PM seeks uniform yardstick for civil nuclear co-op
Staff Report/APP

ISLAMABAD—Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz Monday called for a “criteria-based” approach for access to all countries to civilian nuclear technology, without prejudice or discrimination.Speaking here at the Institute of Strategic Studies on “Energy: Sources of Regional Cooperation and Competition” the Prime Minister said a selective and discriminatory policy in this regard can only be counter productive. “We believe there needs to be a level playing field for all countries to have access to civilian nuclear technology without prejudice or discrimination,” the Prime Minister said.
He reiterated Pakistan’s position that every country has the right to develop and use nuclear energy for peaceful purposes under the appropriate international safeguards and guidelines. “Pakistan, with its high growth trajectory, is determined to meet its energy requirements from all available resources including nuclear energy,” he said.
The Prime Minister who also took several questions at the end of his speech, when asked whether funding was an issue for nuclear power projects, replied in negative. The Prime Minister said that with the rapidly growing population and increasing depletion of its resources, the world is likely to face the major challenges of water, food and energy security. He said with an anticipated average 3.8% per annum economic growth in the world over the next 25 years there would be a corresponding increase in demand for energy.
The highest increase in energy demand, averaging around 3% per annum, would be mainly in the developing world, especially China and South Asia. He said Pakistan’s economy, which has been growing at an average of 7.6% per year over the last three years, also faces an increasing demand of around 8% for energy to sustain our future economic growth. The Prime Minister spoke of national energy policy and said three essential prerequisites were required to attain the objectives of national energy security and regional energy.
These include ensuring availability of sufficient energy on sustainable basis at affordable prices, stable and secure conditions for uninterrupted supply of energy and environmental protection while maximizing energy output and utilization. He said at present Pakistan meets 75% of its energy requirements from domestic resources including indigenous gas, oil and hydro electricity production. However, it would need to expand its energy resource base over the next 25 years, to sustain growth rate of over 7%. The Prime Minister said Pakistan has developed a national energy policy to maximize the energy mix including oil, gas, coal, hydro power, alternative and nuclear energy. The policy includes maximum utilization of indigenous resources; accelerated exploitation and exploration of additional indigenous resources; increase the share of indigenous coal in the energy mix up to 20%; promote nuclear and alternative or renewable energy sources to at least 10% of the energy mix; increase imports of hydrocarbons including natural gas and LNG; improve the strategic oil reserves; improve energy efficiency and conservation; promote public private partnership in the energy sector and ensure the necessary human resource development.
The Prime Minister said that in view of the future energy challenges faced by the international community there was no option but to cooperate with each other. “Competition between us will not only be counter productive but would be immensely destructive,” he warned and said the fragile international political system, may collapse as a result of conflicts over energy resources.