Project assistance completion report : energy planning and development (391-0478)

The project was generally successful. Major institution-building outputs have been achieved, and many project activities are being sustained by the newly created or enhanced institutions. The Energy Policy, Planning, and Manpower Development component established an Energy Wing in the Ministry of Planning and Development. The functions of the Energy Wing have been clearly spelled out, staff have been well-trained (more than 30 candidates were sent to the United States for M.S. training and more than 150 for short-term training), and computers have been installed and an energy database established. The Wing has already completed a number of important studies and has taken the lead in preparing Pakistan's Five Year Energy Plans. In the area of Indigenous Resource Assessment and Development, the most important accomplishment was the discovery of a major coal deposit in the Thar desert, estimated to contain about 80 billion tons of coal -- 8 times the size of previously known resources and sufficient to support several thousand MW of power generation. Additionally, the institutional capabilities of the Geological Survey of Pakistan (GSP) were enhanced through U.S. training of 30 personnel and substantive additions of equipment. In other areas, detailed technical and economic feasibility studies for the Lakhra coal mine were completed, but the financial feasibility of coal extraction remained disputed and there was no further significant involvement in the Lakhra project. Coal briquetting was also developed and tested for household cooking and heating, and proved to be an inexpensive, safe alternative to kerosene and firewood. Provision of state of the art computers, development of a major mapping data base, and extensive TA and on-the-job training considerably enhanced the capabilities of the Directorate General of Petroleum Concessions (DGPC). The Energy Conservation component provided training in energy audit and conservation technologies, economics, and energy conservation policies. Energy conservation equipment was supplied to various industries. The National Energy Conservation Center (ENERCON) was established. Over 3,000 engineers and 11,000 housewives and working women have attended ENERCON workshops, and the Center's efforts have identified $50 million worth of energy savings in industry. No significant efforts were undertaken in the area of renewable energy due to lack of consensus between USAID and the Government of Pakistan (GOP). The following lessons were learned. (1) Considerable difficulty was observed in getting the GOP to issue legislation creating ENERCON and the Energy Wing, and then there were unanticipated delays in the hiring process. Adequate time for legislation to be issued and staff to be hired should have been established in the project schedule. (2) In commodity procurements, full payment should be made only after equipment is received successfully and in order. (3) USAID should not directly lease space for GOP offices, but provide funds so that the GOP can lease space on its own. (USAID had considerable difficulty getting the GOP to vacate space USAID had leased.) (4) A complex construction activity (the ENERCON building) should not have been undertaken so close to the end of the project. (5) More training in the financial analysis should have been provided to the Energy Wing. (6) In the coal resources assessment activity, more emphasis should have been given to field drilling. (7) If the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) had bid the Lakhra project as a combined coal mine/power plant project with power plant size open, it would probably have received serious proposals for developing this site.