Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has directed Power Division and Petroleum Division to formulate a roadmap to reduce usage of thermal power sources and promote use of natural gas and domestic coal for energy production. While chairing the first meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Energy, the Prime Minister not only received a briefing but also underlined the need for achieving a balanced energy mix.
"Our government is striving to achieve a balanced mix for the country's energy requirements," he said and directed that maximum utilization of Thar coal reserves must be ensured to provide affordable energy to consumers. Abbasi also directed the Water Resource Division to work on planning for water storage projects on fast track. "There is no room for non-optimal solution in our energy framework," he said.
An official said that establishment of Energy Ministry was a reflection that the Prime Minister wants to have full control over decision-making in power sector to deal with the challenge of load-shedding. The new Prime Minister's priority would be to do away with the load-shedding well before the end of 2017. Minister of State for Power Abid Sher Ali, Minister of State for Petroleum Jam Kamal Khan and senior officials attended the meeting.
Secretary Power Division and secretary Petroleum Division briefed the Prime Minister on energy sector projects and load management plan. The Prime Minister said that the sole objective of distribution of work among ministries is that water security is an important concern and a dedicated ministry for water resources was required to handle these issues and cater for improved management of water resources. He further said that "a separate ministry was essential."
About creation of Ministry of Energy, Abbasi stated that it was necessary to remove firewalls between the petroleum and power sectors which are otherwise linked to a common objective of energy security in Pakistan.
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