Energy Security and Climate Change: Pakistan

February 17, 2011 at 2:37 am · Filed under Climate Change, Environment, Events, Health Hazard, Natural Resources, Ozone, pollution, Pressure Points, Social Environment, West Punjab and tagged: changes in rainfall patterns, droughts, Energy Security and Climate Change: Pakistan, floods, glacier melt, global GHG, increased frequency and intensity of natural hazards, Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, National Electricity Regulation Power Authority (NEPRA), sea level rise

Date: Thursday, February 17th, 2011
Time: 10:00-02:00pm
Venue: Marriot Hotel, Islamabad

Speakers
Ms Javeriya Hasan
Research Associate, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), (Consumer Network and NEPRA)
Mr Arshad H Abbasi
Advisor Water and Energy, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), (Energy Governance in Pakistan)
Mr Shakeel Ahmed Ramay
Head, Climate Change Study Centre, Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI)
(Renewable Energy Resources in Pakistan)

Concept Note
A spectrum of landscapes marks the geography of Pakistan; with the mountains and glaciers of the north to the coastal belt in the south and a host of hills, plateaus, forests and deserts in between. Despite lying in a temperate zone, the unique geography of Pakistan ensures that extremities of temperature are experienced in different locations across the country. Encompassing a land mass of 880,940 km2, Pakistan also geographically overlaps the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates.

Pakistan’s unique geographical position has made it especially vulnerable to the effects of climate change which include glacier melt, sea level rise, increased frequency and intensity of natural hazards, changes in rainfall patterns, droughts, floods, and increased frequency of extreme weather conditions. These vulnerabilities will only be exacerbated by the current social, economic and political schemes operating in the country. With the sixth largest population in the world, most of which still under the poverty line, unstable government structures and institutions, military conflicts, worsening fiscal crisis, rampant food insecurity and a deepening energy crisis, Pakistan is becoming increasingly susceptible to the impacts of climate change. Its geographical location and its status as a state marred with the crisis of underdevelopment makes climate change in Pakistan a pertinent concern. Inaction in the face of climate change is not an option, as the recent floods in Pakistan have made the urgency and necessity of a response to climate change clearly evident.

The concept of mitigation within the discourse of climate change refers to the set of actions taken to eliminate or substantially reduce the long term hazards associated with climate change. As the main cause of climate change is identified as the emission of greenhouse gases, mitigation efforts are focused on a reduction of the sources of greenhouse emissions. The major contributors to climate change are the developed nations whose past emissions have resulted in the rise of average global temperature. In an attempt to limit greenhouse gas emissions in the future, developing countries today must reconsider employing the same strategies of economic growth characteristic of their developed counterparts. Failure to do so would have potentially catastrophic impacts as increased emissions cannot be sustained by the ecosystem.

The rising demand for energy in the developing world comes from the high population growths and ambitious developmental programs that attempt to curb the widespread poverty in these areas. Provision of energy becomes the prerequisite for economic development and as developing countries strive to industrialize, they resort to the cheapest and most readily available sources of energy. As the growing energy sector in the developing world would eventually contribute more to the greenhouse gas emissions than the current biggest emitters, their energy sectors cannot be immune from mitigation policies. The 450[1] scenario outlined in the World Energy Report 2009, which seeks to stabilize greenhouse gas emissions at 450ppm, reiterates the recognition of common but differentiated responsibilities requiring each region in the world to implement mitigation policies.

While Pakistan’s emissions contribute a mere 0.8 of the global GHG emissions, the number is projected to rise in the coming decade owing to the country’s burgeoning population and growing energy needs to fuel its development plans. Pakistan must embark on a comprehensive and efficient mitigation strategy not only as a responsible state within the global arena committed to emission reduction, but also because it would be much easier and economically feasible to make the transition to a low carbon economy now rather than later. Thus it is imperative that efforts aimed at sustainable development in the country incorporate the goals of emission reduction.

As the energy sector is the primary contributor to GHG emissions in the country, it is essential that mitigation strategies are aimed at reforms within this sector. For Pakistan, this presents a host of opportunities. The vast potential of alternate energy in the country has not yet been exploited though efforts are being made in this direction. Increased use of alternate energy does not only coincide with mitigation of emissions in the country but also serves as a long term strategy for achieving energy security.

Pakistan is an energy deficit country, relying heavily on imported oil to meet its energy needs. In recent times the energy crisis has reached alarming heights; Power outages have become a routine phenomenon and are gravely impacting economic development in the country. While there is no prospect for Pakistan to reach self sufficiency in hydrocarbons, the exploitation of renewable energy to counter the current energy crisis presents itself as a sustainable option. Cheap and reliable sources of energy are imperative to push the country on a path of development; exploitation of indigenous renewable sources of energy is likely to serve this end.

Reliance on traditional fossil fuels is not a sustainable option for Pakistan, not only because it would contribute heavily to growing emissions but also because the limited reserves within the country have prompted oil imports and rapid depletion of indigenous gas reserves. This has put a financial strain on the economy and made the energy sector extremely vulnerable to the unreliable global supply of fossil fuels. The energy sector in Pakistan needs to be restructured to be made more reliable and secure and a shifted reliance on the vast supply of indigenous alternate sources of energy presents itself as a viable step in this regard.

It is important to recognize that exploitation of alternate energy resources does not only constitute as an essential and urgent response to climate change but also satisfies Pakistan’s long term goals of energy sufficiency and sustainable development.

Consumer Network and NEPRA
Pakistan is currently grappled by a severe energy crisis that has spearheaded significant socio-economic repercussions. An inability to install sufficient power generation capacity in addition to a heavy reliance on costly furnace oil imports has contributed immensely to the climax of the crisis. This has come at a time when Pakistan is already plagued with many other important woes such as the menaces of poverty, illiteracy and terrorism. The energy shortages and escalating cost expenditures in meeting needs has necessitated that power sector governance is revisited; rather analyzed critically for apparent pitfalls that have led to the severe situation the country is facing today.

One of the institutions that figures prominently in the equation is Pakistan’s National Electricity Regulation Power Authority (NEPRA), whose mandate is basically to promote principles of openness, transparency, accountability and competition in the power sector. It grants licenses to generation, transmission and distribution companies and also prescribes standards for this purpose in order to ensure that the consumer is provided with a safe, efficient and reliable supply of electricity. Unfortunately, it has been observed that the performance of NEPRA, has very much deviated from its mandate and has not been in line with the vision with which it was created.

Consumers, particularly the domestic consumers, don’t matter much as a priority in its decision making processes. NEPRA organizes public hearings on tariffs, licenses and fuel adjustments and these have reduced to mere cosmetic exercises, whereby those in authority only mark it against a checklist of items. There is no concerted effort to include the public proactively, in fact, the entire regulatory environment is convoluted and complex for any individual to fully comprehend the nitty gritty involved in electricity regulation.

The seminar on ‘Consumer Participation in Electricity Regulation’ would help bring together academics, professionals and concerned civil society in brainstorming on ways the vacuum of consumer participation can be overcome. The aim is to create a network of likeminded individuals who can contribute in generating awareness among the public about the issue of electricity governance, which they are key stakeholders of.

ENTRY IS OPEN TO ALL

Faisal Nadeem Gorchani
Sadia Sharif
Policy Advocacy and Outreach Policy Advocacy and Outreach
Sustainable Development Policy Institute
38, Old Embassy Road
(Atta Turk Avenue), G-6/3,
Ph: 051-2278134-6, Ext: 113
Fax: 051-2278135
Cell: 0333-5592210
Email: sadia@sdpi.org
Email: gorchani@sdpi.org
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