Pakistan prepares rules for virtual power grids
In Pakistan, the government is working to introduce a system of virtual power grids under which consumers will be able to generate and store electricity. Energy Minister Awais Leghari said that the development of rules for such grids has already begun and is planned to be completed by the last quarter of the current fiscal year, Dawn reports.
Energy storage systems
According to Leghari, power distribution companies have been instructed to install batteries in their networks to improve the operation of the power system and develop electricity storage. The minister called this a future “battery revolution” in the country and noted that the government seeks to increase the use of storage systems in the energy sector.
At a meeting of the relevant National Assembly committee, Leghari acknowledged that power outages are imposed on about 3,500 of 14,500 feeders because of electricity theft and network losses. He announced an intention to shift outages from the feeder level to the transformer level within a year.
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The authorities are also introducing an on-off system for about 190,000 transformers. According to the minister, this should make it possible not to de-energize an entire feeder, while consumers who regularly pay their bills should not experience outages.
Outages and gas
Leghari said that there are currently no additional power outages in the country, and that the current disruptions are mostly related to faults caused by overloading of the power system. To modernize it, he added, significant investment and approval from the Nepra regulator are needed.
The minister also linked the energy supply situation to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which, he said, has complicated the receipt of liquefied natural gas cargoes. He noted that locally produced gas is used for electricity generation. Explaining the decision to carry out outages at night, Leghari said this is necessary to reduce fuel costs: the cost of one gas cargo, he said, rose from about $30 million to more than $95 million.
