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Boycott of Danish Products May Delay Wind Power Generation Project in Pakistan

Posted on: Wednesday, 15 March 2006, 06:00 CST

Text of report attributed to [Khabrain-affiilated] The Post headlined: "Boycott of Danish products; wind power generation project at Gharo Katy Bandar hits snags" by Pakistani newspaper Khabrain on 14 March

Islamabad: Brigadier [retired] Nasim A Khan, secretary of the Alternate Energy Board [AEB], has said that the boycott of Danish products in reprisal for the publication of blasphemous caricatures has created hurdles in the execution of alternate energy generation projects in the country. He said that turbines used in wind energy generation units in rural areas were imported from Denmark and other European countries. In an interview with [Khabrain-affiliated English daily] The Post, Khan said that the installation of turbines in the wind energy unit in the Gharo Katy Bandar area of Sindh might be delayed, because the turbines were to be imported from Denmark.

He said this project was aimed to produce 100 megawatts of wind- generated electricity. Initially the deadline for completion of the project was fixed for December 2005, but later the government extended the deadline until June 2006. Usually, the completion period for such projects is 18 months. But installation work at the Katy Bandar project ran into snags because of the situation arising out of the publication of blasphemous caricatures in September 2005. He said that the government had established the Alternate Energy Board on 12 May 2003.

The objective of the board was to explore and tap alternate sources of energy in the country. He said the board had subsequently pinpointed several alternate energy sources in various areas. The AEB chief said that the coastal areas of the country had the capacity to generate 50,000 megawatts of wind-generated electricity. He said that an area of 1,046 square kilometres had been demarcated for the purpose. Nasim Khan said that the cost of wind-generated electricity was three to six cents per kilowatt.

Besides wind-generated energy, he said that power generation from solar energy, garbage, and oil was also under consideration by the government. He elaborated that 20 megawatts of electricity could be generated daily from 600 tons of garbage, whereas the daily amount of garbage disposed by the ciety of Karachi was 800 tons. Brigadier Nasim A Khan said that river and canal water could also be used for power generation. He added that the country had the capacity to generate 22,000 megawatts of electricity from traditional sources.

He said the AEB had pinpointed the wind energy-based power generation project in Gharo Katy Bandar because this area had the potential to generate 50,000 megawatts of electricity. Different international firms, including GE and Walitas [names as published], and experts had endorsed the feasibility study for this project. He said that separate pieces of land had been allotted in the area to eight companies, which will generate 50 megawatts of electricity each. He said the Water and Power Development Authority is bound to purchase electricity from these companies. He said that the government had also issued letters of intent to 28 national and international firms for generation of wind energy-based electricity.

Source: BBC Monitoring South Asia

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