LAHORE: Pakistan-China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President S.M. Naveed on Wednesday suggested to meet energy needs of the industry by developing joint ventures with China for energy generation through biomass resources.
Addressing a meeting of the Energy Committee of the joint chamber here, he said that biomass was not limited to habitat and animal waste but also includes feed stocks, such as agricultural stalk, straw and trash, agro-industrial, paddy husks and shells. The total estimated biomass potential of Pakistan was 50, 000 GW h/year, which could contribute up to 36 percent of the total country’s energy, he said, adding that China was paving its way in biomass power generation by putting efforts to increase financial support for biomass power generation projects, boosting the application of biomass energy and encouraging localities to establish a system for collection, storage, transportation and treatment of agricultural and forestry waste as well as household waste.
PCJCCI Senior Vice President Daud Ahmed said that Chinese expert and investors were ready to have joint ventures in biomass energy generation projects. He urged the government to lay down policy incentives to encourage energy generation through biomass. On this occasion, PCJCCI Vice President Khalid Rafique Choudhry said that sources of renewable energy were hydel, solar, wind and biomass, which had significant potential to compete with growing energy requirements. Thus far, Pakistan envisioned setting up plants to generate 10, 000 MW through renewable resources by 2030. These plants would be installed with a 50 percent share of the beneficiary.
“Out of all the renewable energy resources, biomass is considered the best and most easily accessible source of energy with its unique environment friendly nature. Pakistan’s energy needs has increased manifold and to resolve these serious issues, we need to promote new and renewable energy technologies in Pakistan, ” he said. PCJCCI Secretary General Salahuddin Hanif said that rural areas of Pakistan were replete with a variety of biomass resources (animal dung waste, MSW-Municipality Solid Waste, agri-industrial, and agricultural waste), which could be used to produce about 12 million cubic meters of biogas per day, which would be enough to fulfil the energy requirements of 28 million rural people. Currently, Pakistan possessed 5, 357 operational biogas units, with a varying production capacity of 3–15 cubic meter day against the targeted total biogas potential of 12–16 million cubic meter per day, he added.