THERE are about 929bn tons of coal reserves in the world, 40pc of which is used to produce electricity. According to an estimation, the third biggest coal reserve of 185bn ton is in Pakistan. This is equivalent to 400bn barrels of oil. Thus, our coal reserves are equivalent to the combined oil reserves of Saudi Arabia and Iran.

According to research, $50 a barrel price gives the value of our coal reserve as high as $30trn, which is 187 times high as compared to our current GDP. The government has taken appropriate action to produce electricity from Thar coal and other resources during the next three to five years.

Recently, Sindh has contracted with a multinational firm, and work has been started to produce 1,000 MW electricity from coal.

These projects will save huge foreign currency, now spent on oil import. Iran is also producing electricity from coal. China, too, produces 75pc of electricity from coal and is ready to help us produce electricity from coal. It’s unfortunate that the lobby of multinational oil companies didn’t let the plans of generating electricity from wind and coal come into being.

At the world level the share of electricity produced by gas is 19pc while in Pakistan it is 45pc. Similarly, nuclear energy’s share in the world’s total is 16pc, while in Pakistan it is only 2pc.

Hydro-generated electricity’s world share is 16pc, but in Pakistan it is 3.3pc, etc.

Pakistan produces only 200 MW from coal which is 7pc of the total energy production while the energy produced by coal should be up to 25pc.

Engr Aijaz Babar
Jamshoro