Wind power is becoming the most competitive form of electricity in Pakistan due to its recent cost reduction, and has a potential to grow further given seeming support of the new government, Zeeshan Ashfaq, local representative of the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA), told Sputnik.
BONN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th September, 2018) Wind power is becoming the most competitive form of electricity in Pakistan due to its recent cost reduction, and has a potential to grow further given seeming support of the new government, Zeeshan Ashfaq, local representative of the World Wind Energy Association (WWEA), told Sputnik.
"The cost of wind power has been decreasing in Pakistan. It started with around 14 US cents per kWh in 2011, and now the recent tariff that was announced is between 4.1 to 4.4 US cents per kWh. One can see a dramatic decrease. This cost reduction in my opinion has made wind power the most competitive form of electricity generation in Pakistan," Ashfaq said on the sidelines of IRENA Innovation Week.
In recent years, the Pakistani wind power market has managed to take its share in the emerging renewable energy markets with the overall installed capacity of more than 1,000 MW, according to the national representative.
Ashfaq noted the cost reduction in wind power even looked premature to the population which expected it to be at the level of 5 - 6 US cents per kWh. Such a rapid decrease might turn out challenging to wind power producers. Therefore, the government support to the renewable energy production now becomes ever more important.
"Government has had a policy in place since 2006 ... policy has been there, but effective implementation has been missing. New draft national power policy is already in circulation among different stakeholders which targets a 20-percent share of renewable energy in the total energy mix of the country in the coming decades. With the new government in Pakistan now, which seems to be quite supportive of renewable energy, there is a new hope that there will be a positive momentum in the wind energy market in Pakistan," Ashfaq said.
Prime Minister Imran Khan, former cricket player, took office in August. He promised to curb corruption and pull people out of poverty. His party Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) also made a number of promising proposals on expanding renewables.
