Wind-power projects look doubtful
Friday, March 21, 2008
KARACHI: The energy crisis will only worsen if measures to overcome it are not taken immediately. There has been negligence on the part of the state in developing generation capacity with the growing demand for electric power and diverting the major part of countrys resources in non-productive and defence sectors.
Experts say that upgrading and maintenance of the available power generating means is necessary to curtail power shortage till alternative solutions are introduced. The state of affairs at the KESC is such that at present only 60 per cent of the generators are working and the rest 40 per cent are out of order. These 60 per cent of the generators are producing well below their capacity. The well publicised overhauling of Korangi and Bin Qasim thermal power stations and the claim of rehabilitation of their original capacities never materialised. The frequent breakdowns of various units of these power plants have exposed the incompetence of the privatised KESC management.
Professor Muhammad Nauman of NED University says: The worst part is that the General Musharraf-led government was fully aware of the situation from day one and yet it failed to add even one megawatt of capacity in the KESC system. Instead of investing in thermal and wind power plants, it preferred to privatise the KESC and that too without taking guarantees from the incumbent operator for the immediate addition of adequate generation capacity.
Power generation through alternative energy resources like wind, solar and hydel is an economical and sustainable solution for Pakistan. Solar and wind energy is being increasingly used in the developed world. In Pakistan, the average mean sunshine is 8.3 hours per day, making solar energy a reliable option. However, the high initial capital cost is a major constraint in utilising it for feeding in the grid.
The most viable option is wind energy which is used in various parts of the world; Holland is known as the land of windmills. Wind energy production requires a minimum wind velocity for the major part of the day. Much higher wind speeds are available on the entire coastal belt of Pakistan that stretches more than 1000 kilometers. The developed world is moving fast towards wind energy. Europe is leaving everyone behind in developing this energy and plans to generate 25 per cent to 30 per cent of its power from wind energy before 2025.
The Alternative Energy Development Board (AEDB) was set up more than 6 years back by the military regime. The ground progress is, however, not satisfactory at all. The government has also provided land to the companies interested in setting Wind Power Projects at very low prices, without tight control and strict conditions on cancellation of such projects that remain stagnant for years.
It could potentially trigger land speculation and prevent serious parties from getting land at the appropriate location. Pakistan has failed to make use of small wind technology, also known as intermediate technology, which only requires the utilisation of local material and is available at nominal cost from the developed world.
There are many areas where grid station and power transmission lines are not available. These remote areas can utilise small wind mills for lifting water up to the depth of 33 feet. By using small wind mills for power generation, we can cater to the need of a small community or install submersible pumps to lift water from any depth. Similarly, small water turbines may be used at springs flowing in Northern Areas to generate electricity for domestic use. The mind-set of our rulers, planners and implementers, however, does not take this kind of development, for the down trodden masses, seriously. Their obsession remains firm for mega projects, especially mega dams, since huge chunks of money can be quickly skimmed from such projects.
The government of NWFP has laid down a policy for the installation of micro-hydel projects for the last two decades without any noticeable progress.
The Metrological Department of Pakistan had carried out a detailed survey for collecting wind data on the entire coast line of Pakistan some 10 years back. It includes the Mekran coast, Gharo and Gadap areas of Karachi, Keti Bandar and Shah Bandar. Gharo and Gadap areas are fortunate because transmission lines pass through them, which make it easy to take equipment and material to the site.
Unfortunately, our government experts selected a height of 30 meters for obtaining wind data. The recommended height useful for medium capacity wind turbines is 90 meters. Thus, accurate data is not available for designing or choosing appropriate turbines.
One wonders why the AEDB has been sitting on this data for years and hasnt been able to take an initiative in arranging for a fresh survey to be conducted at multiple heights utilised by the current turbines.
One highly publicised tidal energy project in the Gharo creek, near Thatta has also gone to cold storage. This was perhaps the most appropriate project of its kind in Pakistan that could have opened avenues and provided expertise to carry out such projects at various places in the Indus delta.
On March 14, 2007, one public hearing was conducted by NEPRA at Karachi. The purpose of the hearing was to enhance the tariff for M/s Win Power (pvt) Ltd that had been mutually accepted by the parties.
The reason cited by the Win Power Company at the hearing was that the agencies had advised the company that the prevailing Pakistan-India relations would not allow the import of wind turbines from India.
Therefore the company had been forced to look for alternative sources and had selected a Canadian company for the purchase and installation of turbines. The then NEPRA chairman, who was presiding the public hearing, was not only convinced of this absurd argument, but allowed the escalated cost, which was based on the highest plant and machinery cost, highest bank charges and highest risk charges.
This was done despite raising of objections by all relevant government departments against the proposed raise in tariff.
The proponents of the projects were not ready even to guarantee that they would not demand further increase in tariff. During the tea time, some staff members of NEPRA shared their resentment with this correspondent, on the dictates of their chairman.
It is worth mentioning that representatives of the KESC were not ready to sign any agreement for the purchase of electricity from Wind Power.
However, S J Raza, CEO of Win Power, told this correspondent that Win Power had been unable to get a firm commitment for the provision of wind turbines from any supplier around the world due to shortage of equipment, rising demand, especially on account of soaring oil prices, and because of the prevailing uncertainty in Pakistan. He informed us that an agreement has finally been signed with China, and China would provide the equipment in the first quarter of 2009.
According to him, this project will be completed within two years, in two phases. The installed capacity would be 100MW. However, it was learnt that there have not been any financial closures in this regard and no quotations have yet been decided.
The completion of the wind power project looks highly doubtful at this point in time. The dilemma at hand remains that the government has no serious intentions of opting for alternative sources of energy that, indisputably, is the future of this country.
Instead of diverting massive resources towards the setting up of fuel- efficient, environmentally-friendly and modern technology plants, the government is shifting its burden on to private companies and shrinking from its responsibilities towards the nation.
If steps are not taken to immediately to control this crisis, the country will have no choice but to acquire used, inefficient and expensive plants and technologies to produce power at a cost that might not be affordable for the common man. It is bound to have a severe impact on our exports, which will no longer be cost competent in the world market.
Wind-power projects look doubtful
