CSS Current Affairs | Potential of Hydropower in Pakistan
The following question of CSS Current Affairs is solved by Safina Naz under the supervision of Howfiv’s Pakistan Affairs and Current Affairs Coaches. She learnt how to attempt 20 marks question and essay writing from Sir Syed Kazim Ali, Pakistan’s best CSS and PMS English essay and precis teacher with the highest success rate of his students. This solved past paper question is attempted on the pattern taught by Sir to his students, scoring the highest marks in compulsory and optional subjects for years, and uploaded to help aspirants understand how to crack a topic or question, how to write relevantly, what coherence is, and how to include and connect ideas, opinions, and suggestions to score the maximum.
Outline
1- Introduction
2- A furtive glance at the hydropower projects of Pakistan
3- What is Pakistan’s hydropower potential?
- ✓In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
- ✓In Punjab
- ✓In Azad Jammu and Kashmir
- ✓In Gilgit
- ✓In Sindh
- ✓In Baluchistan
4- What are the challenges to the hydropower potential of Pakistan?
- ✓High cost of hydropower projects
- ✓ Bureaucratic delays in hydropower projects
- ✓Poor infrastructure of hydropower projects
5- What can be the possible measures to overcome the challenges of hydropower projects?
- ✓By working on Micro-scale hydropower projects
- ✓By Increasing ease of doing business to increase foreign direct investment
6- Critical Analysis
7- Conclusion
Answer to the Question
Introduction
Nothing can help a country advance towards progress and prosperity the way energy does. Undoubtedly, it acts as a backbone holding the base of the socio-economic development of a country. Countries rely on renewable energy resources, coal, oil, natural gas, and non-renewable energy resources, hydropower, wind, and solar energy, to meet the ever-increasing energy demands in all spheres of life. Nonetheless, the use of renewable energy resources has increased extravagantly in the recent past, with countries aiming to completely shift their energy mix towards renewable energy resources. Developed countries are leading the race; however, developing countries are also following the same track. Pakistan, being a developing country, is also positioned among those countries that are shifting their focus towards renewable resources. Speaking of the renewable energy potential of Pakistan, it is a land of blessed people with abundant resources, be it solar, wind, or hydel. Hydel energy, being the most abundant source of energy, can play a pivotal role in Pakistan’s energy sector, as it is blessed with abundant hydropower resources. However, certain challenges hamper Pakistan’s hydropower potential. The most prominent challenge is the cost of hydropower projects, leading to the under-utilization of hydel resources. Owing to the shortage of enough budget, multiple projects are facing constant delays. Nonetheless, the situation can be different if Pakistan works on ease of doing business to attract foreign investment. This essay briefly describes the hydropower potential of Pakistan and the major challenges that hydropower projects face.
A furtive glance at the hydropower projects of Pakistan
Before delving into the depth, it is pertinent to throw light on the historical roots of hydropower projects in Pakistan. The very first hydropower project installed on the land area of Pakistan was installed in 1925, with the formation of a hydropower station at Renala having a capacity of 1MW. After a decade of 1st power plant, 2nd power plant was installed in Malakand with an energy production capacity of 1.7MW. Moving fast forward, the hydropower generation reached 119 MW with the creation of WAPDA in 1958. Adding to it, the construction of dams, including Warsak Dam and Mangla Dam, with a share of 240 MW and 1000 MW, improved the hydropower capacity of Pakistan. In successive years, the hydropower capacity of the country increased, reaching 10852 MW in 2022, with Khyber Pakhtunkhwa at the top of the list, generating 2525 MW of hydropower and other provinces making up the rest of the hydropower energy. However, a lot of Pakistan’s hydropower potential is untapped and needs to be utilized to fulfil the country’s energy demands. Thus, efficient utilization of hydropower resources is needed to overcome the country’s energy demand.
What is Pakistan’s hydropower potential?
Heading towards the main discussion, Pakistan is blessed with abundant hydropower resources distributed all over the country. Hydel power energy is potentially able to produce as much as 60000 MW of energy, and the current production of hydel power energy is 10852 MW. The greatest potential for hydropower generation exists in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), containing 123 project sites. While 28 sites are identified as raw sites, 25 sites are currently operational in the province, producing 5789.22 MW of energy. Therefore, having an abundance of hydropower sites, KPK has the highest potential of producing hydropower through run-off schemes.
Next to it, having 810 project sites with the hydropower production capacity of 7316 MW, Punjab is ranked at the second number in terms of hydropower resources. Out of all the projects, 18 projects are currently operational in Punjab with the production of 25254 MW hydropower. Thus, hydropower potential of Punjab has further added on to the overall hydropower capacity of Pakistan.
Adding to it, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, being the heaven on Earth, play a paramount role in the hydropower generation of Pakistan, containing resources worth 8295 MW. However, only eight hydropower projects are operational in Azad Kashmir, producing 215 MW of energy and leaving the huge hydropower potential of the country untapped.
Further, with 123 operational hydropower projects, Gilgit-Baltistan produces 169.351 MW of hydropower. In cooperation with private sector, hydropower projects with capacity of producing 11876 MW energy are under implementation in Gilgit. But, only a handful of projects are financed in Gilgit owing to the lack of connection with national grid and absence of transmission lines. Hence, Gilgit’s full potential still needs to be explored.
