Solar, wind boost energy security: power minister

KARACHI: Pakistan’s growing reliance on domestic power, including solar and wind energy, nuclear reactors, coal and hydropower, has reduced its vulnerability to global LNG supply disruptions, Power Minister Awais Leghari told Reuters.

The war in the Middle East threatens shipments from Qatar, the world’s No. 2 producer after the US, which supplies most of Pakistan’s imported LNG, used to fuel power plants during peak electricity demand.

“Pakistan has been steadily increasing reliance on indigenous energy resources, and about 74 per cent of our electricity generation now comes from local sources,” Mr Leghari said, adding the government aims to raise that above 96pc by 2034.

The figures have not been previously reported.

“The people-led solar revolution, and earlier decisions to invest in nuclear, hydropower and local coal have all played a role in increasing Pakistan’s self-reliance,” he added.

Pakistan has long struggled with electricity shortages and historically faced hours of daily load shedding during peak summer demand.

The country now has surplus generation capacity after adding coal, LNG and nuclear plants, while demand growth has slowed and the use of rooftop solar has surged, at times exceeding grid demand in some hubs.

Outages still occur in parts of the country due to theft, line losses and financial constraints, rather than a lack of power.

‘Worst-case scenario’

Qatar halted........

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