RAWALPINDI, Feb 15: President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Tuesday approved an action plan to meet growing energy requirements in immediate, medium-term and long-term perspectives.

The two leaders observed at a presentation on energy security action plan, that Pakistan has abundant energy resources which needed to be harnessed through an institutionalized strategy for optimum utilization.

Under the plan, Pakistan aims at meeting its development requirements keeping in view the international trends in the energy sector and availability of resources.

The plan sets out to achieve exploration and maximum utilization of indigenous resources like oil, gas and coal and alternative sources like solar and wind energy.

It will seek to increase hydel power production through construction of a series of hydropower projects and proposes to integrate coal mining in power generation.

The plan will ensure maximum participation of the private sector and emphasizes development of wind and solar energy to meet at least five per cent of total energy requirements.

In his remarks, the president highlighted the fact that Pakistan has vast resources of oil, gas, coal, water and solar energy but regretted that they were not tapped in the past due to short-sighted policies. As a result, he added, the country's development could never be optimized.

"We need to go for considered decisions for far-reaching results as we have to sustain our economic growth at seven to eight per cent and above; we also have to find renewable energy resources," he said.

Mr Aziz observed that the non-utilization of renewable energy has hampered economic growth and its full potential could not be realized in the past. The government, he said, will extend all-out support for endeavours to bring into use conventional as well as alternate sources of energy.

It was decided that a pilot project based on wind energy would be established on fast-track basis for generation of 100 MW of power by December 2005. -APP