An important subject, as covered in BR issue of 28 Feb (Markets and Corporates), needs to be emphasised as very little action is being taken to reduce energy costs, even though we have acute energy crises. Long-term solution must be based on our hydel potential but for present demand, we need to take advantage of solar energy. We are in a “rich solar zone” and yet, we have very little to show! Gas fuel costs in inefficient thermal power plants are “out of control”, with further production of higher costs and still, we are ignoring this solar “free energy” source!

We should have had “many” large Concentrated Solar Power Plants (CSP), cheapest power and with good engineering design, upto 16 hours daily availability, but really, we have nothing to show that we care! Do we really want to solve our energy crises or we will continue to ignore the obvious and suffer?

It was noted that the installed capacity of solar power across the world has witnessed 5,000 percent increase and yet, we have really nothing to show, though we have excellent solar energy availability in parts of Balochistan, upper Sindh and lower Punjab. This source would have most economical and reliable energy and would have made all the difference in solving our energy crises and at low cost!

(To be continued tomorrow)

Engr. Ainul Abedin (Karachi)

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022