Energy production with alternative resources including wind, solar and production of bio-fuel diesel are vital to put national economy on fast track for sustainable development. It would help to save foreign reserves of the country, overcome power shortage, as well as reduce pollution.
An official source in Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) Thursday told APP that there was huge potential to produce energy with alternative resources, which would be cost- effected.
He said that the power shortage is creating hurdles in the current pace of economic growth of the country, adding long hours electricity loadshedding is affecting the business activities of industrialists and small traders badly. The growing gap between demand and supply of power and interrupted supply of power to industrial sector is retarding the country exports.
While following the traditional power resources one should look at the other alternative energy resources like solar and wind energy to provide power, he observed.
While giving a valuable presentation on importance of solar and wind energy, he said that solar energy is one of the solutions of power shortage, as sun is abundantly available without any cost, since solar energy systems can also work in overcast situations. To solve this problem, a number of companies have manufactured low cost and affordable solar energy products, he added.
He further said that Pakistan lies in the region of trade winds, which give it a competitive edge to utilise this priceless resource to overcome the problem of energy shortage. In this respect, he identified a few areas of Karachi and Gwadar near Hawkesbay and National Highway for installing both solar and wind energy plants to produce electricity.
Official said that PARC scientist successfully introduced bio-fuel crop which could be cultivated over waste land. This crop required low quantity of water for irrigation adding that this crop would help reduce poverty in rural areas, source concluded.