IEEEP and ‘Make in Pakistan’

on 03/04/2020

Institution of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Pakistan (IEEEP) had a successful show, at least, in terms of thought—‘Make in Pakistan’, a long-awaited dream yet to come true in a country where ruling psyche runs against this objective.
The institution’s 34th symposium held on February 26 and 27 offered a platform to the engineers to reiterate their resolve to work for advocating the policies that support local initiatives in Pakistan.
Engr. Irfan Ahmed, Chairman IEEEP Karachi Chapter says they focused on local manufacturing in Pakistan as to how, to begin with, this process and also rejuvenate local industry in Pakistan.
Although the moot was packed with a sense of boosting and recommending local manufacturing in Pakistan, PTI’s Senior Vice President Engr. Arshad Dad Arshad who graced the event in the inaugural session knew the issues in the implementation stage. He said the recommendations of such moots had not been attracting appropriate attention in the country, however, he said the PTI government would discourage it and move on to the recommendations of the engineers.
Engr. Dad made a commitment to play a proactive role in achieving the objectives the moot was supposed to set in Pakistan in terms of local manufacturing. Engr. Irfan also confirmed he had been helpful in this respect.
The symposium brought in light major issues in terms of Renewables Policy in Pakistan and the affairs of making Electric Vehicles in Pakistan.
There are reports that Pakistan’s two ministries—the Ministry of Environment and the Ministry of Production—are at loggerheads as regards the EVs policy. Engr. Irfan confirmed it saying they had shown us dreams that EVs would be made locally but, in fact, they wanted to import it.
Since the committee constituted in such respects is mostly comprised of conventional carmakers, they would not let it affect their business. ‘We want EVs that would be locally made as they would create jobs and save our foreign exchange’, Engr. Ahmed said.

Renewable projects receive a severe blow

on 03/04/2020

Pakistan’s renewable power projects have received a severe blow due to the government’s failure to pursue Energy Policy 2006 discouraging future potential investors in the country.
About two dozen renewable energy projects are in a sleep mode as the National Transmission Despatch Company (NTDC) has stopped evacuating power pushing these projects into a state of uncertainty.
Unlike thermal power projects, these projects are not knitted in capacity charges of 17 percent in power purchase agreements. However, they are supposed to get charges on 13 percent of the total capacity that is also connected with the generation of units. If the power project is in sleep mode, it means it would get nothing on such an account, sources say. As a result, all renewable energy initiatives that successive governments would claim are supporting to is doomed to be a failure.
An official privy to these affairs says if the government fails to evacuate power as per the agreement, it is liable to pay penalty to the power producers. Also connected is a drawback for the governments in this case as the government is supposed to pay to the power producers the amount with an interest rate of 13 percent if it delays in payments. All this adds to circular debt, he says.
In the current circumstances, it is almost impossible for renewable power producers to sustain in the country, says an official.
Along with these power projects, there are yet another 12 wind projects which are under construction in Jhimpir (Sindh) have been stopped by NTDC notifying ‘Force Majeure Event’ as a consequence of Coronavirus Outbreak in China.
National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC) has stopped evacuation of power from Wind Power Projects (WPPs) in Jhimpir, Wind Cluster. The evacuation month for these power projects is June 2021.
Interestingly enough, no other works in the country on which Chinese companies are working have been affected in the wake of the Coronavirus Outbreak. These works include being executed by WAPDA and other federal organizations.
The company has notified Force Majeure Event’ as a consequence of Coronavirus Outbreak for the evacuation of power from Wind Power Projects (WPPs) in Jhimpir, Thatta in Sindh.

Balochistan decides to expedite dev work on SEZs

on 23/03/2020

Balochistan Minister for Commerce and Industries, Muhammad Khan Utmankhail has said the provincial government had decided to expedite development work on special economic zones to boost significant economic activities in the province.
He said the government had initiated the development work on eight special economic zones with the collaboration of the federal government. He urged the federal government to expand its financial support for Balochistan’s special economic zones to create economic activities in the province.
Utmankhail reviewed the plan for setting up 13 border markets at the adjacent border areas of Iran and Afghanistan. The federal government’s assistance was required for developing infrastructure including communication networks, water supply, and electricity in the market areas, he added.
Balochistan was rich in mineral reserves due to which the provincial government had declared three districts as marble cities to facilitate the investors and help empower underprivileged locals economically, the minister mentioned.
Unemployment, he said, was one of the major challenges for the province and believed that the trained and skilled including unskilled workers would soon get jobs. “With the establishment of special economic zones, it would help create employment opportunities for 30,000 locals and the entire province would benefit from its associated benefits,” he added. Muhammad Khan said, “The provincial assets and other resources would be utilized for the progress and prosperity of the people under proper planning.”
Seventy industrial units were functional and working at the eastern bypass of industrial zone Quetta, he said, adding, the government was working to ensure the provision of more facilities including electricity, water and natural gas

