Book on Thar coal project launched

Sindh Power Minister Shazia Marri has said that despite endowed with numerous natural resources, Pakistan still lacks in the energy sector. Speaking at the launching ceremony of book "Thar Coal: Salvation Paradigm" authored by senior journalist Shamim-ur-Rehman at Karachi Press Club on Thursday, she said that the energy is the world's focus and Pakistan cannot afford to lose any more time towards achieving its goals regarding energy.
"We are moving in the right direction today and are hopeful of positive results," she said. She said Thar coal is an extremely important project given the massive reserves of coal in Sindh. It was this coal that was termed "black gold" by the then prime minister, Benazir Bhutto, in 1994. She initiated the process of making use of the valuable asset. Given the chequered history of Pakistan and constant interruptions in the political process, the coal project too came to a standstill and was never taken up by the government of Nawaz Sharif.
She said the present government is focusing on Thar coal along with working on all other means of energy generation, including wind and solar. She said it is a fact that the Thar coal has been a major priority of the Pakistan Peoples Party government. "Ever mindful of Pakistan's energy requirements, our policy towards Thar coal has been and continues to be full speed ahead," she said. President Asif Ali Zardari's commitment is towards making Pakistan an energy sufficient nation.
She said in Sindh, the government is currently working on a new power policy, which would take into account all possible means of energy generation. "We are also conducting feasibility reports for various sites in Sindh suitable for hydel power plants," she added. "We are also looking at the possibility of using latest technology to install small hydel power plants because every megawatt of energy is important for Pakistan," she said.
She said that this work of experts put together by Shamim-ur-Rahman in a book-form will help create awareness about country's energy potential and the right way forward. Sindh Finance Minister Murad Ali Shah said Thar coal project would help the country overcome energy crisis. However, he said, it will take time as projects like Thar coal cannot be completed overnight.
Senior PPP leader Taj Haider said that the project would not only produce enough electricity but the country would be in position to export it. He pointed out that the target of the project is to generate 20,000MW of electricity in 2020. Shamim-ur-Rehman, the author of the book in his speech said that the energy crisis has gone from bad to worse in the country. He said among others, inefficient management is also a big issue.
Sarfaraz Ahmed, News Editor, Business Recorder, spoke on role of energy, particularly electricity, in economic growth.