Pakistan's 12,700 schools have been shifted to solar energy: ADB

ISLAMABAD: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has said that 12,700 schools have been shifted to solar energy in Pakistan, ARY News reported on Tuesday.

The ADB in a statement said that 10,700 schools of Punjab and 2,000 schools of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been converted to solar energy power supply.

“The power supply from the national grid to thousands of schools was very expensive,” according to the statement.

“This solar energy project has been completed with a cost of 320 million dollars”. The project has also improved the attendance of children in schools during the summer season, Country Director of ADB stated.

“Bahawalpur University is also being supplied solar energy,” the ADB stated. “Solar energy supply has saved considerable amount in daily expenses of the university, which can be diverted to other expenditure of the educational institution,” ADB stated.

It is pertinent to mention here that a solar park promoted as one of the largest in the world, spread over 6,500 acres (2,630 hectares) of land in the Cholistan desert in east-central part of Pakistan, hast been at about 20 kilometers distance from the city of Bahawalpur.