renewable energy Village Power Systems for Remote and Impoverished
Himalayan Villages in Nepal
Zahnd Alex, Haddix McKay Kimber, Richard Komp
Department of Mechanical Engineering Kathmandu University, P.O. Box 6250, Kathmandu,
Nepal [email protected] / University of Montana and The ISIS Foundation, Missoula,
Montana, 59801, USA [email protected], / Maine solar energy Association, 17 Rockwell Rd
SE, Jonesport ME 04649 USA [email protected]
Abstract
1.6 – 2 billion people in developing countries live in dark homes, without access to electricity,
and 2.4 billion rely on traditional biomass for their daily energy services, such as cooking,
heating and lighting. Lack of electricity and heavy reliance on traditional biomass are hallmarks
of poverty in developing countries, and women and children in particular suffer enormous health
problems due to open fire places. The high migration and urbanization rates in developing
countries will continue, forcing governments to focus more on urban energy service provision
and extension. That widens the gap between poor and rich, highlighting the relationship between
The Term Paper on Developing Countries Productivity Economic Competitiveness
... offshore sourcing to low-cost export platforms in the developing countries for labour-intensive products in the triangle manufacturing networks; ... have environmentally negative effects. Today, those countries which have drastically reduced their specific energy and material consumption are at ... sense, sustainability means that input of raw materials and energy to an economy and the output of waste ...
poverty and access to electricity further. Nepal, with the majority of its people living in difficult
to access areas with no roads is a typical example of that. Belonging to the poorest and most
undeveloped countries, the per capita electricity consumption is among the lowest in the world.
The geographical remoteness, the harsh climatic conditions, low population density with
minimal energy demand and low growth potential, are some of the reasons why rural
electrification costs in Nepal are prohibitive and the isolated rural mountain villages in Nepal
will not be reached within the foreseeable future through grid extensions alone.
Nepal is not rich in fossil fuel resources but it has plenty of renewable energy resources, in
particular water that is running down from the vast Himalayan mountain ranges in over 6,000
rivers. With 300 sunny days a year, the sun’s freely available solar energy can also be converted
into electricity.
In some of the most remote Himalayan valleys in Nepal, among the poorest and most
marginalized groups of people, some encouraging steps have been taken in regard to elementary
rural village electrification. The local available, renewable energy resources have been tapped
into, and through Remote Area Power Supply (RAPS) systems, miniscule amounts of power, in
the “watt” range rather than “kilo-watt”, has been generated for elementary rural village
electrification. In this way several villages have been electrified, for lighting purposes only,
through different types of village integrated solar photovoltaic systems and the smallest kinds of
hydro power plants, called pico hydro. The lights considered most appropriate and sustainable
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
are 1 watt energy consuming white light emitting diodes (WLED), providing a minimum, but
just sufficient light output.
This paper aims to highlight the urgency for appropriate and sustainable elementary rural village
electrification in Nepal, in order to create opportunities to bring light into the dark, smoke filled
The Term Paper on Energy crisis
The gasoline shortages of World War II brought a resurgence of horse-and-wagon delivery. Government actions like tax hikes, nationalisation of energy companies and regulation of the energy sector shift supply and demand of energy away from its economic equilibrium. Market failure is possible when monopoly manipulation of markets occurs. A crisis can develop due to industrial actions like union ...
homes of the poorest of the poor. It discusses the possible, appropriate technologies, such as
solar PV systems for single homes and whole villages, pico hydro power plants and small wind
generators, for small scale rural village power generation schemes. It describes and discusses
some of the implemented village solar PV and pico hydro power plant projects, including the
experiences gained and the lessons learned.
Keywords: Rural Village Electrification, Renewable Energy Resources, Renewable Energy
Technologies, RAPS System, Holistic Development, Lighting, Sustainability,
Appropriate Technology
1. Introduction
Nepal is a landlocked country, with India to the south, east and west and the People’s Republic of
China to the north. It lies between 26° 22′ to 30° 27′ N latitude and 80° 04′ to 88° 12′ E
longitude, with an altitudinal range from 60 m in the south to 8,848 m in the north. With its
almost rectangular shape, Nepal encloses a total area of 147,181 km2. The average north-south
width is about 193 km and East-West length averages 885 km1. Broadly, Nepal lies within the
subtropical monsoon climatic system, and has five different types of climates2, from tropical in
the south to alpine in the north due to its immense topographical variation.
80% – 85% of Nepal’s 27.6 million people3 live in rural areas, with about half so remote that the
nearest road, and indeed the national grid, is within 2 – 16 days walking distance. The Humla
district in the far north-west of Nepal, is where most of the rural village electrification projects
related to in this paper take place (see map below).
