North South Gas Pipeline Project: Pakistan, Russia sign amended IGA

In a landmark development, Pakistan and the Russian Federation on Friday signed the amended Inter Governmental Agreement for North South Gas Pipeline (NSGPP) of 1,122 kilometers from Port Qasim (Karachi) to Kasur (Punjab) that will increase the capacity of the country to transport the imported gas from the port city to load center of Punjab. According to a press release,…

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Decrying decarbonization?

Back in 2015, the Paris Agreement aimed to address the climate change due to the possible rise in the temperatures by 1.5 degrees Celsius, which has been translated into net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. In the same vein i.e., to meet Paris Agreement goals, the International Energy Agency in its recent report ‘Net Zero by 2050’ has called…

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Peak industrial tariff: To abolish or not

The federal government has filed a motion with the power regulator for extension of abolishment of time-of-use electricity tariffs for industrial consumers, as the Cabinet Committee on Energy approved the Power Division’s proposal for the same. Recall that the government had support to industrial power consumers back in November 2020, with various support packages announced, of which abolishment of peak…

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Electric vehicle system is future of Pakistan under PM’s green agenda, PM’s aide Malik Amin

Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam on Thursday said that introducing modern and environmental-friendly transport system through electric vehicles (EVs) in the country is of unprecedented importance to the efforts for coping with Pakistan’s air pollution woes and making cities clean and green under PM Imran Khan’s world-acclaimed green agenda. “Introducing EVs in the country’s…

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Rs 330b subsidy proposed for power

The Ministry of Finance may allocate Rs330 billion for power subsidies, which are equal to 60% of the next fiscal year’s estimated needs, sowing the seed for additional Rs220 billion circular debt from the very first day of the new fiscal year. Finance Minister Shaukat Tarin also threw his weight behind a proposal of giving subsidised gas and electricity to…

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Circular debt—myth and reality

We all know that the main reason for the forced increase in base power tariff is the “tsunami” of expensive and excess power capacity contracted by the previous PML government on “take or pay” basis that has hit the sector hard. The previous government also did not pass on any tariff increase in its last years and left that burden…

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A ‘100% renewables’ target might not mean what you think it means. An energy expert explains

wind-enery

Is 100% renewables realistic? Achieving 100% renewables is one way of eliminating emissions from the electricity sector. It’s commonly interpreted to mean all electricity must be generated from renewable sources. These sources usually include solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal, and exclude nuclear energy and fossil fuels with carbon capture and storage. But this is a very difficult feat for individual…

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Bleeding discos’ aren’t stepchildren

The electricity distribution sector did make some progress last year (FY20) despite being hit by the pandemic. It bled Rs218 billion in lieu of T&D and recovery losses, continuing with decades old rich tradition. The loss was bettered by Rs8 billion from last year. The distribution companies’ collective transmission and distribution (T&D) losses have stood like a rock in all…

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