Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday chaired a high-level meeting to review ongoing power sector reforms, with a special focus on solarisation to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply in remote and far-flung areas of the country.
The prime minister directed that high-loss electricity feeders be shifted to solar energy with the cooperation of local communities and provincial governments. He said the initiative would help reduce losses on loss-making feeders and ensure continuous power supply to underserved areas.
He specifically instructed that pilot projects be launched immediately on high-loss feeders of Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO) and Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO). The prime minister stressed that consultations with elected representatives and active participation of local communities must be ensured to make the pilot projects successful.
During the meeting, participants were briefed in detail on the proposed transition of loss-making feeders of PESCO and QESCO to solar energy. It was informed that converting these feeders to solar power would create environmentally friendly, low-cost and sustainable microgrids for local populations, with local communities, provincial governments and the federal government acting as partners in the project.
The meeting was told that the initiative would not only generate low-cost electricity but would also significantly reduce losses of power distribution companies in the future. Granting in-principle approval to the project, the prime minister directed that work on pilot projects in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan be started immediately.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Senator Muhammad Ishaq Dar, Federal Minister for Power Sardar Awais Ahmed Khan Leghari, Federal Minister for Petroleum Ali Pervaiz Malik, Minister of State for Finance Bilal Azhar Kayani, the chief secretaries of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, and other senior government officials.
