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Nepal Micro Hydropower

Development Association

Chiara Fabrizio, Reza Baharivand, Rhea Riemke, Shuliang(Peter) Sun

Group Project APS 510, Prof. Henry Vehovec

Presentation in Lecture Tuesday, December 4, 2012

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1. Key Technology Features

2. Background of the Organization

3. Innovation, Scale, Decentralization

4. Likely Impact

5. Conclusion

Outline

UNDP Video

http://bcove.me/xxbdxjmx

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Land area: 147,181 km^2 (93rd largest country by land mass)

Population: 27 million (41st most populous country)

Himalaya collision zone in Nepal causes a lot of tall mountains over 6,000m including Mount Everest. Snow line starts at over 5000m. Moving at 67mm per year.

Geography and Context

Nepal

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Nepal has no proven oil or natural gas resource.

40 % of population have access to electrical grid

of 27 million population live in rural areas.

90/10 discrepancy in electrical access between urban and rural areas.

Energy Landscape

Average electricity consumption per capita (kWh)

Nepal 86

United States / Canada 11,496 / 12,836

EU 4,667

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Nepal & Power Energy, Electricity and Policy

Electricity Generation Mix:

91% Hydro Power

9% Fossil Fuels Total Energy Mix

Increasing energy demand

Nepal Electricity Authority

Hydropower Development

Independent Power Producers

Community Rural Electrification Department

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Hydropower Classification by Size

Large/Big-hydro < 100 MW usually feeding into a large electricity grid

Medium-hydro 15 MW 100 MW feeding into a grid.

Small-hydro 1 MW 15 MW - -

Micro/Mini-hydro

5 kW 100 kW

either stand alone schemes or more often feeding into the grid, usually providing power for a small community or rural industry in remote areas

Pico-hydro From a few

hundred watts up to 5 kW

mostly mechanical shaft power

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Potential Energy

Kinetic Energy

Mechanical Energy

Electrical Energy

Micro-Hydro Power How it works

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Using Micro-Hydro Power Technology

Output from the turbine shaft

Direct use: mechanical power

Conversion: electrical generator Electricity

Calculating the obtainable power

Theoretical / Potential Power:

(P) = Flow rate (Q) x Head (H) x Gravity (g)

= 9.81

Conversion Losses:

Capacity Factor between 50% and 80%

Effective Power: =

Base Load & Load Control

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Project Initiation

Assessment of Needs and Site

Search for Partners and Financing

Construction and Planning

Operation and Maintenance

Stages of Implementation

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Issues, Benefits & Critical Aspects Environmental, Social and Economic

Environmental Socio-Economic

+ CO2 (double value) + Initial Costs

o Fish + Educational Time & Distribution of Womens Activities Capacity Building

- Q347 (Environmental Flow)

+ Access to Electricity as the Foundation of a modern life style

o Ownership, Management & Training (community-based vs. privately-owned)

- High Dependency on Donor Fund & Low (Direct) Economic Return

- Inequity (social stratification along gender, caste, and ethnic lines)

for a 5 kW plant: $ 23,000 (4600 $/kW)

for a 100 kW plant: $ 390,000 (3900 $/kW)

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Alternative: Micro solar

Capacity factor: 17%

Nepal has over 300 sunny days a year

Can be used for solar thermal heater or solar electricity generation

E.g. 5kw system 15% EFF cells

=33.3 m^2 of silicon * Irradiance * EFF

= 10,950 kWh/yr ~ power for 45 households (3 person/household)

Cost:

5 kW: $24,000

50 kW: $240,000

$0.11 kWh over a

20 year lifespan

Components

Price ($/watt)

Panel 2

Inverter 0.8

Battery (Lead-Acid)

1.8

Controllers

0.2

Labor Free!

