ISLAMABAD, July 5: A visiting official of the World Energy Council (WEC) was informed here on Tuesday that the government had identified 100 sites for hydel- and coal-based power projects in the country. An official press release said Federal Minister for Petroleum and Natural Resources Amanullah Khan Jadoon suggested to the WEC deputy secretary-general Jan Murray that the WEC should help develop cleaner coal technology in order to increase global use of low quality coal for power generation for the energy-hungry developing economies.

Ms Murray was briefed by Mr Jadoon and his Minister of State Mir Mohammad Naseer Mengal in separate meetings about the government’s plans to develop the energy sector in Pakistan for sustaining its economic growth of over 8 per cent.

Mr Jadoon threw light on the various measures being taken to explore indigenous oil, gas, coal, hydel and alternate energy resources as well as cross-border pipeline projects to overcome the looming energy shortfall after 2010. Currently, he said, the gas sector was meeting 50 per cent of the energy requirement of the country.

Pakistan is endowed with vast oil, gas, coal resources and all-out efforts were being made to explore them at a fast pace, he told the WEC official.