LAHORE:Pakistan China Joint Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCJCCI) President Mr. Wang Zihai called for utilization of local coal reserves of Pakistan. He cited that coal is the most widely used cheap electricity producing source, which is currently generating 36 percent of world’s electricity.
Chairing a think-tank session here at PCJCCI secretariat, he added that Pakistan has large reserves of coal specially lignite coal which China has imported for US $ 8 billion in 2021 from other countries instead of Pakistan due to the lack of technology and modern methods. The government of Pakistan should introduce modern technology to facilitate the miners with latest mechanisms, to work on the coal reserves. PCJCCI Senior Vice President Ehsan Chaudhry shared his views by saying that Pakistan has large reserves of coal specially lignite coal which China has imported earlier. Pakistan has its coal deposits in Balochistan, Punjab and especially Sindh where Thar Desert having the 16th largest coal deposits.
He highlighted that owing to global energy insecurity caused due to continuing war between Russia and Ukraine, many European nations have been compelled to revive their decades-old coal-based electricity plants to avoid energy shortages for their respective countries. Vice President Sarfaraz Butt said that total coal reserves discovered in Pakistan are 185 billion tons but the coal mining in Pakistan is facing a lot of issues due to lack of up-gradation of equipments. The old methods of mining cause numerous deaths cases due to suffocation and blasts. He added that coal reserves in Thar could go a long way to make Pakistan an energy surplus country with least reliance on imported fuel for power production.
The joint chambers secretary general Salahuddin Hanif said that Pakistan can adopt a safe and balanced approach to exploit its vast coal reserve for power generation with least damage to the environment to overcome energy shortfall without burdening the economy.
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