Some engineering compan-ies from Germany are willing to set up plants for manufacturing wind turbines and other equipment required for generating power from wind, solar energy etc. Three-four wind turbine units are expected to take the lead. Each could cost around four million dollars.

Alternate Energy Develo-pment Board, German Consu-late and Pak-German Business Council are said to have induced these German firms to study the viability. German businessmen are believed to be keen, particularly about equipment required for generating energy.

This is an outcome of developments in Europe itself, which is now planning to reduce its dependence on conventional energy resources - coal, oil and nuclear power plants. No wonder European companies making alternate energy generating systems, like wind generators and solar cells etc, are awfully busy in meeting their own requirements. They have no capacity for exports.

Pakistan, say experts, is an ideal alternate for setting up manufacturing units. The labour is quite cheap and available in abundance here. The weather is right and government policies encouraging. These plants would also be allowed to export their products.

It is because of heavy business generating from within Europe that prices of 50MW wind generators are now about $3.5 million. Three years ago they were only $2.2 million.

It is matter of great concern, say experts, that Pakistan has not moved many steps towards exploiting the situation both for domestic and export needs. We have not even done the homework - initial studies, feasibility reports etc, We have only been 'begging' for wind generators for over three years and can't get them 'at the right price', said an expert at a recent conference on the subject.

The only solution is that we begin manufacturing them ourselves beginning with reverse engineering, he added.

The German companies interested in setting up plants in Pakistan are: Cosmos Group, Suntechnics and Hawi Energietechnik Local business houses have offered them full co-operation.