ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that more time was required to pull country out of quagmire. Addressing solarisation conference, he said under plan, all federal government ministries, departments, authorities and their offshoots in provinces would immediately shift to solar energy.

Underscoring further details, he said that procedures for conversion of solar power should be fast-tracked as they had set April 2023 as timeline for implementation of this plan. He said it would be model for rest of provincial governments, as federal government would not make additional expenditures over solarisation process. He said also urged all relevant authorities and stakeholders to complete required process by end of April next year and meet timeline that had been set.

“Consider it our political, social, national and religious duty to implement it as soon as possible,” Shehbaz Sharif opined. He said with these urgent measures, they would be able to generate 300 MW to 500 MW of cheap power, thus reducing import bill worth billions of dollars each year. PM assured that whole process would be conducted through transparent bidding via third party.

He urged provincial chief ministers to emulate federal government’s pattern and introduce solar systems in their respective provinces and he assured them of federal government’s complete assistance in this regard. “It is only option for our survival as nation,” he added.PM said process for generation of 10,000 MW of solar power in country had already commenced and that such conversation in federal government buildings would be first phase.

Published in The Daily National Courier, December, 28 2022

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