DHA Suffa University hosts 35th IEEEP

on 23/03/2020

DHA Suffa University (DSU) Karachi, in collaboration with The Institution of Electrical & Electronics Engineers Pakistan (IEEEP), organized the 35th All Pakistan IEEEP Students Seminar at DSU’s premises.
Pakistan’s prominent scientist, Prof. Dr. Atta ur Rehman who concurrently Chairman of Prime Minister’s Task Force on Science and Technology, Vice Chairman of Prime Minister’s Task Force on Technology-Driven Knowledge-Economy, Co-Chair Task Force on Information Technology and former Chairman HEC graced the inaugural session as Chief Guest.
While addressing the audience, Dr. Atta ur Rehman highlighted that education is the lifeline of a nation. The progress and prosperity of any country depend on the standard and quality of its education system.
He appreciated DHA Karachi and DHA Suffa University for providing quality higher education facilities to the community. Furthermore, he insisted on the need for having indigenous solutions for energy challenges.
Vice-Chancellor DSU, Engr.Prof. Dr. Muhammad Afzal Haque presented Memento to Dr. Atta ur Rehman.
In his opening remarks, VC DSU reminded the youth that they are left with no choice but to keep pace with the rapid growth in scientific and technological fields if they are to survive in the comity of nations with peace & dignity.
Engr Irfan Ahmed, Chairman IEEEP Karachi Centre, highlighted the research being done at the local universities in the fields of renewables, energy efficiency and storage and spoke about their commercial applications which were given due coverage in the IEEEP student seminar.
He further stated that the Students Technical Seminar has provided a liaison between Final Year Students and Industry Professionals.
At the closing ceremony, Mr. Asad Said Jafar, CEO & Chairman of Signify (formerly known as Philips Pakistan) spoke about the local capacity building and how that can be synergized to produce globally recognized entrepreneurs.
He also appreciated the efforts of DSU and IEEEP for providing the students with this opportunity to showcase their skills and hard work.
Mr. Asad Said Jafar congratulated DSU and IEEEP for organizing the event.
At the 35th IEEEP Student Seminar, undergraduate students from all over Pakistan submitted their final year research work and presentations.
In total 36 papers were presented in five technical sessions. The organizing committee of DSU’s Electrical Engineering Department strictly checked the quality of technical papers presented at the seminar as per the HEC policy.
The Jury selected the top six papers for participation in the IEEEP Multitopic Symposium 2020 and award of medals and cash prizes at the IEEEP International Symposium later in February 2020.
The event was widely attended by students of Electrical, Computer & Software Engineering/Computer Science, Electronics, Biomedical & other ICT related fields.
The participants lauded the efforts of IEEEP Karachi and DHA Suffa University for bringing new technological trends under discussion.
IEEEP’s efforts were highly fruitful in terms of encouraging students and improving the industry-academia relationship

Pakistan Cables powers NOWPDP’s

on 23/03/2020

In an effort to provide equal learning and development opportunities for children with disabilities, Pakistan Cables, as part of its corporate social responsibility (CSR) program marked the inauguration of NOWPDP’s The Inclusion Academy in Karachi. The Inclusion Academy is a school-project that aims to target children with disabilities that hail from the underprivileged segment of society.
During the inauguration ceremony, NOWPDP’s President Mr. Amin Hashwani acknowledged the commitment of all contributing stakeholders and expressed appreciation towards the growing support for creating opportunities for persons with disabilities.
The Inclusion Academy is first such project targeting children with disabilities launched by NOWPDP, an NGO that has been offering skill-based programs for persons with disabilities in Pakistan by partnering with various other NGOs.
Earlier in 2019, Pakistan Cables signed an MoU with NOWPDP committing to contribute towards the establishment of the Inclusion Academy and lending awareness to the cause of empowering persons with disabilities.