I would wish to explain coal gasification process for the interest of common readers. It is a process in which coal is reacted with oxygen and super heated steam in the presence of a catalyst to convert it into a mixture of (CO + H2) which is known as water gas. Thus produced water gas is converted into various paraffin products ranging from gas to wax through Fischer Tropsch synthesis. Generally yields of Fischer Tropsch synthesis are low and industrially uneconomically. South Africa is the only country in the world using this uneconomical process of coal gasification. Gasification of underground coal is still a more tedious chemical process. All the efforts of the scientists to increase yield of gasification products in an operation being carried out over the ground where it is possible to precisely control the reaction parameters, have not been fruitful. How an underground coal gasification process devised by our science gurus will be successful? I honestly think in the best interest of our country that the project of underground coal gasification is poorly planned, misleading, and ambiguous and is commercially not feasible. Dr.Muhammad Mazhar, Professor on Tenure Department of Chemistry,Faculty of Science, University of Malaya,Lembah Pantai,50603-Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Phone Number: 03-79674269.Mobile Number: 0162796040.

Let Dr Samar Mubarakmand try out his project. Discouraging him out right is unfair. Many of life's failures are men who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.

Coal gasification for power generation has not proven to be economically viable. I agree with comment by Dr. Farid Malik

IF gasification is not feasible then i am sure windmill can be a solid solution, the coastal belt stretch contains immense potential for wind driven turbines for producing unlimited amount of electricity, Now problem is that windmills will have to be imported and we will have to wait as ordering queue is long and on top of it enormous amount of funds will be required, solution to this can be to get into a joint venture with some international company and Involve HMC Pakistan (heavy mechanical Complex ) and start producing windmills here.I dont know but I have this feeling that this is the most easiest way to produce electricity.

Regardless of the merit of the process, the approach taken by Dr Samar Mubarakmand is questionable. Without showing the success of his pilot project convincingly by independent experts and going through normal research process, asking for large public funding is dubious. He should involve more multidisciplinary experts like petroleum engineers and chemical engineers before declaring success!