Year: 2021

The “Most Important Question” on Earth: How Soon Will China Quit Coal?

Admin

The pledge by China’s president, Xi Jinping, on Tuesday to cease building new coal-fired power projects outside the country will be welcome news to environmentalists around the world. It came on the anniversary of Xi’s unilateral pledge for China to reach carbon neutrality by 2060. Last year Xi also promised that Chinese emissions would peak by 2030. “China will step up support for other developing countries in developing green and low-carbon energy, and will not build new coal-fired power projects abroad,” Xi said in a pre-recorded video address at the annual UN general…

Read More

Renewable Energy Investments in Pakistan less than Successful: ADB

Admin

The Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) Independent Evaluation Department (IED) has concluded that Investments in Renewable Energy Development Sector has remained less effective and less successful primarily because of design faults, and financial and operational issues of the overall power sector. IED of Asian Development Bank issued a Validation report where it was highlighted that Multiple facilities to the tune of $2.2 billion was arranged where ADB participated with 23%, Private Sector 41%, 18% from other lenders and ~17.7% from the Government. The Validation report highlighted that design deficiencies remain in…

Read More

High-Level Dialogue on Energy 2021: Pakistan for ensuring equal access to affordable energy

Admin

Pakistan Friday called for boosting progress towards achievement of a United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) that calls for ensuring access to affordable energy worldwide. Speaking at a “High-Level Dialogue on Energy 2021”, convened by the UN Secretary-General to build a global roadmap towards the achievement of SDG No.7 by 2030 and net zero emissions by 2050, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said Pakistan attaches high priority to the achievement of the SDG-7. Pakistan’s policy objectives, he told the meeting, centered on universal access to energy, doubling the share of…

Read More

NTDC probe team says access to record being denied

Admin

Although the team, constituted by the company’s top management around two months ago, was supposed to complete the inquiry by Aug 20, it was unable to do so owing to the non-provision of record and resistance from various officers, Dawn has learnt. “A mafia has been ruling the country’s premier power transmission and despatch agency (NTDC) for the last three years. The mafia has become very powerful, as it is not only protecting the corrupt officials, but also interfering in day-to-day affairs of the company. That is why this important…

Read More

Sectoral policies: start with deregulation

Admin

The government is in the process of developing policies for selected sectors such as refineries and automobiles. Having well defined policies in any sector is the right approach to give right signal to investors, allowing government to seek investment in desired areas. However, policy formulation is becoming weak in Pakistan, as modus operandi is extremely ad-hoc. Discussions take place with industry players who present their wish-list, which is then tweaked a little bit. And out comes the policy. That is not the right approach. Government’s intentions may be well placed,…

Read More