Grid Connected Solar Power in Pakistan

A Report by The Brainiacs

 The Report Aims at:
• Basic workings and equipment related to a grid connected solar PV
system
• The energy crisis in Pakistan
• The need for sustainable energy source
• Current position of solar energy and Net Metering in Pakistan
• How can it be beneficial in reference to Pakistani consumers
Working Principle
Working
Principle
Panels produce electric
energy in presence of
sunlight
Current produced can be
used to power electrical
loads.
On days when your
production is greater then
consumption, excess power
is sold to your electricity
provider.
Detailed Workings of a Domestic System
 Direct Current from the panels is converted to Alternating Current.
 Alternating current is regulated at a frequency of 50/60 Hz @ 220/110 Volts.
 Excess energy produced needs to be stored or fed back to the local grid.
 Battery management system and/or feedback regulation system to comply with
distribution company’s regulations.
 Electricity counter / kWh meter.
All such operations require complex regulatory equipment.
Equipment Required
 Inverter (Two Types)
 Built in charge controller
 Simple Inverter

 Bidirectional Electricity/kWh Meter

 Additional Electrical Panel Equipment
 Isolation breakers
 Safety fuses
 Smart power usage tracking system
Need Analysis
The Energy Deficit
70000
Generation vs Consumption (MW)

60000
5448

4386
2822
50000
1143 Demand vs
40000 2977
3285
30881 Supply
28408
3683 24041
26133 • The deficit of electricity is
generally increasing over
30000 22116 time .
20345
18715 • 2008 to 2012 showed a
20000
steady increase amounting
just to about 4%.

22898 23311 24022 25433 • However from 2012

10000
17378 18831 onwards for the next three
15032
years saw a cumulative
increase of 10.7% in
0 consumer electricity
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 consumption.

Power generation Power consumption Power Deficit

 Fuel borrowed
from PSO

Power plants cut

production & Generation of
Electricity
Money not paid!

Circular Debt Debt

Not enough
revenue T/D losses
generated

THEFT
Shortfall of various electric supply companies
 Electricity production by source
Imbalance
energy mix 5%

• 34% of total electric

energy comes from
Hydro
• 61% comes from 34%
thermal
• Remaining 5% comes
from other sources 61%

• Cost of running
thermal power plant is
higher and strains
government and in turn
the consumer
Hydel Thermal Others
 Pricing policy
• Most of the electricity Fuel price
fluctuates
produced comes from
thermal power stations
• The fuel prices of oil Government
and gas fluctuates provides
subsidy
overtime
• Government to Gap between
account for this change balance of
subsidized electricity payments

• The difference is then

The
recovered by taking difference
loans from monetary recovered by
bodies taking loans
Consumers and Workforce’s Perspective
 Directly affects Pakistan’s economic growth.
 Results in inflation.
 Downsizing of public and private industry.
 Negative hysteria of people about government.

 Need to rely on other nations to fulfill the energy gap.

Why Should Solar Energy be Considered
• Great geographical potential in Pakistan
• Pakistan’s a sub tropical country with long periods of clear daylight

• Metropolitans of Punjab, and Sindh are potentially targeted areas

• Private and Public facilities have a potential to generate renewable and sustainable
power
• Recently University of Central Punjab inaugurated their solar power plant
• Fatima Jinnah Park in Islamabad has a 0.8MW Solar Plant
The idea is to increase the power coming from other sources to relief the energy required from
National grid which can be redistributed elsewhere i.e. rural areas of Pakistan.
 Economic Feasibility
Compiled in reference to data available about Lahore
 Rise in Purchasing Power (Lahore)
Purchasing Depicted as a Percentage
Power
9
• Concern of application is 8.8
8.4
economic centered 8
8.2

• Studies show increase in 7.3

7.5
7.1
economic standards in major
metropolitans in Pakistan 6.3 6.2

5.5 5.5 5.5

4.9

4.3

2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7
Cost of Installation
Potential Target Consumer and Benefits
 Financially stable upper quartile
Why?
 They can afford the initial capital required for installation
 Reduced Electrical Bill
 Return on investment

 Reduced Electrical Bill

 Average power consumption in 2014 was 471kWh per household per annum
 Given those stats and usage of a 3kW system, a household saves 2000 PKR per month
Return on
Investment
• The average life expectancy
for a solar panel is stated to
be 20 years with the
guarantee that towards the
end of this time period, at
least 80% energy, of the
cumulative capacity, will be
generated.
• Given that constraint,
consumers would have,
under our model, purchased
25% of their annual
electricity bill for the
forthcoming 20 years or
more.
• The installation cost is
reimbursed in around 3.35
years assuming that the
3800-Watt panel is
purchased.
Promotion of Solar Power in Pakistan
 In light of recent shift towards solar energy major corporation and companies have
been set up in Pakistan who manufacture PV Cells.
 Popular Companies include:
 Nizam Energy
 Pantera Energy Pvt Ltd
 Sun life Solar
This means that major costs like import of raw material, border tariffs and any and all
miscellaneous costs can be avoided which benefits the project in its entirety.
Macro Economic Benifits
 The ministry of power and electricity predicts that it can remove 4.2 Billion tons of
Carbon dioxide by switching to alternate means of electricity generation than coal
power plants.
 Using the standard metric cost of burning 1kg of coal at 0.06 USD Pakistan can save
approximately 15 Million to 23 Million USD. These savings can be channelized to other
significant projects like poverty alleviation, revamping of educational infrastructure or
just the national debt we have incurred.
Carbon Footprint and Effectiveness
 Magnitude of the project.
 Life time of a panel (20 years) and the need to manufacture less.
 Stringent government imposed policies (China sanctioned).
Conclusion
‫مجموعہ‬
 Pros of net metering
Phased running
before mass
Renewable and Cheap, one time implementation.
sustainable investment Fewer risks
incurred.

Cons of Net metering

Initial rate of
Less surplus
Fewer households improvement in
energy
that can afford a the energy sector
rechanneled to the
PV Cell not as significant
national grid
as on paper.