KARACHI: Speakers at a stakeholder consultation session on utilising indigenous coal resources on Wednesday underlined the need for converting Thar coal into petrochemical products as well as natural gas.

The session was organised to discuss the avenues to utilise Thar coal reserves to not only solve energy problems for Pakistan but also drive industrial growth by the Thar Coal Energy Board (TCEB).

The session was attended by representatives from various industries, including textile, cement, power, and mining, such as Shanghai Electric, Sindh Engro Coal Mining Company, and Sino Sindh Resources Ltd.

A number of prominent energy and economic experts, such as Akhtar Ali, Kaiser Bengali, and Pervez Tahir, among others, also attended the event.

Addressing the stakeholders, Energy Minister Imtiaz Ahmed Sheikh said that the province had a complete, cheap and long-lasting solution to the energy problems of the country.

He stated that the provincial government would go all out in enhancing energy security for the country, and was currently working on multiple projects to support macroeconomic stability of the country.

The energy minister said that Thar coal deposits and natural resources of the province were the best resources to meet the country’s energy needs and save a lot of foreign exchange spent on export fuel to get out of the severe economic crisis. He said that currently about 2,600 megawatts of electricity are going to the National Grid from Thar coal reserves, which is a cheap source of energy.

Published in Dawn, February 23th, 2023