching Economic Survey 2011-12, the minister said the potential of solar energy is feasible for both Solar PV and Solar Thermal application.
"The area with highest solar potential is the province of Baluchistan followed by Eastern Sindh and Southern Punjab promising technical and financially viable solar energy projects," the minister said.
He said these projects can be On-Grid or Off-Grid and that some areas in Eastern Sindh and Southern Punjab also have potential for such interventions.
He said as a first phase, 49 villages in Sindh have already been electrified where 3000 Solar Home Systems are installed.
The minister said street lights and billboards consume around 400 MW of power which can be taken off from the grid by converting these loads to solar.
The duration of use and the amount of power requirement make these two interventions technically viable financially attractive with very small payback periods.
This intervention is ready to do in the country and AEDB has prepared a PC-I and submitted for approval for a demonstration project.
The minister said the AEDB has also initiated pilot program under the World Bank assistance to study the technical, financial and social viability for replacement of conventional water heaters with Solar Water Heaters.
Solar PV Parks of small to medium capacity (1-10 MW) in dispersed locations will ensure reliability and efficiency of the national grid. High solar potential increases the affordability factor on one hand and sustainability on the other.
He said the AEDB has issued 5 Letters of Intent (LoIs) of cumulative capacity of 113 MW for installation of Solar PV parks in Sindh and Southern Punjab.
Solar Thermal Power Generation using concentrated solar power technology (CSP) is a viable option because of its promising potential.
These power plants of medium to large capacities (10-50 MW) can be installed in Southern Punjab and Eastern Sindh and Baluchistan because of the availability of water in these areas.
The minister said a LoI request for installation of 500 MW of CSP power plants is under review with the panel of experts.
Comments
Comments are closed.