ISLAMABAD: Postponement of the official visit of the Chinese president has disappointed the Pakistan Council of Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET) because it was hoping to get funds for different projects after inaugurating the first solar tubewell of the federal capital during his visit.

However it has been decided to start a trial run from September 12.

The tubewell, which will work on solar energy during the day and electricity during the night, will provide water to houses in Sector I-8/3.

PCRET trainee Abdul Basit, who was supervising installation of the solar energy system, told Dawn that as many as 132 solar panels had been used in the system that was fixed in just over two weeks.

“Warranty of the solar panels lasts 25 years, but they can last up to 50 years. The system will provide 38 kilowatts energy during the day. However, during the night, it will automatically switch over to electric power,” he said.

“Solar panels are made in Pakistan and Capital Development Authority (CDA) will provide security because the tubewell number 28 is run by the authority and their staff is deputed at the well.

However, we have also fixed barbed wires around the system,” he said.

Director-General PCRET Khalid Islam said the system will run the 25 kilowatts motor. Cost of the system is almost Rs4 million, because it has to pump out 400 feet deep water.

“If water was 100 feet below the surface, the cost of the system would have been around Rs1.8 million,” he said.

“After a meeting with the CDA chairman, it was decided to fix the system in Sector I-8, which is a suitable place to give awareness to the citizen regarding alternate energy,” he said.

It was decided to inaugurate the project during Chinese president’s visit. I was hoping that a few members of the Chinese delegation would participate in the inauguration and PCRET might get some funding for its five projects, as China is interested in investing in the energy sector,” he said.

Mr Islam said, at the moment, PCRET has been working on four energy sources: solar, hydro, biogas and wind.

“We have fixed 4,500 biogas plants, and 562 micro hydroelectric plants have been fixed in different areas of the country. Each hydroelectric plant provides electricity to almost 50 houses. As many as 19 windmills have been fixed in Goth Gul Muhammad near Thatta,” he said.

Mr Islam added that concepts of the five projects have been approved by the Planning Division but the projects are still pending because of unavailability of funds. So, PCRET has been trying to find donors for these projects.

He stated that the projects include installation of 1,000 solar tubewells throughout Pakistan for Rs2,499 million, solar solutions for homes and offices for Rs4,490 million, development and dissemination of micro and mini hydro power plants with public-private partnership worth Rs950 million, green public buildings project in Islamabad for Rs613 million and installation of biogas plants, a substitute of natural gas and chemical fertilisers for Rs481 million.

He also said over 200 people have been trained during the last 18 months; while over a hundred people visit PCRET every month to get information about their projects regarding renewable energy.

Published in Dawn, September 11th , 2014