Being an agricultural economy with large herds of milk-producing animals, there is a tremendous potential of producing biogas from their waste. I was motivated to write this article after reading the news that Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) has been tasked to develop this energy resource. SSGC and Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Company Limited (SNGPL) are two public sector companies that transmit natural gas across the country. SSGC covers Sindh and Balochistan while SNGPL distributes gas to Punjab and KPK. Both the organizations have no experience of producing or exploring gas, they only pump pipeline-quality natural gas mainly from the Sui Gas fields. Producing biogas is a totally different field for which very little local expertise is available, and it still remains an informal sector with very limited engineering design know-how.
The Energy Group within the Lahore Think Tank of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) looked at various energy options for the country with pioneering work in SNG (Synthetic Natural Gas) from coal, biogas from cow dung and solar tubewells. A PTI 0odel farm was also established on a farm on Multan Road where biogas was produced together with pumping water with the help of a solar tubewell. Dr M.S. Shafique, a member of the PTI Shadow Cabinet, had established an Animal Fattening facility where cow dung was readily available. A ground level biogas digester was built with brick and cement. It was like a shallow well with a concrete top. Cow dung and water in specified quantities were fed daily which was consumed by the enzymes or living insects that consumed it to excrete gas which was collected and then used as a fuel for cooking. The plant was not well engineered and posed several hiccups to run it on a regular basis.
Under the Agricuture and Rural Development Committee (ARDC) headed by my friend the late Tariq Bucha, it was decided to pursue this technology to establish a sound technological basis. Some expertise existed at PCSIR (Pakistan Council of Science and Industrial Research) Lahore and NARC (National Agricultural Research Council) Islamabad but no operational plant existed at the commercial level.Â
With the current out-of-reach prices of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), SNG is a better option for the time being. Both SNGPL and SSGC can handle SNG as it is pipeline quality gas which can be transmitted and distributed by them. Localized biogas networks can be developed in Karachi starting from the massive available buffalo waste there. A lot of homework needs to be done to exploit the biogas potential of the country. Despite viable options, the gas crisis continues which has to be resolved ASAP.
ARDC proposed the formation of Biogas Development Authority (BDA) to scientifically develop this technology and then design pilot plants that were well engineered for long term reliability and sustainability. BDA was to be chartered to transfer this know-how at the Tehsil Level through village co-operatives. A centralized biogas plant was proposed to be built in each locality quite like the Wasa tubewells, which was to be managed and maintained by the co-operative with the technical assistance of BDA. Every morning fresh cow dung was to be collected from every dwelling, converted into biogas and then the residue fertilizer returned to the donor. The Biogas was to be distributed through a local low pressure gas distribution pipeline to be used as fuel for cooking.Â
Unfortunately the party under the control of the electables ignored all the good work of the Think Tanks. At the time of induction of the old political players, some of whom had tainted backgrounds, it was believed that they would follow the party guidelines but instead the entire movement for ‘Naya Pakistan’ was hijacked by them. The ‘Multan Trio’ was the most deadly: one was inducted as the Vice Chairman, another as President and the third as Secretary General. Their internal struggle ruined the party.Â
They worked together to push out the old guard, but then fought for their individual turf at the cost of change. Two have already fallen with one more to go for normalcy to prevail within the party. South Punjab has its own political dynamics which has not been conducive for democracy. This Takh-e-Multan and Lahore have to be dismantled to come out of the ‘ Zia Dark Ages ‘ as they are directly involved in strengthening the status quo and thwarting change. To move forward on solid foundations, a massive clean-up operation is needed across the parties.
The ‘ Bhains Colony ‘ of Karachi has enough cow dung to meet the fuel requirements of the city but instead this animal waste is polluting the sea water while seriously damaging the mangrove swamps where the shrimp breeding takes place. My work on Gasification continues but the current focus is on producing SNG from Thar Coal as it can produce pipeline-quality Natural Gas. Hammad Azhar is the current Minister for Energy. He has solid political credentials and is a future hope of the party. I do want him to succeed but Islamabad has rocky grounds where batting is not easy. Despite several personal initiatives, I have not been able to meet him in order to appraise him of all the good work already done by the party ‘ Think Tanks ‘. Biogas is certainly a viable option like SNG but requires expertize which does not exist at a higher level. It may prove to be the proverbial; Truck ki Batti which gets nowhere.
In his last days in power Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (ZAB) warned about the ‘Mullah-Military Alliance’. Finally he was toppled. Today the government of PTI faces the PML(N)-influenced ‘Bureaucracy-Judiciary Alliance’. On one hand it misguides the elected representatives, while on the other no one gets convicted through the legal system. ZAB delivered through his party ideologues but then abandoned them for which he had to pay for his life.
Imran Khan (IK) came into power with the electables leaving the old guard behind. Instead of looking inwards to seeking guidance from the available professional expertise within the party, the current leadership relies more on external inputs which is often misleading. Hot favourites in the bureaucracy of the previous regime continue to hold important positions.
With the current out-of-reach prices of LNG (Liquefied Natural Gas), SNG is a better option for the time being. Both SNGPL and SSGC can handle SNG as it is pipeline quality gas which can be transmitted and distributed by them. Localized biogas networks can be developed in Karachi starting from the massive available buffalo waste there. A lot of homework needs to be done to exploit the biogas potential of the country. Despite viable options, the gas crisis continues which has to be resolved ASAP.