Total 4.8

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Alternative: Micro Wind

Capacity factor: 25%

Nepal has 7,607 km^2 of wind at 3-7class at 50m, world rank = 36

50 kW system can produce 114,000 250,000 kWh/year. ~power for 740 households (3 person/household)

Cost:

5 kW system: $50k - 65k

50 kW system : $340k

$0.09 - $0.15 kWh over 20 year life span

P (W/m^2) V (m/s)

0 0

200 5.6

300 6.4

400 7.0

500 7.5

600 8.0

800 8.8

2000 11.9

class

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

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Alternative: Geothermal and Micro Nuclear

Geothermal: Capacity factor: 60% Need be located near springs, most springs near the main central thrust zone or main boundary fault zone, lack of drilling expertise for geothermal wells.

Micro-Nuclear: Capacity factor: 80% magnitudes of 200 kW. 6m(20ft) by 2m(6ft). Problems with technical expertise and waste management.

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Comparison between Micro-hydro and others

Micro-Hydro

Micro-Solar Micro-Wind Micro-Nuclear

Capacity factor

50 - 80 % 17 % 25 % 80%

Type Base load Intermittent Intermittent Base load

$/watt to install

4.6 - 3.9 4.8 10 - 6.8 n/a

Size (kw) 5 100 5 50 5 50 200

Cost ($) 23 k - 390 k 24k 240k 50k 340k n/a

Annual electricity production (kwh)

35,040 350,040

10,950 109,500

18,000 180,000

1,401,600

*Note: Hydro cost is for 100 kW plant

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Nepal and the Nepalese Micro-Hydro

Development Association

Context: Population Economy

Who: 9 privately-run firms

When: 1992

Why: "Collective efforts to lobby government agencies and international non-governmental organizations for extending access to electricity to village people" (Purna N.Ranjitkar, CEO - NMHDA)

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NMHDA Objectives

Technology hub

Policy

Professional welfare

Development

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NMHDA Today

Organizational structure

Membership - 54 companies

Types of companies 1. surveyors & designers 2. manufacturers 3. installers - up to 5 kW - up to 100 kW

Size of companies

Current electricity production 20 Mega Watt in 2500 plants

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NMHDA - Funding structure

Initial stage Self-funding

Current situation

Membership fee

Training programmes

Future

- Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (government) - Foreign agencies

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NMHDA - Back to the future

Activities abroad

Trainings Services/products

Members

Electricity production >100 kW => training capacity upgrading

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Definitions

Social Frugal Innovation

"Innovations that are designed for poor markets

that scale in sustainable ways" and try to solve the

problems of invisibility of end-users"

Generative diffusion

"generative" because the adoption of an innovation

will take different forms rather than replicate a given

model, "diffusion" because it spreads along multiple

paths

Decentralization

A technological, political, and legal framework to

achieve participation, local planning and service

delivery

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Nepals framework to decentralize energy planning

Before decentralization act:

Coordination problems on the ground , impeded delivery process

All institutionally supported rural energy initiatives, centralized!

1999 local self-governance act states:

District-level committees take responsibility

Formulate, implement, operate, distribute hydro-power

Maintain and repair projects

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Achievements

Strong sense of ownership among communities

Nurtured local authorities leadership

Accelerated delivery of energy to rural areas

Expansion of micro-hydro in remote, hilly locations

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Financial Mechanisms

Self-governing funds at district/village level

Deposit from central-level into village-level funds

Community energy fund owned by rural households

Fund used to invest first, then revenue from end user back to the fund

As a result:

Increased sense of of village-level institutional ownership

Generated funds locally

Mobilization of local resources

made rural energy systems financially sustainable

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Capacity development to scale-up decentralized EAPs

Collaboration of UNDP with Nepals Ministry of Environment

Main findings from field experiences for capacity building:

1. Capacity development is central to successful scaling-up of rural EAPs

2. Upfront public investments are needed to develop national & local capacities for scaling-up rural energy services delivery, and can catalyze private financing

3. scaling-up of decentralized energy access programmes to meet their full potential is financially within reach, particularly with greater participation from private sector.