The GDP/capita (Gross Domestic Product) is
1,100 -1,370 US$4, and the HDI (Human Development Index) is 0.499 for Nepal and 0.244 for
the Humla district5. Around 40% of Nepal’s people are living below the poverty line6.
The average life expectancy in Nepal is 60.1 years for men and 59.5 years for women7, though in
rural and impoverished mountain areas such as Humla, the life expectancy is between 36 – 50
years8, with the women on an average 2 years lower than men. That puts Nepal among the few
countries where women have a lower life expectancy than men, indicating the enormous
The Essay on Renewable Energy Fuel Cell
Fuel Cell: Fuel cells have been known to science for 150 years and have become the subject of intense research since World War II. A fuel cell generates electricity by producing a chemical reaction. It consists of two electrodes (cathode and anode), which is also where the reaction occurs. Hydrogen is the basic fuel cell, but all fuel cells also require oxygen, and both are supplied from external ...
responsibilities, hardships and burdens they carry within their society, especially in the remote,
undeveloped high altitude mountain regions. Nepal has an annual population growth of 2.27%,
though in Kathmandu, Nepal’s capital, it is 4.83%9, showing the strong urbanization trend.
The national literacy rate is given with 45.2%, (62.7% of men able to read and write and 27.6%
of the women10).
Again the picture in the poor mountain regions is rather different. In Humla
only 4.8% of the women are literate, and the average years of schooling is just 0.88 years11.
The national average electricity consumption per capita in the 2003 – 2004 fiscal year was just
under 70 kWh/year12, placing Nepal among the lowest electricity consumers in the world.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Figure 1: Nepal map (with author’s adjustment).
From the “End of the Road” one either has to
walk 16 days to Simikot (Humla district), or take a one hour, adventurous airplane journey
through the Himalayas from Nepalgunj (in the very south at the India boarder) to Simikot.
2. Nepal’s Energy Scenario
Nepal is poor in fossil fuel resources, and thus has to import all its non-renewable energy
resources, such as kerosene, diesel, petrol, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) and coal, from its
neighboring country, India. The prices for these fossil fuels are strongly dependent on the global
economic and political conditions.
But what Nepal is rich in are renewable energy resources, such as biomass, water, sunshine and
also wind in some particular areas. The great benefits of these energy resources are, that they are
free and renewable, and therefore do not incur ongoing fuel costs. Further, a great advantage is
that these renewable energy resources are locally available, and thus can be part of the local
community’s economy and lifestyle.
2.1.
Nepal’s Energy Resources and Their Use
2.1.1. Biomass
With still around 80% – 85% of the population living in rural areas, the primary energy source
used to provide most of the necessary daily energy services in Nepal since centuries, has been
The Essay on Solar Power Assisted Electric Scooter
INTRODUCTION “Because we are now running out of gas and oil, we must prepare quickly for a third change, to strict conservation and to the use of coal and permanent renewable energy sources, like solar power.” – JIMMY CARTER, televised speech, Apr. 18, 1977 In times such as today, cumulative solar energy production accounts for less than 0.01% of total Global Primary Energy demand. And the ...
fuel wood, often supplemented by crop residues and animal manure, dependent on the prevailing
local customs, cast, altitude and geographical zone.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
According to the Nepal Water and Energy Commission Secretariat (WECS), about 30% (or
42,054 km2) is covered with forest. About 11% is covered with shrubs and bushes. Monitoring
data shows that the forest areas are annually reduced by 1.7%13. Further, forest and shrub areas
are increasingly converted to cultivated land. In 1999 about 15 million metric (MT) tons of airdry fuel wood were consumed to provide the annual energy services. 98% of that total fuel wood
consumption is used in private households. But the annual sustainable fuel wood production
from all of Nepal’s accessible forests amounts to only 7 MT14.
Families in the remote areas of Nepal use precious trees as firewood for cooking, room heating
and lighting. These activities, especially indoor cooking and lighting on open fire places,
consume daily 20 kg – 40 kg firewood a day15, with direct chronic impact on the health of
women and children in particular, due to the enormous indoor smoke pollution. It is no surprise
that they suffer from high rates of respiratory diseases, asthma, blindness and heart disease16,
resulting in the low life expectancy for women and the high death rate of children
age17.
