The power production potential of Pakistan through indigenous energy resources is estimated to be approximately 3,400,000MW.
As per a joint report on Overview of Pakistan’s Power Sector and its Future Outlook, compiled by several organizations including NUST Energy Center, APCEA, PCI, SDPI, and CSAIL, the country’s power potential through indigenous energy resources for Hydro Power is projected at 60,000MW, Solar Power 2,900,000MW, Wind Power 346,000MW, Bagasse Cogeneration 2,000MW, and Coal Power 100,000MW.
Hydro resources are mostly found in the northern parts of the country, from where the Indus river starts and other rivers and streams join this river. While indigenous coal resources are located in Thar in Sindh Province. The wind and solar resources are largely present in Balochistan, Sindh, and areas in Southern Punjab.
Hydro Power
Hydropower may be developed in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJ&K).
As per the details, the Power potential of Indus River is 39,717MW, Swat River 1,803MW, Kunhar River 1,480MW, Jhelum River 5,624MW, Kandiah River 1,006MW, Punch River 462MW, and other Rivers 9,704MW.
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The following hydro power projects in operation and are under various stages of development across Pakistan:
- Public Sector 9,443 MW
- Private Sector 1,051 MW
- Public Sector 19,539 MW
- Private Sector (PPIB + Provinces) 5,540 MW
- Projects with complete Feasibility Study 4,345 MW
- Raw Sites 19,725 MW
- Total Hydropower Potential 59,643 MW
Moreover, the following hydropower projects are operational/under development, under CPEC Framework:
- 720 MW Karot Hydropower Project on Jhelum River in Punjab
- 884 MW Suki Kinari Hydropower Project on Kunhar River in KPK
- 1,124 MW Kohala Hydropower Project on Jhelum River in AJK
- 700 MW Azad Pattan Hydropower Project on Jhelum River in AJK
Solar Power
Blessed to receive plenty of sunshine, the Pakistan government is looking forward to the development of more than 7,000MW of solar PV projects by 2030.
Meanwhile, Pakistan’s potential for wind power is estimated to be approximately 346,000MW. If properly exploited, the country’s coal resources may produce more than 100,000MW of electricity over the next 30 years. As per rough estimates, Pakistan contains more than 185 billion tons of coal resources.