Besides, the water-scarce province of Sindh has a capacity of producing 208 MW hydropower, containing 19 project sites. These sites are located on Nai Gaj Fall on Nai River, Kotri and Guddu Barrage, and Rohri and Nara canals. Lastly, being at the bottom line in terms of water resources, Baluchistan has no operational hydropower project. However, with a capacity of 5. 2 MW, some of the projects are being implemented in Baluchistan. To sum up, Pakistan has tremendous hydropower potential. Nonetheless, owing to the limited focus on hydropower projects, Pakistan has failed to benefit from the country’s hydropower potential.
What are the challenges to the hydropower potential of Pakistan?
- ✓High cost of hydropower projects
Despite being blessed with plenty of hydropower resources, Pakistan faces multiple challenges in utilizing hydel resources, rendering 93 % of hydro resources untapped. Multiple factors are responsible for the under-utilization of these resources. Among them, the most prominent one is the high cost of hydropower projects. The projects require a huge amount of money for completion as the machinery that needs to be installed is expensive, thereby hampering the hydropower potential owing to cost constraints. As an example, according to the Institute for Economic and Financial Analysis, the Neelum Jhelum hydropower project, completed in 2018, had a cost of Rs. 507 billion. The data clearly shows that due to the high cost of the project, the project was delayed from 1987 and completed in 2018. Thus, the major challenge that the hydropower sector of Pakistan is facing is the extravagant cost of the hydropower projects.
- ✓ Bureaucratic delays in hydropower projects
In addition, bureaucratic hurdles have stalled several hydropower projects in the country, hindering the hydropower potential of Pakistan. The delays by the administration regarding agreements, approval of sites, and provision of certificates have halted the working on projects, depriving the state of getting a cheap energy source, hydropower. For instance, the work on Shigo Kas Hydro Power Plant (HPP) and Koto HPP has been delayed due to delayed issuance of tariffs and pending import of machinery, respectively. Ultimately, the country has failed to get benefit from the hydropower sector in true letter and spirit. Further, the reasons behind the hurdles in hydropower projects are the vested interests of administrative bodies who work for the interests of political parties at the expense of public interests, preventing the public from getting their hands on cheap energy. Thus, a major problem in hydropower projects is the hurdles posed by bureaucratic officials in the projects.
- ✓Poor infrastructure of hydropower projects
Further, poor infrastructure is another hitch in the success of hydropower in Pakistan. The efficiency of the projects decreases with the passage of time due to the use of substandard material in construction and the lack of checks and balances on maintenance, opening the window of loopholes in projects and curtailing the potential of hydropower. Malakand III hydropower project is a case in point. According to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organization, excessive floods leading to the influx of sand resulted in corroding the head covers wicket gates, and bottom rings. Consequently, the efficiency of the turbines decreased, leading to an energy shortfall during the peak summer season in KPK. Moreover, outdated transmission lines and inefficient power feeders have reduced the potential of hydropower projects. Poor infrastructure and inefficient electricity transmission systems are the colossal problems that hydropower projects in Pakistan face today.
What can be the possible measures to overcome the challenges of hydropower projects?
- ✓By working on Micro-scale hydropower projects
However, Pakistan can fully explore its hydropower potential by changing the course of action and taking probable measures. First off, to cut the high-cost constraint, the government must work on micro hydropower projects. Improving the energy supply, these projects can provide a better alternative for the mage-hydropower projects that require more investment for their construction. Tangir, a microscale hydropower project, is one such example that will provide 21 MW of hydropower energy to Gilgit Baltistan. The project, being the party of the mega hydropower project Basha- aims to provide cheap energy to the GB people. Hence, making small-scale projects operational can help harness Pakistan’s hydropower potential.
- ✓By Increasing ease of doing business to increase foreign direct investment
Further, increasing foreign investment in hydro projects can significantly play a role in tapping the hydropower potential. For this, increasing ease of doing business and providing a conducive business environment can help attract foreign investors. An example of the Star Hydropower Project, according to the International Finance Corporation, the Asian Development Bank and Islamic Development Bank have provided 409 million dollars for the Star project, which is currently producing 147MW of energy, providing energy to the national group. Likewise, Pakistan can attract more foreign direct investment to finance the hydropower projects, helping to overcome the underutilization of renewable resources. Thus, foreign direct investments seem to be a ray of hope to overcome the constraints hindering the hydropower potential of the country.
Critical Analysis
To articulate critically, despite being a resource-rich country in terms of hydro, solar and wind energy, the true potential of hydropower is still untapped in the country, leading to a grave energy shortfall. Among all other factors, lack of political will is a daunting challenge that has proved to be a major hurdle in the completion of hydropower projects. Vested interests of political parties prevent working on hydropower projects, delaying the projects for an unforeseeable time. Further, the short tenure of ruling by every democratically elected government prevents the government from taking pragmatic steps to enhance energy supply through hydropower projects in the country. Therefore, to overcome rising energy demand and harness hydropower potential, it is the need of the hour to invigorate a sense of responsibility in political leaders.
Conclusion
To sum up the matter, Pakistan has abundant hydropower resources, especially in KPK and Punjab. Collectively, all the provinces of Pakistan have the potential to produce hydropower energy of 60000MW, which is far more than the country’s actual energy demand. However, multiple core issues prevent Pakistan from meeting the energy demand through hydropower projects. The most significant ones are the investment constraints and bureaucratic delays in the hydropower projects. However, certain steps, such as working on small-scale hydro projects and financing projects by foreign investors, can help in benefitting from the hydropower potential in true letter and spirit. Thus, taking pragmatic steps can help Pakistan fight the devil of energy crisis by utilizing the hydropower potential of the country.
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