Pakistan has many reasons to worry about its energy security: lack of a sufficient Strategic Petroleum Reserve, severe pollution conditions and environmental problems, skyrocketing inflation, political instability, dramatic fluctuation of global energy prices and rising domestic energy prices, and severe shortages of electricity and water.
The challenges facing the Pakistani government are to better manage its dependence on oil and to define a sustainable energy security path, rather than to simply pursue “oil independence.” With a lack of continuous attention and clear strategy to the energy policy undercutting Pakistan’s foreign policy and economic security, integrating energy security issues with other aspects of Pakistan’s foreign policy remains a challenge for Islamabad. R. B Fuller said; There are no energy crises, only the crisis of ignorance.
We will start with a brief review over Pakistan’s Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan IGCEP 2022-31. Current Installed Energy is 43,775 MW as on 30 June 2022 and targeted energy generation is 69,372 MW, respectively by the year 2031. Here is the summary of the plan; we must appreciate that the government is focused and planning to overcome the energy crisis. Few main Strength of Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion plan (IGCEP) 2021 ~ 2030 are that government is willing to use the power of water in the form of hydro energy. However, there are a few technical aspects which may require more effort by the relevant officials and if ignored can cause serious financial and manpower damage. Here is the snag list of Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion plan (IGCEP) 2021 ~ 2030, it is based on 1. Outdated Generation, Transmission and distribution systems, 2. Zero focus on improvement of existing system, line losses, maintenance of machinery, 3. Obsession for Dams; dams may sound a perfect solution for energy generation but they carry a bucket of jumbles like we have internal conflicts of provinces, they require high budgets, it takes long term tenures for construction, usual lack of research on water reserve and climate changes, 4. Neglected Renewables; Solar Energy (the targeted solar energy is only four percebt, despite the fact that Pakistan is blessed with a great irradiance graph), mistreated coastal line of our land which is approximately 990 km, 5. Coal Reserves ; total reserve of coal is approximately 3,377 million tons (enough for energy generation for more than a century), but why is our coal untreated and totally untouched? While the rest of the world is using coal, why nobody thought to change the data written in our books which says our coal will take 70 years to be matured so that we can use it and we have been reading it since 70-plus years, 5. Taking Maximum benefit of Professional Engineers and think tanks; energy generation is a complete technical matter which requires critical analysis on planning, execution and implementation. 6. The “Industrial Zones” which were being ignored in the plan; industries are strongly linked with our economy-but government however forgot to take them onboard, un-defined industrial zones, there have been no discussion on the need of industries, businessmen and industrial think tanks should also be taken on board to cater their energy need as well, 7. No emphasis on advanced technology, 8. Public awareness on electricity theft, 98. Public Awareness for domestic solar plants, 10. For developing countries like us, the government should give awareness through campaigns on benefits of solar panels for our domestic needs. This will help to put our government at some ease. 11. Poor planning may lead towards loss of finances and skill power as there is no technical data provided, and there is zero emphasis on advanced technology, 11. Government’s poor management of circular debt, and 12. In IGCEP planning is not made for centuries but only for years.
Energy crisis will continue to pose challenges to Islamabad in both the short and the long run. Foreign policy and domestic economic policy are inseparably entangled with each other. Energy policy should be an important part of foreign policy as long as Pakistan’s economy continues to grow and sustain well. Nevertheless, Pakistan may need to continue to define and search for an energy security path in order to balance energy security with Pakistan’s accountability and responsibility to its nation, environment, and international society for a better, brighter, breathable future for next generations.
In the current stage of industrialization― especially in Pakistan― energy security is essential for economic security. Economic security, in turn, is a critical element of national security and an objective of foreign policy. Pakistan has various and plentiful natural endowments, such as minerals, metals, and coal among other natural resources; it is not a resource-poor country. Full use of these resources will definitely lead to self-reliance and self-sufficiency. We can take help from our friend China by using their energy security model for promoting energy conservation through three corresponding objectives: economic efficiency, the reduction of poverty, and environmental preservation. To obtain economic efficiency, the energy sector is expected to transform from the planned economy to the market-oriented economy.
The industrialization economic model of the West, that relies heavily on high carbon output, may not be a good example to follow. Pakistan needs to design its own energy security given its natural resource endowments, technological level, and potential growth. Though Pakistan has strong potential for growth in the hydro-power, nuclear, wind, and natural gas sectors, in the short run it may consider making full use of its coal resources in order to alleviate oil dependence or dam conflicts. In the medium run or long run, Pakistan should build a low-carbon economy by conducting R&D in clean coal technology and developing renewable energy. Policies based on a single-minded pursuit of resources or a unilateral approach to energy security will lead to national energy insecurity and damage the credibility of Pakistan’s diplomacy. Like many countries, Pakistan realizes that foreign policy should not be completely subordinated to resource diplomacy. Given the multi-faceted nature of energy security, multilateral agreements between nations and regions will become more and more important in ensuring the availability of energy resources and possibly regulating their exploitation and consumption. Pakistan and other regional states may need to establish ties to coordinate in times of energy price and supply shocks so that member countries can better prepare for a sudden energy crisis and improve cooperation.
Energy crisis will continue to pose challenges to Islamabad in both the short and the long run. Foreign policy and domestic economic policy are inseparably entangled with each other. Energy policy should be an important part of foreign policy as long as Pakistan’s economy continues to grow and sustain well. Nevertheless, Pakistan may need to continue to define and search for an energy security path in order to balance energy security with Pakistan’s accountability and responsibility to its nation, environment, and international society for a better, brighter, breathable future for next generations.