Two successful scaled up programmes:

1. Small hydro-power (150MW by 2030, USD 435m)

2. National solar power -cooking stoves (2m by 2030, USD 18m)

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Sustainable energy offers: 1)Rise in living standards 2)Economic growth 3)Environmental balance Nepal before: Highly dependent on traditional bio fuel for heating and cooking Threat to environment & peoples health Nepal after: - 59000 household & 317 plants of hydro-power (5.7 MW capacity) - 15000 cooking stoves, 7000 toilet-attached biogas, 3200 solar home heat - Modern energy available to 1m people in rural & remote areas - Significant progress in rural development - Increase in household income and spending - Promoting environmental quality by means of renewables

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Impact on Nepal & Nepalese

National ownership & commitment

Local engagement

Catalytic finance

Community mobilization & local partnership

Capacity development at all levels

15% of Nepals electricity from MH

40 new business for every MH station

reduced household spending on energy

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Innovation

as a synthesis:

Conclusions

Homepage of the Nepal

Micro Hydro Power

Development Association:

http://www.microhydro.or

g.np/MH_in_Nepal.php

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Alternative Energy Promotion Centre. (November 2012) http://www.aepc.gov.np/index.php?option=com_docman&Itemid=307

Banerjee, Sudeshna. Power and People: Measuring the Benefits of Renewable Energy in Nepal (2010). The World Bank.

Barnett, Smail Khennas and Andrew. BEST PRACTICES FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT OF MICRO HYDRO POWER IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES. (2000). Washington D.C: The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

Clemens, Elisabeth, Rijal, Kamal, Takada, Minoru. Capacity Development for Scaling up Decentralized Energy Access Programmes (2010). Warwickshire: Practical Action Publishing Ltd.

Gwnalle Legros, Kamal Rijal, Bahareh Seyedi. Decentralized Energy Access and Millennium Development Goals (2011). Warwickshire: Practical Action Publishing Ltd.

Ranjit, Mahendra. Status of geothermal energy in Nepal, Research Center for Applied Science and Technology. 2005, Kirtipur, Kathmandu, Nepal.

References (1/3)

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Rural Micro-hydro Development Programme Nepal, UNDP http://www.undp.org/content/undp/en/home/ourwork/environmentandenergy/projects_and_initiatives/rural-energy-nepal/

Havet, I., Chowdhury, S., Takada, M., Cantano, A. Energy in National Decentralization Policies UNDP, August 2009.

Klugman, Jeni. Human Development Report (2011). New York: UNDP.

Kumara, P. G. Ajith. Community Based Micro-Hydro Village Electrification Schemes Technology & Approach (2012). Practical Action South Asia.

Metz, John J. Development Failure: A Critical Review of Three Analyses of Development in Nepal (1996). Himalayan Research Bulletin XVI (1-2)

Murray, Calulier-Grice & Mulgan. "Open Book of Social Innovation

Nepal, United Nations Country Team. "United Nations Development Assistance Framework for Nepal" (2012).

References (2/3)

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South Asia Regional Initiative for Energy. Nepal. Energy Sector Overview. USAID from the American People. Internet: http://www. sari-energy.org/PageFiles/Countries/Nepal_Energy_detail.asp (accessed on Nov 26, 2012).

Stein, Janice. "Frugal Innovation and Development Assistance" Munk Monitor Fall 2012, Vol. 2, p. 20-21

Upadhayay, Shradha. Evaluating the effectiveness of micro-hydropower projects in Nepal (2009). Master's Theses. Paper 3701.

U.S. Energy Information Administration. US department of energy. Washington. DC. Web. Nov 15, 2012 http://www.eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=97&t=3

The World Factbook 2009. Washington, DC: Central Intelligence Agency, 2009. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html

Wong, Joseph. "Innovation and the Poor: The Problem of Invisibilitying for the Poor", Munk Monitor Fall 2012, Vol. 2, p 8-9.

References (3/3)

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Group Photo

From left to right:

Reza Baharivand 995728440

Rhea L. Riemke 1000222779

Shuliang(Peter) Sun 996007440

Chiara Fabrizio - 999273058