Review of the renewable energy status and prospects in Pakistan
Ather Hassan, Syed Zafar Ilyas, Hareem Mufti
Abstract
The studies are conducted to discuss and review the status and prospects of renewable energy (solar, wind, and biomass) in Pakistan. The future power demand, as well as the general growth in power consumption, were considered. The findings demonstrated that renewable energy sources like solar, wind, biomass, and hydro are the only remedies to tackle Pakistan's future energy challenges. Moreover, the potential energies of offshore wind, tide waves, ocean terminals, and geothermal need to be investigated and discovered. The geographical location of the region arrests 7 kWh/m 2 solar insolation daily, which can produce 25 MJ of energy. In addition, global irradiation on a horizontal surface can generate 2.4 MWh of energy per annum. Similarly, plains and mountain regions can generate 50,000 MW of electric power. Additionally, the importance of renewable energy in graduation and post-graduation programs and public awareness has been addressed. It has been concluded that solar energy is the short-term and best solution to deal with the energy crisis in Pakistan.