The fuel wood consumption, through tree cutting, forest clearing and fuel wood collection, for
the past twenty years, has been well above the rate of sustainable forest growth. Ever longer and
more dangerous journeys for the women and young girls, of up to 7 hours a day18 are now
required to collect the necessary fuel wood. This has forced the local people to increasingly
utilize agricultural residues to meet their growing energy demands. This in turn results in
decreased crop productivity, increased soil erosion and arable land loss. Further, as Prof. Smith19
shows, the burning of dung and agricultural residues on open cooking fires, produces up to three
The Essay on Solar Energy Sun Power Rays
Solar Energy Outline Thesis: Ever since the dawn of time, the sun has been a resource we cannot live or do without, so its not such a shock that man has come up with the idea of solar energy. Solar energy had many uses. Some can be dangerous and some, a very valuable asset to the modern world. I. What is solar energy A. Who was the first person to use solar energy B. When was it used C. Where was ...
time more indoor pollution as burning fuel wood. Deforestation is widespread and the once
picturesque, bio-diverse forests and valleys are stripped of their resources in unsustainable ways.
2.1.2. Hydro Power
Nepal is the major contributor to the Ganga Basin in the north of India. The annual discharge of
out flowing rivers from Nepal to India is about 236 billion m3 20 from over 6,000 rivers, with
many rivers losing a potential height of about 4,000 meters within a north – south distance of 100
km. This creates a theoretical hydropower potential of 83,290 MW21. The harsh terrain and
difficult access to many areas limits the theoretically exploitable hydro power potential to a more
realistic technically and economically profitable potential. Therefore, the realistic realizable,
economically and technically feasible, hydropower potential has been estimated to be 42,130
MW22. With this figure, and an assumed capacity factor of 80% the annual energy potential of
Nepal’s rivers can be estimated to be around 300 TWh.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Figure 2: Some of the major rivers of Nepal, with that enormous north – south drop, from the
6,000 – 8,000 meter altitude of the Himalayan range to the north, to the flat southern part, which
is just above sea level. Map from: http://www.mapsofworld.com/nepal/nepal-river-map.html
Since 2003 a total of 576 MW23 rated power capacity, from 23 installed hydro power plants has
thus far been realized. Thus, today a mere 1.37% of the technically and economically feasible
hydro power potential of Nepal has been developed. During the 2003 – 2004 fiscal year the total
annual energy generated was 2,381 GWh24, which implies a capacity factor of just over 47%.
With an national average electricity consumption per capita in the 2003 – 2004 fiscal year of just
under 70 kWh/year25, including the enormous energy loss of ~ 24%, accredited mainly to the
large grid transmission line losses and power theft, compared to around 900 kWh/year26 for most
of the developing countries, puts Nepal among the lowest electricity consumers in the world.
The Essay on Maltese Solar Energy: The Power of the Sun
Nowadays fossil fuels are becoming more scarce than ever. Therefore to produce energy, mankind is investing in new technologies that produce energy from renewable sources. Solar Energy is considered as one of the most frequently used renewable energy source in countries from all over the world, including our beloved island. Quite a few of Maltese families have installed solar panels in their ...
Thus one can say that the “luxury” of having electricity available at the flick of a switch is still a
dream for about 80%, or ~ 22 million people in Nepal. In the Nepal Electricity Authority’s
(NEA) long-term planning, 29 hydro power plants, with a total of 22,435 MW rated power
output have been proposed for Nepal’s future power development.
2.1.3. Solar Energy
Nepal lies in the ideal 30° North “solar belt”27 with about 300 sunny days a year28. Solar
irradiation measurements with pyranometers on tracking frames for solar PV modules in three
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
different geographical locations in Nepal over the course of two years (2004 – 2005), showed
that 1,950 – 2,100 kWh/year (with an average of 5.342 – 6.027 kWh/m2 per day29) of solar
irradiation had been intercepted. The extreme values were 3.5 kWh/m2 per day on a rainy
overcast monsoon day in July in Kathmandu, and 9.9 kWh/m2 per day on a sunny late autumn
day in November, in Simikot in Humla (at 3,000 m altitude).
According to recent studies, the
PM10 (Particulate Matter
system) values for Kathmandu during the day are as high as 495 µg/m3 in core city areas, with
TSP (Total Suspended Particulate) values up to 572 µg/m3. Also 24-hour average values were as
high as 225 µg/m3 for PM10, and 379 µg/m3 for TSP respectively30. In contrast, the WHO
guidelines provide maximum average 24-hours values of 70 µg/m3 for PM10, and 120 µg/m3 for
TSP. These high values in Kathmandu are mainly produced by the inefficient combustion of
fossil fuels from vehicles and the local brick kiln industry. Days with thick smog layers over the
Kathmandu valley, reducing the intensity of the solar irradiation by ~ 20% are not seldom.
