Pakistan's First Biomass Energy Demonstration Plant Begins Operations in Sindh
The plant in Sajawal's Pinnah Reserved Forest is the first of four planned sites under a UNDP-backed, GEF-funded project aimed at promoting sustainable biomass energy across Pakistan.
Pakistan's first biomass energy demonstration plant has started operating in Sajawal, Sindh, marking a step toward cleaner rural energy and reduced pressure on the country's forests. The facility is located in the Pinnah Reserved Forest and is intended to show how agricultural and forest residues can be converted into usable fuel.
The plant was developed under the Promotion and Application of Sustainable Biomass Energy Technologies in Pakistan (PASBET) project, which is funded by the Global Environment Facility and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme in partnership with the Ministry of Climate Change and Environmental Coordination. UNDP and the Sindh government jointly inaugurated the site.
It is the first of four demonstration plants planned under the initiative, which seeks to showcase woody biomass-based energy technologies that can be replicated at scale. PASBET is a five-year, $3.5 million programme covering Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with goals that include supporting rural livelihoods, lowering greenhouse gas emissions and easing demand on forest resources.
According to UNDP, the Pinnah site demonstrates how forest and agricultural residues can generate income through pellet production, community nurseries and efficient cook-stoves, while also supporting sustainable forest management and strengthening indigenous plantations.
UNDP Resident Representative Dr Samuel Rizk said Pakistan does not have to choose between meeting rural energy needs and protecting its forests. He noted that the plant shows how locally available residues can be turned into cleaner fuel and local opportunity, adding that the task now is to make the model work at scale with communities, government and markets moving together.
The launch adds to a growing set of efforts to diversify Pakistan's energy mix and address rural fuel needs, though the technology remains at a demonstration stage. How quickly the model expands will depend on community participation, market development and continued institutional support.
