Bioenergy potential and consumption in Pakistan

The usage of biomass by mankind can be traced back to thousands of years. The biomass utilization in developing countries like Pakistan has always played a major role to fulfill energetic demands of poor inhabitants of the country. Pakistan being an agricultural country has a tremendous potential to utilize agricultural by-products like bagasse, rice husk, cotton stalks etc. The major share of biomass utilization in Pakistan comes from household sector i.e. 76%. The small scale combustion systems used in households for cooking and heating purposes consist of different types of stoves. However, a lot more has to be done in order to harness the full potential of this renewable energy resource and change the technology pattern by overcoming different social, economic, cultural and political barriers. This objective can only be achieved by initiating effective R&D projects throughout the country.