QUETTA: Chief of the Quetta Electric Supply Company (Qesco) Balighuz-Zaman has said the project envisaging setting up of 300MW solar energy plant may end up in disaster because its design doesn`t have provision for back-up batteries.

Talking to Dawn, he said that instead of giving subsidy worth billions in the agriculture sector the authorities should set up a plant for manufacturing solar energy-based tubewells.

Mr Zaman said the 300MW solar energy plant being installed in Quetta had no provision for backup batteries. `The entire city will plunge into darkness in cloudy weather because of this flaw in the project`s design,` he remarked.

He pointed out that every night some solar energy-based streetlights installed on the AirportRoad switched off automatically because they too didn`t have back-up batteries.

Mr Zaman said that thousands of megawatts could be produced from coal reserves by importing latest machinery for separating sulphur from coal and generating electricity.

Not only Balochistan but other parts of the country could also benefit from the coal-generated electricity.

Installation of wind power-based electricity plants on the TaftanNokundi route in Chagai was another good option.

The Netherlands met 70 per cent of its energy needs by such windmills.

The Qesco chief said he expected reduction in loadshedding by up to five hours daily by April on the completion of the 220MW Dadu-Khuzdar transmission line. The 220MW Loralai-Dera Ghazi Khan transmission line, expected to be complete by June, would further ease energy woes.