STAFF REPORT KHI: Pakistan can generate thousands of megawatts electricity by using its vast but still untapped sources of solar, hydro, hydroelectric, wind and waste energy scattered across the country.
“If tapped only 0.08 per cent of the solar energy reserves in Balochistan can cater to energy needs of the entire country,” Awais Khan, President and Chief Executive of American Pakistan Foundation (APF), said this while referring to a recent study.
He mentioned that said multilateral finders like World Bank and International Finance Corporation (IFC) were present in the country to fund mega energy projects but, unfortunately, 99.9 per cent of the local institutions are falling short of meeting the “broader criterion” set for getting funding from these multinational organizations.
According to him, the institutional capacity building, bringing domestic work standards at par with that of international ones and experienced and skilled managers are the three prerequisites.
The risk-averse banks, he said, could bridge this financial gap through extending more advances to the private individual and institutional borrowers willing to install the sophisticated energy generating equipment.