Considering this data31 solar PV modules installed at an angle of 30° south (considered as the
“Nepal standard”), can intercept 4.8 – 6.0 kWh/m2 solar energy on a daily average in most of the
places in Nepal32.
Since 2002 the SWERA33 (Solar and wind energy Resource Assessment) project under the
leadership of NREL (National Renewable Energy Laboratory) in Golden Colorado USA,
develops with the Tribhuvan University (Nepal’s national university) and the Ministry of Science
and Technology maps of the available solar resource in Nepal. Combined NASA satellite data
with some measured ground data are presented in country maps with a 10 km grid for annual
global horizontal, and at latitude tilt global solar irradiation. The maps and the actual ground
measurement data recorded by the author at three different places agree within ≥ 10% – 15%.
NEA has installed as part of a French government development project in 1989 three solar PV
array systems in three remote areas (30 kWR in Kodari, 50 kWR in Gamghadi and 50 kWR in
Simikot), out of which the last two are still considered to be operational in the latest NEA power
development graphs and charts34. Since October 2003 the Gamghadi system has totally failed,
leaving the people, who have had simple low power lighting in their homes for 14 years, again in
the dark. The Simikot system (see picture below) provides since the late 90s only DC power
(both the 5 kW and a 50 kW inverters failed due to lack of maintenance/repair funds, spare parts
and skilled professionals).
For ~ 100 households with each one to three 40 – 60 watt
incandescent bulbs not connected to an on-off switch, only 1–2 hours per day indoor lighting is
provided.
While one has to recognize that 16 years of operation in such a remote area, with such an
extreme and harsh climate, with minimal maintenance, better initial planning and budgeting
would have enabled the system to continue to provide its valuable lighting energy services for
probably another 5-10 years. These central solar PV systems though have prepared the way for
the solar PV technology to have a good entry as an appropriate and sustainable technology, using
the available local solar energy resource to generate energy, mainly for lighting purpose. NEA
also installed over the years smaller solar PV systems for remotely-located mountain air strips
for the civil aviation, for national telecommunication stations and some drinking water pumping
systems in the lower flat areas, amounting to a total capacity of about 200 kWR still operational.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Picture 135: Simikot Humla 50 kWR Solar PV System, after 16 years of operation
In 2001 the government of Nepal, mainly through the financial support of the Danish
government, established a solar PV home system (SHS) subsidy program36. That enables
families living in the remote and poorer mountain regions, to install a SHS mainly for lighting
(10 WR – 40 WR).
Under that scheme, till the end of November 2005, a total of 61,892 SHS have
been installed in 73 out of the 75 districts of Nepal, with a total peak power rating of 2,024.574
kW.
This growing demand for small scale SHS brought forth a mushrooming of solar energy
companies in Nepal. While this is encouraging, not all companies have sound infrastructural and
technical bases to provide quality products and after sales services. The latter in particular are
very poor, as no subsidies are available for them. Therefore many systems once they are
installed, are listed in the books and statistics, but are not followed up or properly maintained.
Thus while the statistics look encouraging, with an appropriate renewable energy technology
starting to make a difference in the lives of the poorest, the actual facts may show a very
different picture37.
A solar energy conversion technology more widely used and installed in urban areas is the solar
water heater (SWH).
The thermo-siphon SWH technology was transferred from Switzerland to
Nepal in the early 70s and has now around 220 local Kathmandu based SWH manufacturers.
Most of the locally manufactured SWHs are of the same old technology and size, as the focus
was mainly on economic competitiveness among the fast growing number of manufacturers. The
average local made SWH consists of a 2 x 2m2 absorber with galvanized steel pipes and steel
absorber fins. Each unit has a 150-200 liter warm/hot water storage tank, insulated with 50 mm
glass wool. The overall efficiency [energy gained in the hot water (MJ) / incoming solar
irradiation (MJ)] is low (~25%).
Though there are no detailed figures of installed solar water
heaters available, it is believed that between 50,000 – 80,000 units are operational in Nepal.
Since 2001 the Kathmandu University, under the main author’s supervision, has been engaged in
an applied research project for an improved SWH model for wider use. The research project
focuses in particular on a locally manufactured high altitude SWH technology to run under
freezing conditions, as a thermo-siphon system. A first unit for a high altitude village SWH
bathing center, was installed in November 2005 in Simikot Humla (see picture below) and is at
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
the moment of writing undergoing its first field tests during the cold winter months at an altitude
of exactly 3,000 meter above sea level (9,843 feet).
