ENERGY CRISIS IN PAKISTAN

OUTLINE
Introduction
Significance of energy the backbone of all human activities
Current scenario
Demand and supply nexus
Low human development index (HDI)
Major types of energy shortage in Pakistan:
Electric Supply
Natural Gas
The shortage conundrum
Reliance on the traditional thermal resources
Insufficient utilization of productive renewable resources-the capacity factor
Worn out and old power plants
Unsatisfactory storage of water due to shortage of dams
Other factors contributing to crisis
Monopolization
Lack of planning and institutional Decay
Corruption and power theft
Leadership crisis and vested interests

 Political factors- the Kalabagh dam controversy

Consequences of acute energy crisis
Severe blow to agriculture sector
Closure of industries
Reduced Foreign Direct Investment (FDI)
Load-shedding and discontent among the masses
Unemployment and poverty
Political chaos
Pragmatic steps to resolve the lingering crisis
Developing proper short term, medium term and long term policies and plans
Creating awareness among the masses to save energy
Reducing the power theft and recovering the arrears
Relinquishing Rental Power Plants (RPPs)
Using renewable energy sources instead of fossil fuels
Utilizing the hydropower potential through small and large dams
Exploiting the external options such as IPI, TAPI and import of LNG
Conclusion:
Pakistan has a huge energy potential, which if utilized efficiently, can take the
country out of this menace.
The importance of energy in the present day world cannot be over emphasized. The
utility of energy has evolved greatly in the 21 st century. The whole range of human
activities ranging from economy, agriculture, industry, employment, commerce and
trade are dependent on energy. But unfortunately, due to constantly increasing

demand, the world is facing an acute energy crisis. The problem has become global
thus resulting in an increased competition over the world energy resources. The
countries giving a proper attention to the question of energy crisis have developed
ways to manage and overcome this shortage efficiently and effectively. And those who
have failed to realize the deepness of the problem are forced to face it in one way or
the other.
Energy forms the backbone of all human activities. Ensuring a constant supply of
adequate, affordable, sufficient and environmentally friendly energy is the need of the
time. Proper energy sources are essential for the eradication of poverty,
unemployment and other social problems and to ensure an overall welfare of the
population. Human Development Index (HDI) is the measure of overall socioeconomic prosperity of a country and it has a close relationship with the energy
prosperity. Thus, the two processes are interlinked: More energy, more socioeconomic development and less energy, less development. Unfortunately, Pakistan has
an HDI of 0.5 and it ranks 146 out of 187 countries and territories (UNDP report).
This is an alarming situation. Mentioned below are the factors contributing to energy
crisis in Pakistan followed by probable solutions to overcome this crisis.
Presently, Pakistan is facing two major types of energy crisis, Natural gas and
electricity. The former is being caused by depleting gas reserves and an increasing
domestic and commercial demand thus putting pressure on the existing capacity of
resources. Whereas the latter is not being caused due to lack to capacity rather it is
because of improper utilization of resources.
The shortage conundrum of electricity has its roots in several factors. First and
foremost, the major proportion of electricity in Pakistan is still produced from the
fossil fuel and thermal power plants. Despite of the availability of other resources,
they arent being utilized.
According to Pakistan energy sector overview, total installed capacity in Pakistan
is 19,460MW. 64.12% of it is being produced from fossil fuels, 33.3% from hydro
power, 2.37% from nuclear and 0.21% from renewable resources.
According to World Bank report, Pakistan has exhausted its water capability by not
storing water. Pakistan stores only 30 days of river water while India stores 120-220
days but still Pakistan has a potential of more than 50,000MW of hydro power while
the total demand is 20,000MW. Besides, hydro power generation costs 7 times less
than thermal generation on which Pakistan is still dependent. Similarly, the country
has a huge potential of generating energy from renewables which is the least costly
process. Analyzing the importance of energy, the world is shifting its focus from

