Any companies manufacturing or planning to manufacture the components for solar and wind energy equipment in Pakistan, given the number of projects in the pipeline?
Solar PV cells are manufactured by just one company in Pakistan. The company is Akhter Solar Limited (part of the famous Akhter Group of Companies which have their domestic computer line as well).
Wind turbines aren't constructed. Limited work on generators has been done locally and micro-wind projects have been supported by domestic manufacturers. But we don't have a Suzlon Energy in our country.
Won't be off-topic I guess. Here's an interview with the CEO.
New age of solar panel
By Saquib Nisar Khattak
Mr. Naveed Iqbal is the Director & CEO of Akhter Solar Limited. He graduated in Cost & Management Accountancy from Institute of Cost & Management Accountants and is an Associate Member of Cost & Management Accountants of Pakistan. Mr. Iqbal originally worked as a finance expert for Akhter Group Limited prior to setting up of Akhter Solar Limited in 2005. He continues to be responsible for the overall control and direction of Akhter Solar Limited, a role he also performs for the Group's other activities in Pakistan. He was appointed in December 2005. He has a vast experience of over 10 years in IT & Communication Sector. And over 5 years experience in energy sector of Pakistan
1. Kindly briefly tell us about your organization?
Akhter Solar was established as a Public Limited Company under registered article in 2005 with its primary aim to become the first foundation of Solar Panel Industry in Pakistan, manufacturing PV modules with all the various requisites of the silicon industry. The
State of the art technology was introduced in the most significant and innovative trend at the first-ever manufacturing facility in Pakistan located in the heart of Hattar Industrial area, adjacent to the Haripur vicinity in North West of Islamabad (Pakistan). It is one of its own kind Industry producing Hi Tech and precise quality PV Modules in different sizes and adjustment.
Akhter Solar is a subsidiary of Akhter Group Plc United Kingdom. Prof. Humayun Mughal, Chairman and CEO of the group leads the team of Professionals in Pakistan to ensure that quality standards are horizontally and vertically maintained in a manner that end-product meets all international standards and is comparable with any other quality global product.
The main virtue behind this generation venture has been to introduce the most compatible Photovoltaic modules, getting to the zenith of technology orientation in the field of alternate energy production and its meaningful utility. Here Akhter Solar devised a new pattern of meeting the 21st century challenges in a modern sphere renovating the silicon characteristics in the field of energy generation.
2. Do you feel competition in Pakistani?
Not directly. Akhter Solar Limited is the only manufacturer of solar modules in Pakistan. If comes to price competition, we face immense competition with Chinese modules, whereas our prime focus is competing in quality with European modules.
3. What is your edge over your competitors?
In our solar modules we only use solar cells (Which is the prime power generation engine) manufactured by Q-cells Germany who is the largest & one of the pioneers in solar cells manufacturing globally. We have already entered in new age of solar panels by introducing concentrator photovoltaic modules.
4. What is the scope of investment in Solar Energy and how do you see its future?
The scope of investment in Solar Energy is very high. Not only can it address the energy shortage in Pakistan to some extent but can also be used as a huge potential in infrastructural development of the country. Future is solar due to constantly increase in prices of liquid fuels and we are expecting break even for cost of electricity produce from liquid fuel and solar panels in 2012.
5. In your view what could be the solutions of current energy crisis in Pakistan ?
In Current energy crisis government has to encourage people to reduce usage of UPS as back up storage due to high losses rate in UPS. Solar panels should be used to produce electricity at least for back up usage. Solar panels are best source for electricity to store for back up use. The government needs to enhance energy resources on both long term & short term basis.
We have to improve our energy mix and should add more electricity resources in our energy basket to achieve abundant electricity at average affordable prices. Pakistan has very very huge potential for solar due to its location and weather conditions. Building of new dams is a long term strategy. In short term, the government must subsidize and create greater awareness of alternate energy solutions usage in Pakistan. As a nation, we need to learn our responsibility of energy conservation to help the government in energy crisis both at individual and community levels.
6. What are future plans of your company in Pakistan ?
We are AlHamdulillah expanding our production capacity to 76MW per annum from 37MW per annum in near future. The long term planning could include transfer-of-technology and local manufacturing of solar cells. We have already procure more land for new plant. CPV is new technology in solar energy and Akhter solar is proud to have CPV modules with cells manufactured by us and sign an agreement in spain for installation of 100KW solar power plant using CPV modules. Module installation is in progress and we already shipped CPV modules manufactured in Pakistan at our own facility.
7. Would you like to tell us issues & challenges in Solar Energy & Suggest Solutions?
So far solar energy is only feasible for small Solar home systems in Pakistan due to non availability of feedin tariff. If reverse metering or net metering is introduced in Pakistan along with good feedin tariff, a significant number of industrial concerns & households will be encouraged to use solar energy and not only grid usage will be reduced but in many cases it will be supplemented with supply of energy to grid. The best solutions could be energy conservation, appropriate usage, improvisation of new energy sources and enhanced usage of alternate energy solutions as resources are abundantly available locally.
