Pakistan has been suffering from energy crisis for about half a decade now. It is shameful that despite various promises from our ministers and leaders, there seems to be no improvement in the production and consumption ratio of energy in Pakistan. This terrible state of affairs frustrates me every time that I have to face the menace of electric load shedding.
As recently as 2001, the country had 4,000 megawatts of excess power capacity. Today, it has about a 15 percent shortfall of the capacity it needs.According to the geological survey of Pakistan, the country has an approximately 185 billion tons of coal resource potential. Out of which about 3.3 billion tons are in proven category and about 11 billions are indicated reserves.It is a pity that despite being seventh in the list of the countries having largest coal reserves, Pakistan utilizes, for energy production including electricity, only 4 percent of the amount of coal produced, On the contrary, in the year 2008, 48.52 percent of the total 4,110,259 Megawatt hours of electric power in the US was derived from coal. Similarly, coal makes up 70 percent of China's total primary energy consumption.The largest coal reserves of Pakistan exist in Thar. However, the problem with the recovery of coal in Thar lies in the fact that it lies 250ft underneath the surface and then there is water with high pressure over, under and between the layers of coal. So, one can assume mining not to be the best of options for recovery.Underground Coal Gasification, a technological process that enables the coal to be converted into product gas underground, has the solution to this problem. The process starts a controlled fire in the underground deposit that slowly cooks the coal and turns it into gas. The synthesized gas can then be extracted from adjacent wells and be used to make electricity or to make liquid fuels in a gas to liquids plant. In this way, we can also overcome the anticipated gas crises in future.Besides coal, the renewable energy also has solutions to our problems.Biomass, material derived from plants or animals, includes industrial wastes, agricultural residues and garbage. It can prove to be a great source of energy in Pakistan as Pakistan is an agricultural country. Moreover, it is the sixth most-populous country of the world. The greater the population, the higher the amount of garbage produced.Wind can be utilized to produce electricity at the coastal areas. Similarly, hot climatic conditions of some areas of Sindh and Punjab may prove to be a source of solar energy.The Almighty has blessed Pakistan with enormous resources. Now it is up to us to utilize them in a proper manner. The Quaid-e-Azam said, “Let us mobilize all our resources in a systematic and organized way and tackle the grave issues that confront us with grim determination and discipline worthy of a great nation.”

by Xeesean Lakhani

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