Pakistan Thar Coal Reserves

Thar Coal Desert Location:

Thar coal reserves are the 7th biggest coal reserves which currently exist on our planet. The Thar coalfield is located in the southern part of Sindh Province in Pakistan. The coalfield is divided into four blocks for exploration.

Coal Usage:
China is producing 70% of its electricity by using its coal resources.
USA is producing 57% of its electricity by using its coal resources.
Do you know how much electricity Pakistan is producing using coal?

You may get astonished but Pakistan is producing only 200MW at current time using coal which is 1% of our total electricity generation. Do you know that if all the oil reserves of Saudi Arab and Iran have been put together they are approximately 375 Billion barrels but single Thar Coal Reserve of Sindh in Pakistan is about 850 Trillion Cubic Feet which is more than Oil Reserves of Saudi Arab and Iran. These reserves estimated to be equal to 850 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of natural gas.

Benefits of the Project:

1. Cheap Source of Electricity:
The coal power generation would cost Pakistan PKR 5.67 per unit while power generate by Independent Power Plants (IPP’s) cost PKR 9.27. One of Pakistani Nuclear Scientist Dr. Samar Mubarakmand who has worked for the Pakistan Nuclear Program, is working on a project for generating electricity by a process of converting the coal into gas first and then use the gas to produce electricity which will be pollution free and has no environmental effects also. The project is in progress and will be ready to generate 1000MW of electricity in the next year which will be sold at Rs. 3.75. Dr. Samar also said that the Thar coal reserves of 175 billion tones can have the potential to generate 5,000 MW for at least 800 years.

2. Benefit to Cement Industry:
The cement industry is shifting from oil usage to coal usage because of high oil prices which fluctuates from time to time and it is too much costly. Because of this reason the Cement industry in Pakistan is shifting towards coal which is cheaper for use in Cement production process.

3. Save Foreign Reserves:
Pakistan has spent 15 billion dollars for oil exports this year which is a heavy burden on the economy and the foreign reserves of the country which are already under high pressure due to bad economic condition of the country.

4. Power Crisis Solution:
Pakistan is under high power crisis from last few years and will remain under this situation if proper steps were not taken on time. We have to use all resources like hydel and coal which are much cheaper then any other source. President Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry has said there is need to utilize Thar coal as it has the potential to produce 100,000 MW for 300 years, which is the solution of the power crisis.

Reasons of Project Delay:
The electricity which can be generated through this project will be very much cheaper then the Government dependence on the Independent Power Plants which are known as IPP’s. This project will certainly give life to economy of the Pakistan and will eradicate poverty. German, Chinese and other companies had not only carried out surveys and feasibilities of this project but also offered 100 percent investment in last 7 to 8 years but the petroleum lobby is always discouraged them in a very dramatic way.

Some people in the Government is also involved in the delay of this project because of there political and financial interests. The fuel bill was 15 billion dollar this year which is really damaging our economy and is strongly impacting on county foreign reserves.

How to Speed Up the Project: 

I have designed a new system of government which can easily handle all kind of our current issues in the country and can speed up these kinds of projects.

Visit the Link Below to read the article:


New Government System in Pakistan