traditional fossil fuel production to solar, wind or other such methods but Pakistan is
still standing there despite having an excess capacity.
Another important resource present in Pakistan is coal. Pakistan ranks at the
7th number out of top 20 countries after the discovery of huge lignite coal resources in
Sindh. China is producing more than 50% of its electricity from coal while India is
producing more than 40%. Despite having large reserves, Pakistan is generating less
than 1 percent of its power from coal, the rest of which goes to the cement and brick
industry. After independence, the share of coal in energy production was 60% but it
was reduced after discovery of Sui gas in 1952.
The importance of renewables in the present world energy production goes without
doubt. Wind, solar and bio-fuels have huge potential to overcome the shortage. The
government of Pakistan has developed Alternate Energy Development Board (AEDB)
to foster the development of renewable resources as much as it can by 2030. Roshan
Pakistan Program has been started for the promotion of solar energy. If these projects
are able to achieve their objectives successfully, Pakistan can overcome this deep
crisis.
Apart from the CAPACITY factor, there are several other causes that struck a blow to
energy development in Pakistan and contribute towards this problem; the first one
being the monopolization of generation, transmission and distribution of energy.
KESC after privatization emerged as a monopoly and eroded the competition. Lack of
competition led to negligence. Secondly, institutional decay and consistent lack of
planning is a chronic problem. There is lack of decision making on the part of
representatives due to which plans remain unimplemented. There is severe leadership
crisis, lack of vision, lack of political will, lack of transparency and accountability,
prevalence of vested interests and most importantly corruption. Wastage of national
money, reliance on foreign loans and circular debt also contribute to the problem.
The Kalabagh dam controversy serves as the best demonstration of how political
factors came into play in the developmental process. Kalabgh Dam, if built, had a
capacity to generate 3600MW for the country, but it fell a prey to provincial politics.
Sindh claimed that this dam would have turned Sindh into a desert and moved the
water level upward thus damaging agriculture and making water not fit for drinking. It
also feared that the Mangrove forests along the coastal belt would have been
destroyed. KPK apprehended that Nowshera would be drowned and a large number of
people would be displaced. These provinces also feared that Punjab would get more
royalty as the electricity generating equipment would be set up in Punjab. So,
individual interests preceded the collective interest. Dams do not consume water, they
store water so agriculture would not have been destroyed. Moreover, mangrove forests
grow in saline water. The dam was to be set up below the altitudes of Nowshera so it

would nt have had destroyed the city, and Punjab promised to give constitutional
guarantees about not demanding extra royalty. The matter had to be resolved by
consensus and bringing round consensus was the responsibility of the leadership.
Economic prosperity is based upon an abundant and cheap supply of energy. Shortage
and improper utilization leaves drastic impacts upon the overall development of the
country. Firstly, agriculture which contributes to 23% of GDP is bound to suffer as a
result of energy crisis. Pakistans industry is also dependent upon agriculture. Our
largest industry is textile. Unfortunately, much of the textile unites in various parts of
the country have shut down due to unavailability of energy. Moreover, exports have
dwindled and our balance of payments has suffered negatively. Other industries such
as leather, sports and sugar are also suffering. Service sector has also been hit
severely. Business activities are decelerating. The performance of other important
sectors such as education, health and irrigation has worsened.
Apart from the commercial impacts, energy dilemma has also affected domestic sector
to a great extent. Load shedding has become rampant throughout the country. The
rural areas have to experience long hours and even days of load shedding. This
unscheduled load shedding is playing havoc with the social and economic activities of
the citizens. Investment is also being discouraged thus resulting in increased inflation
and unemployment. IT is coming harder and harder for the poor people to make both
ends meet. Already, about one fourth of our population is living below the poverty
line. Water and energy crisis is simply exacerbating the wretched situation. Lowsalaried people and industrial labor force have become dejected and frustrated to such
an extent that they are compelled to protest against the energy crisis and inflation.
The crisis needs to be addressed at its earliest. The comparative cost benefit analysis
of resources and demand shows that solution is possible. The following pragmatic
steps can ensure way out of this lingering crisis. Initially, proper plans and policies are
the need of the hour. There can be no quick fixes. So, there is a need to develop
adequate short term, medium term and long term plans and to ensure their
implementation. There is an immediate need to end corruption, the mother of all evils.
Only that would give a positive direction to sort out every problem. Collective
thinking instead of individual vested interests can stop this crisis from escalating
further.
We do not have a scarcity of resources. All that is needed is to exploit these resources
properly and efficiently. There must be a shift from old traditional thermal sources to
coal, hydro and renewable resources. Power theft and control line losses must be
checked and controlled through punishments to the culprits. Rental power plants
(RPPs) re and expensive source and they must be replaced by IPPs. Moreover, the
country has several external options available which can provide a solution, e.g. IPI

and TAPI should be started as early as possible. Small dams can ensure an immediate
solution to the problem therefore dams must be built, at least the uncontroversial ones.
Another important factor is the public awareness. At this point in time, we cannot
afford further losses of energy. Therefore, through media and public awareness,
people must be realized the importance of saving even the smallest amount of energy.
This small saving can prove to be a drop in the ocean.
In nutshell, even though Pakistan is facing an acute energy crisis but this is not the
end. This problem can be resolved through determination and will and through the
realization of deepness of the problem. We have the capacity to resolve this crisis to
its fullest which has haunted us for so long. We should think on collective lines to
promote national unity and integration instead of mean vested interests. We need to
put efforts and it will be rewarded with outcome. All other socio-economic problems
such as poverty, unemployment and other evils will automatically be resolved. There
are external enemies which do not want to see a stable Pakistan but we should not let
their nefarious designs prevail, instead we should lay a strong foundation and work
together to make our country a prosperous state in the long run.