Press Releases 2009
Pakistan-U.S. Bilateral Energy Dialogue
October 24, 2009
Islamabad - Delegations from Pakistan and the United States met on October 23 and 24 in Islamabad to renew their bilateral dialogue on energy issues. Raja Pervez Ashraf, Minister for Water and Power, led the delegation for the Government of Pakistan and Mr. David L. Goldwyn, the Secretary of State's Coordinator for International Energy Affairs, led the delegation for the United States.
With specific attention on ways for Pakistan to move beyond its energy crises, the delegations reviewed the full range of energy policies. Over the two days, the governments also focused on ways to transform Pakistan's energy economy on a sustainable long-term basis. They discussed measures needed to craft a conducive climate to attract private capital investments.
The Pakistani delegation presented the Government's integrated vision for meeting the energy needs of a growing economy through development of domestic resources, including oil, gas, coal, hydro and renewable energy. They also presented operational, efficiency and organizational improvements that would allow for the production and delivery of more reliable energy supplies, as well as the more efficient use of imported energy.
The U.S. delegation confirmed its intent to assist Pakistan in addressing the hardships experienced by all Pakistanis due to energy shortfalls. The United States appreciated Pakistan's proposals to address the short-term energy shortfalls and pledged to assist in their implementation. They reiterated the interest of numerous U.S. private sector firms in investing in energy projects in Pakistan. The delegations agreed that they would work jointly to ensure progress towards a balanced energy market in Pakistan and to review specific project proposals for increased energy capacity. They agreed to meet again in the spring of 2010.
The Ministries of Water and Power, Petroleum and Natural Resources, Finance, Privatization, Investment and the Planning Commission as well as Water and Power Development Authority, Pakistan Electric Power Company, Alternative Energy Development Board, Private Power and Infrastructure Board, and the Sindh Thar Coal and Energy Board all contributed to the dialogue. The U.S. Departments of State, Energy and Commerce, the National Security Council, USAID, the U.S. Trade and Development Agency, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission represented the United States.