By Ayesha Saba ISLAMABAD, Mar 01 (INP-WealthPK): Through the different stages of development, humankind has experimented with many forms of energy, ranging from wood, coal, oil, and petroleum to nuclear power. Energy plays a critical role in socioeconomic development of a region. Public and political concerns about environmental issues and energy security have led to the promotion of renewable energy resources in recent years. According to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7 (SDG 7), affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all should be ensured by 2030. Achieving this target would require prompt measures for building energy infrastructure, mainly for renewable energy technologies. The demand for capacity additions in the electricity sector have sparked concerns about greenhouse gas emissions on a worldwide scale. Globally, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) predicts a nearly 50% increase in global energy use by 2050, despite the fact that fossil fuels still produced 64% of global electricity in 2019. Historically, Pakistan has always been an energy importer and is highly dependent on fossil fuels, and for decades the issue of energy deficiency has not been met with any solutions. Instead, the problem has aggravated over the years because of population growth and consequent spiralling demand of energy led by rapid urbanisation. As a result, electricity blackouts have been a routine over the years. With the rising fossil fuel prices, the country’s overdependence on their imports has depleted Pakistan’s foreign exchange reserves. In the light of the aforementioned challenges, the government approved the Alternative and Renewable Energy Policy in August 2020, strongly advocating the need for Pakistan to speed up the transition towards renewable energy (hydro, solar and wind). This new policy establishes specific goals, which may be revised from time to time through executive action instead of policy amendment. The government has set a target of generating at least 20% of renewable energy by 2025 and at least 30% in the next five years. To encourage the shift to renewables, the policy offers generous tax benefits to investors, encourages lower tariffs by introducing competitive bidding, and incentivises local production of renewable energy equipment such as wind turbines and solar panels. Under the policy, around 1,000MW of wind power has already been developed as wind power receives the highest level of private sector interest due to low investment requirements and a relatively short gestation period. Utility-scale wind and solar plants are being augmented by battery storage to overcome the challenge of intermittent power supply. The National Electric Vehicles Policy, which was announced last year, promotes broad adoption of electric vehicles in order to address urban air pollution. Under it, incentives are being given to the electric vehicle manufacturing industry. The shift to electric vehicles could also play a significant role in reducing Pakistan’s oil import bill and securing the transport sector against international price shocks. A net-metering legislation for solar installing systems has also been introduced, allowing consumers to sell power to the grid. This is expediting the adoption of rooftop solar panel set-ups by homeowners and opens up the possibility of electrifying remote villages and commercial enterprises that have sufficient rooftop space and land. The National Transmission and Dispatch Company’s Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan (IGCEP), which has been submitted to the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority, the power sector regulator, envisions 28,794MW of renewable energy installations (hydro, wind, and solar) among the 53,315MW total installed capacity of the NTDC system by 2030, or around 54% of the total installed capacity. By the end of 2030, renewable energy sources are estimated to account for 59.4% of the total energy generation. By that time, Pakistan's energy sector emissions would be 0.202kg CO2/kWh (IGCEP, 2021). Pakistan’s energy sector is going through a paradigm shift and renewable energy sources have made great contributions to its energy supply mix, but there is a need for more research and development on renewable energies to increase their efficient utilisation. The next five years are crucial and would likely set the direction and pace of the electricity sector for generations to come. For an effective future policy regime, a proactive approach is required. Pakistan has a tremendous opportunity to cost-effectively tap its abundant solar, wind and hydropower resource potential. The shift to renewables will have multiple benefits for Pakistan, including reduced cost of electricity and improved energy access and energy independence.