Pakistan Energy Situation
Capital:
Islamabad
Region:
Coordinates:
30.0000° N, 70.0000° E
Total Area (km²): It includes a country's total area, including areas under inland bodies of water and some coastal waterways.
796,100
Population: It is based on the de facto definition of population, which counts all residents regardless of legal status or citizenship--except for refugees not permanently settled in the country of asylum, who are generally considered part of the population of their country of origin.
240,485,658 (2023)
Rural Population (% of total population): It refers to people living in rural areas as defined by national statistical offices. It is calculated as the difference between total population and urban population.
62 (2023)
GDP (current US$): It is the sum of gross value added by all resident producers in the economy plus any product taxes and minus any subsidies not included in the value of the products. It is calculated without making deductions for depreciation of fabricated assets or for depletion and degradation of natural resources.
338,368,455,318 (2023)
GDP Per Capita (current US$): It is gross domestic product divided by midyear population
1,407.02 (2023)
Access to Electricity (% of population): It is the percentage of population with access to electricity.
95.00 (2022)
Energy Imports Net (% of energy use): It is estimated as energy use less production, both measured in oil equivalents. A negative value indicates that the country is a net exporter. Energy use refers to use of primary energy before transformation to other end-use fuels, which is equal to indigenous production plus imports and stock changes, minus exports and fuels supplied to ships and aircraft engaged in international transport.
24.12 (2014)
Fossil Fuel Energy Consumption (% of total): It comprises coal, oil, petroleum, and natural gas products.
61.59 (2014)
Overview
This article gives a short overview of the energy situation in Pakistan. It outlines the main sources of energy and states the main problems for the energy sector regarding micro hydropower, solar energy products and cooking technologies for energy access. Furthermore, the institutional set-up, the policy framework and international programmes regarding energy access are portrayed.
- RAGA[1]
Energy Sector Overview
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan which became an independent state in 1947 is governed by a federal parliamentary constitution. It is globally the sixth most populous country with a population of approximately 200.000 million people and a comparatively high population growth rate of 1.5%.[2] Pakistan is a semi-industrialized economy with a presentable textile, food processing and agriculture base and a per capita GDP of 1561 USD. According to the World Bank, Pakistan has important strategic endowments and development potentials. Its labour market is the 10th largest globally and Pakistan is number 67 amongst the global exporters.[3] Yet, there is a large inequality within the society (Gini: 30 as per World Bank) and still 21% of the population lives under the poverty line.[4]
Pakistan’s Energy Mix
The primary energy supply amounts to over 70 million Tonnes of Oil Equivalent (TOE). Oil and gas are by far the dominating sources with a share of 80%. Oil is imported from the Middle East mainly Saudi Arabia, gas from Iran. In addition, Pakistan is consuming Liquefied National Gas (LNG), Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and coal. Pakistan has currently, 4 power plants with a total capacity of 755 MW; additional 3 are under construction.[5] Nuclear power accounts for around 1.9% of the total installed capacity in Pakistan.[1] Hydropower has a share of 13% whereas other renewable energies only play a minor role.
The government is supporting the use of LPG for cooking resulting in rapid investment in production, storage and establishment of auto stations of LPG. During the FY 2016, an approximate investment of PKR 2.38 billion has been made in the LPG supply infrastructure whereas total investment in the sector until Feb 2016 is estimated at about PKR 22.33 billion. During the FY 2016, the regulatory body OGRA has issued 12 licenses for operational marketing of storage and filling plants, 37 licenses for construction of LPG storage and filling plants, 20 licenses for Construction of LPG auto-refuelling stations and one license for storage and refuelling of LPG was issued. Further, one license for construction of production and storage of LPG facility is also issued by OGRA which shall result in improving supply and distribution of LPG as well as create job opportunities in the sector.[5]
Energy Sources
Historically, Pakistan has always been an energy importer and is highly dependent on fossil fuels. With the rising fossil fuel prices, the cost of oil importing is creating a dent on Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves. The rising oil price along, withe the rising demand for uninterrupted power, is creating additional pressure on the already fragile electricity grid of Pakistan. Therefore, to met this increasing demand, the Government of Pakistan, in its new budget for the fiscal year 2014-2015,has allocated $340 million to its energy development portfolio. About 80% of this budget will be spent on generating power from solar, biomass and biogas.[6][7]
About USD 2.3 billion is spend annually on candles, kerosene lamps and battery-powered flashlights by Pakistanis.[8]
Renewable Energy Sources
Wind Energy
Pakistan has a potential for wind energy specially in the southern coast and coastal Balochistan. The wind speed is on average 7-8 m/s at some sites along the Keti Bandar- Gharo corridor.[9]
For more information about wind energy in pakistan, see Wind Energy Country Analyses Pakistan
Solar PV
Biomass
Hydropower
Electricity market
Main Problems of the Energy Sector
Institutional Set-Up in the Energy Sector
Electricity sector
The electricity market of Pakistan in unbundled at the generation and distribution but is bundled at the Transmission point. The National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) is only responsible for transmission and dispatch of electricity. As of December 2006, there are 16 IPPs investing in Pakistan. [10].
Public sector relevant for energy access
Enterprises
Micro finance organisations
NGOs
Policy Framework, Laws and Regulations Regarding Energy Access
International Programmes and Projects
International Initiatives
Further Information
References
This article is mainly based on a paper written for the GIZ Pakistan (Energy access situation in Pakistan. Energy sector overview of micro hydropower, solar and cooking technologies, January 2016)
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Sustainable energy for all and Ministry of Finance - Implementation and Economic Reforms Unit (IERU), ‘Pakistan: Rapid Assessment and Gap Analysis’, 2014, 15, http://www.se4all.org/sites/default/files/Pakistan_RAGA_EN_Released.pdf.
- ↑ Central Intelligence Agency, ‘The World Factbook — Pakistan’, 2016, https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/pk.html.
- ↑ Alexander Simoes, ‘OEC: The Observatory of Economic Complexity’, 2016, http://atlas.media.mit.edu/en/.
- ↑ The World Bank, ‘Pakistan Overview’, 2016, http://www.worldbank.org/en/country/pakistan/overview.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Ministry of Finance, Government of Pakistan, ‘Pakistan Economic Survey 2015-16. Chapter 14-Energy’, 2016, http://www.finance.gov.pk/survey/chapters_16/14_Energy.pdf.
- ↑ http://www.trust.org/item/20140717081934-6sjf2
- ↑ http://www.aedb.org/Policy/REpolicy.pdf
- ↑ ADB blog: https://blogs.adb.org/blog/grid-solar-can-be-game-changer-electricity-access-central-asia
- ↑ http://www.aedb.org/Policy/REpolicy.pdf
- ↑ http://www.aedb.org/Policy/REpolicy.pdf
