April 26, 2006	Wednesday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 27, 1427

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PESHAWAR, April 25: More than 800 applications are pending with the Pakistan Council for Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET) for installation of small hydel power units in inaccessible areas of the NWFP and Northern Areas.

Official sources told this correspondent that the PCRET, a federal government agency, had received the applications from the residents of the remote areas of Kohistan, Chitral, Swat districts and Northern Areas about two years ago, seeking installation of micro hydel power units for domestic purpose.

The government had introduced the hydel power technology in the country in 1974 and started installation of micro hydel power units in remote areas on cost sharing basis.

The government had tasked the PCRET to provide electricity in the hilly areas where Wapda does not have access.

Officials said that despite the potential of hydel power generation in the hilly areas, a large number of people in Chitral, Kohistan and Mansehra districts or 30 per cent population of the Frontier province were without electricity.

An official, referring to a feasibility prepared by the Sarhad Hydel Development Organisation (SHYDO), said that the Frontier province had the capacity of generating 45,000 megawatt electricity by exploiting its hydel resources.

In Kohistan district, he said, the SHYDO had installed three power stations.

Officials in the PCRET said that the organisation had installed 300 plants since 1974 and around 12,000 houses had been energised.

Citing reasons for delay in execution of more projects, the Islamabad-based director of the PCRET, Dr Majeedul Hassan, said that the organisation was running short of skilled staff, which had affected its activities.

“Our total capacity is installation of 15 to 20 plants per year”, Dr Hassan said.

He said that the government had planned to extend the ongoing power plant installation project which was likely to be completed by 2008. Under the proposed plan, he said, the government had proposed installation of 700 to 800 small hydel power plants in the hilly areas.

For this purpose, he said, the organisation would increase its technical staff and enhance turbine manufacturing facilities.

The power plants are installed on perennial rivers, water channels and streams and local communities are responsible for operating and maintaining them on self-help basis.

The plants not only provide electricity, but are also used to run small industrial units, such as flour mills and cotton ginning factories.