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Punjab, KP govts to establish four excellence hubs of renewable energy

  • April 21, 2023

ISLAMABAD-The provincial governments of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa will establish four excellence hubs of renewable energy with the help of German grant of 9.8 million euros. 

The KfW Development Bank (Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau), Germany has agreed to sanction a grant amounting to 9.8 million euros for establishment of four excellence hubs of renewable energy out of which two hubs will be established in the PTEVTA institutions of Punjab while two will be established in KP TEVTA, official documents available with The Nation reveals.  In Punjab province one each excellence hubs in Lahore and District Rawalpindi will be established at the cost of Rs 1117.403 million. The share of foreign funding for the project is Rs 844.345 million, while Rs 273.058 million is being funded from the local ADP of Punjab, said the documents. 

This project is aimed to introduce two excellence hubs of renewable energy for exploring new avenues in view of the demand and supply issues in energy sector. The feasibility report was received from KfW Development Bank dated Jan 2022 wherein renewable energy hubs are proposed to be established in the premises of two TEVTA Institutes i-e Govt. College of Technology (GCT), Taxila and Govt. Apparenticship Training Center (GATC), Township, Lahore as service center similar to the already existing service centers in Punjab. The primary function of an excellence hub is availability of trained manpower in market by imparting technical training on RE along with the promotion of renewable energies, which includes the counselling of companies, testing of equipment and machinery in that sector, start-up support and information sharing. It is further highlighted in the feasibility study that expenses on the Civil Revenue Components of the scheme is the responsibility of kfw Development Bank while Hub-hosting institutes construction upgrades and OPEX for Hubs are the responsibility of local government of Punjab.

Giving the background of the establishment of two hubs, the documents revealed that currently, renewable energy is contributing 5% to 6% of overall electric generation in national grid of Pakistan that is minimal as compared to the total requirement of national grid of Pakistan. Renewable energy is reliable source and will be most effective especially for the small towns/villages in the far-flung areas where the electricity from other resources cannot be provided. There is a strong potential for production of renewable energy while the wind and solar PV’s shares are growing very slowly. Therefore; there is dire need to explore new avenues in the field of renewable energy. In this context, PTEVTA started negotiations with KfW Development Bank for provision of financial support for establishment of renewable energy hubs in PTEVTA institutions. 

A full-fledged feasibility study was conducted by the consultant hired by the KfW Development Bank, Germany through competitive bidding process. These consultants conducted a full-fledged feasibility study for establishment of RE hubs and submitted a feasibility report. According to the feasibility study, two excellence hubs will be established in Punjab. 

Key objectives and scope is; to promote RE and RE-based energy supply solutions for industrial/commercial/domestic consumers local RE market development along the value chain, in order, and to ultimately help RE market businesses grow.

Article source: https://www.nation.com.pk/22-Apr-2023/punjab-kp-govts-to-establish-four-excellence-hubs-of-renewable-energy

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