In the ongoing economic and political crises, it is heartening to see a few institutions thinking ahead
Thar Coal and Energy Board (TCEB) in Sindh is one of them
Within a decade or so, the myths that Thar coal is of inferior quality, that the sulphur content is too high and that the moisture is an insoluble problem have been exploded
Out of the 13 blocks identified for development, coal has been successfully mined in two, used in producing over about 1000 MW of power and supplied to the national grid as the third cheapest source
At the end of this year, it is estimated to rise to 2600 MW
While the capacity of the two blocks has not exhausted, the TCEB brought together stakeholders and experts from all over the country on last Wednesday in Karachi to seek advice on opening up more blocks and explore new, non-power uses of coal
Other than the POL products, the big and unmanageable import bill includes $2-3 billion import of coal as well
In addition to the coal-based power projects, the major consumer is the cement industry
This industry is suffering from increasing cost of imports
Interestingly, the cement industry has also been importing moisturised coal from Indonesia
Drying at mine mouth reduces cost of transport and producing cement at mine mouth saves transport cost and caters to its ashes needs almost free
Urea is another big ticket item
All this information will help TCEB move away from the inefficient cost-plus pricing to more competitive pricing
This is necessary to avoid a re-play of the Sui gas story of a never-ending cheap source of energy, with people optimising the use of match sticks by keeping the heat on continuously
Mercifully, the neglect of the people of Sui is not being repeated in Thar as the rights and the needs of the locals, without any discrimination witnessed elsewhere in the Islamic Republic, seem to be receiving due attention
The people of Thar come first, declared the Sindh energy minister in his concluding remarks
Transporting coal is a business that requires a fresh look
Diesel-using trucks are prohibitively costly
Rail links to transport coal from the minefields to other parts of the country do not exist
It is an open secret that the railways have been systematically destroyed in the unending process of the elite capture of the state
A promise by the federal government at the highest level to link Thar by rail has not gone past the PC-I preparation stage
With the austerity imposed by the IMF programme, there is little to hope for
The subject of railways is in Part II of the Federal List in the Constitution
The Government of Sindh could legitimately go ahead on its own or in the public-private mode
It will be surprised by the returns that would flow back
With Pakistan among the leaders to have placed the Loss and Damage financing facility on the agenda of COP27, should the country be going all out for “dirty” coal? While this scheme of things can take years to take shape, coal is all that Pakistan has to reduce dependence on an increasingly uncertain world
It must, however, use modern technologies of mitigation
As an expert pointed out at the meeting, burning coal should be out of question
Cleaner coal energy is possible
All alternatives should be explored in deciding future investments
As a regulator, TCEB has to face up to the challenge of coming up with a pricing formula that would incentivise such investments
Published in The Express Tribune, February 24th, 2023
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| Date: | 25-Feb-2023 | Reference: | View Original Link |
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