Reform of the power sector through restructuring and deregulation is high on the agenda of the Government of Pakistan (GOP). The GOP is committed to pursue a far reaching reform program for the power sector to help meet the country's future energy needs. This reform includes the development of indigenous resources for power development. This project will aid in meeting this objective as it has the goal to develop renewable energy systems, in particular hydropower, at economically efficient costs while mitigating any negative social and environmental aspects. Under this objective the entire population of Pakistan, including the governmental and non-governmental sectors, are defined as the target group as they will all profit from an electricity supply increasingly based on local energy resources. Within these target groups, the private sector as well as other groups that have influence on the environmental standards and the socially acceptable development of hydropower is of particular importance. Furthermore, the project comprise capacity building on the provincial level in appropriate hydro power projects.The political responsible as well as the implementing agency is the Ministry of Water and Power and within the Ministry, the Central Coordinating Unit (the technical unit for water power affairs in the Office of the Chief Engineering Advisor) and the PPIB (Private Power and Infrastructure Board). The intermediary agents are HEPO (the water power planning organization of WAPDA), WEA (WAPDA Engineering Academy) and CEWRE (the Centre of Excellence in Water Resource Engineering at the University for Engineering and Technology, Lahore).
The project is have the following inputs:
- Give priority to the role of hydropower development
- Develop and introduce appropriate regulations and energy policy reform for use in sustainable hydropower development
- Prepare a strategy for developing and financing hydropower projects
- Integrate concerns of EIA and WCD into appropriate environmental regulations
- Strengthen the energy and power related institutions for ensuring the environmentally and socially sound development of water power through dialogue with the decision makers.
- Capacity building in the field of Climate Change and the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) with focus on identification of hydropower CDM projects
- 24 MM Long term
- 22 MM Short term intern
- Institutional development of MoWP and WAPDA
- Capacity building of experts on a political and technical level
- Economic and Technical studies
- Environmental studies with an emphasis on the conclusions from the World Commission on Dams
- A structured plan for hydropower development
- Application of management know-how in the environmental and legal regulations for hydropower development
- Provision of policy advice to the Ministry, WAPDA, and local authorities
and organizations active in power development