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Saturday, November 30, 2013
Pakistan can easily produce 100MW from Thar coal: Mubarakmand* Eminent scientist says country has over 175bn tonnes of coal reserves, which need to be exploited for development
Staff Report
LAHORE: Eminent physicist, scientist and Planning Commission of Pakistan science and technology member Dr Samar Mubarakmand has said that Pakistan has over 175 billion tonnes of coal reserves, the largest in the world, and if there are sufficient funds, the country can easily produce 100 megawatts of electricity by using coal gas in Thar.
He was addressing a seminar titled “The Role of Modern Technologies in the Economic Development of Pakistan” at the Forman Christian College on Friday. Dr Mubarakmand, who headed the committee which conducted the 1998 nuclear tests, noted that “now we are comfortable in our defence, and therefore we should focus on economic development”. Speaking on how Pakistan can make progress, he argued that “the mineral sector is the sleeping giant in Pakistan and contains 95% of Pakistan’s wealth”.
He said that the country has over 175 billion tonnes of coal reserves, which need to be exploited for development.
He narrated how the Chinese government directed seventeen of the country’s provinces to use only coal gas to produce electricity when he told it that it was destroying the country’s environment by using coal to produce energy.
Commenting on the Thar coal project, on which he is currently working, he said that “Pakistan has the greatest potential in the coal sector”, and if sufficient funds were available, 100 megawatts of electricity can be produced by using coal gas in Thar.
Dr Mubarakmand then showed a series of slides to prove his point that using coal gas from Thar coal, Pakistan can produce a lot of electricity. “People argue that Europe is not using coal gas, but Europe does not even have the right kind of coal for the production of coal gas,” he noted.
Answering a question about Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan disagreeing with him on Thar coal, he said “Dr AQ Khan has been sitting at home for the last ten years, while I have been working in Thar for the past five years”.
Talking about the Reko Diq project, Dr Mubarakmand said that giving the project to the foreign companies was akin to “daylight robbery”.
He said that it was criminal that foreign companies were allowed to exploit copper and gold from the area, with only 2% of the sale proceeds given to the government as royalty.
He revealed Pakistan did not even get a discount in the project and had to buy the finished product at international rates.
Giving credit to former Balochistan chief minister Aslam Raisani, the eminent scientist noted that the then chief minister gave full support to Pakistan’s case, and as a result the country won the legal challenge brought by the foreign companies.
“Thus, the country was saved from a fraud, which would have been severely detrimental for the poor people in Balochistan.”
He said that within 3-4 months the project would start producing copper and gold, and the copper produced will be 55% cheaper than in the international market. In the end Mubarakmand complained that people in his own country were not supporting his efforts for economic development of the country. “We have all the expertise we need; all we need to do is practical work,” he exclaimed.
Courtesy www.dailytimes.com.pk