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Govt subsidies play vital role in solar power promotion

AMER SIAL

ISLAMABAD: Subsidies by government for solar power installations would play an important role in the promotion and diffusion of rural electrification systems.

This was stated by solar energy expert, Dr. T. Noguchi while reading his paper on "Photovoltaic Conversion Technology", here on Thursday. The day-long seminar was organised by Japan External Trade Organization (Jetro).

Dr. Noguchi said that the results of various studies have identified lack of infrastructure, poor design of system and especially insufficient training and education of technician as well as of end user as the major causes of failure of photovoltaic system.

He asked for providing soft-term loans for solar installations for public and industrial consumers, technical education and appropriate designs all would lead to encourage growth of solar energy industry.

He stressed the need for using solar energy as it is sustainable, renewable and environment-friendly. He suggested use of solar energy for suppression of greenhouse effects.

Dr. Noguchi said that solar energy could help save the agriculture disaster to which we are heading due to excessive destruction of forestry and woods for energy. This has resulted in increasing the flow of mud in rivers leading to out-flow of soil from mountains and silt deposition in irrigation water. This he said has also bringing climatic changes by long spells of droughts and floods and cyclones.

Earlier D.G of Jetro, Masahiro Sawauchi said that Jetro was stiving hard to promote trade, investment, technical cooperation and other bilateral economic relations between the two friendly countries.

He especially pointed out Gawadar and Pasni in Balochistan as most viable areas for the solar installations, as these would help in the economic uplift of area as a large quantity of sea-food gets wasted due to the non-availability of cold storage.

However he appreciated the efforts of government for signing memorandum of understanding with the "World Water Corporation" of USA for the establishment of solar power projects in Balochistan. He described the step in the right direction.

The D.G of National Institute of Silicon Technology, Dr Pervez Akhtar said that solar energy is low cost, clean and sustainable and extremely large source of energy in future.

He said that it could cater to all our domestic energy needs for lighting, heating and cooking and without any effect on utility bills.