Once approved, it will be finally installed as
part of a participatory holistic community development project in the village of Dhadhaphaya
(see pictures 27 – 32, 39 – 46) in Humla, in Spring 2006.
Picture 2: First unit of the Nepali made High
Altitude Thermo-Siphon SWH, with opened
reflectors, designed to act as night time
insulation, beside the ability to empty the
absorbers and pipes. A horizontal and 40°
fixed angle (same as the absorbers)
pyranometer, allow the monitoring and
recording of the actually received solar
irradiation on the total absorber surface for
exact efficiency calculations. The full size (4
units) of the High Altitude SWH bathing center
system is designed to provide hot water for
1,100 people, for each to take a shower every
two weeks.
Picture 3: The High Altitude Thermo-Siphon
SWH in closed, or after sunset, position. The
insulation all around the absorbers and the hot
water storage tank consists of 100 mm
polyurethane foam. Four thermocouples on one
absorber measure the water temperatures at
different heights, and 4 thermocouples,
installed at different heights, measure the hot
water storage tank temperature and
stratification. All data is recorded every minute
for the first 5 months of field tests during the
winter of 2005/6. Initial efficiency calculations
showed values of 45% – 55%.
2.1.4. Wind
Nepal is not very windy, as it is landlocked, and due to its unique geographical conditions, it has
very few large flat areas of land. But there are various areas where rivers have cut deep north –
south valleys into the massive Himalayan mountain range, stretching from the east to the west.
Thus many valleys do have strong average winds blowing through them, and thus could
enormously benefit from using their local wind energy resource (see Nepal relief map).
The joint SWERA project has not yet obtained sufficient wind resource data to create any
national wind resource map. Thus the country’s potential wind resource can still not be assessed
sufficiently accurately, and therefore local available wind resources would need to be first
evaluated/measured (time demanding and expensive) before a project can take place. Further,
being directly related to the solar radiation and the local geographical, local wind conditions in
regard to strength, continuity and direction, change very rapidly according.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Figure 3: Relief Map of Nepal shows some of the major deep north-south valley,
creating a natural Venturi effect. Map: http://www.bugbog.com/maps/asia/nepal_map.html
With the huge water resource, a maturing hydro power industry, and increasing awareness and
implementation of solar PV projects under governmental subsidy programs, it comes as no
surprise that hardly any wind generation projects have been implemented in Nepal.
The few wind generator projects (known to the main author) can be summarized in the
following:
1. A first 30 kW wind generator was funded by the Danish government and installed by NEA in
2001 in Kagbeni, Mustang district, which is a wind rich village at the bottom of the
Annapurna valley, the world’s “deepest valley” (see map above).
But already after a few
months a strong gust damaged the wind turbine’s blades so badly that it was beyond repair.
2. In 2001 an imported Synergy S5000DD wind turbine was installed as part of a small hybrid
(750 WR solar PV array and wind turbine) system as power generation for a high altitude
rescue clinic for alpinists, in the Mt. Everest region in the village of Pheriche. Apart from the
installation the local industry and community had no part and benefit from it.
3. ITDG installed six small scale wind home systems with battery charging across Nepal.
Emphasis was given to local manufacturing, and to train some local people. While this is the
right approach to develop a future local manufacturing industry, no feedback or news has
been made available on the outcome or results of the project.
4. The main author has himself installed a self-made small wind turbine with 180 WR output
power in 1998, and run it for 4 years in the remote area of Jumla, north west Nepal
).
While that wind turbine was running without any failure
for 4 years, generating small amounts of energy, just enough to charge the batteries for one
home, the actual installation place was not ideal.
5. Since 2004, the KUPEG (at: , started a small
scale wind turbine design and manufacturing project under the guidance of Dr. Peter Freere.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Appling locally available technologies, equipment and resources, along side the training of
local craftsmen, are part of the strategies.
These examples show that the application of small scale wind turbines for rural village
electrification in Nepal is still very much in its infancy and that no project has thus far made
headlines.
2.2.
Nepal’s Energy Consumption Pattern
Interesting trends can be seen in the following table (Figure 4), showing the energy consumption
pattern and growth for Nepal’s non-renewable and renewable biogas and micro hydro energy
resources over the years 1990 – 2002, presented in TJ (or 1012 watt).
Figure 4: National Energy Consumption data for Nepal 1990-2002 (WECS Data-2, Chapter 3: Rural
Energy-Pressure, State, Impacts and Responses; )
While in 1990 the traditional fuels still made up 96% of the total annual energy consumption, in
2002 they are still providing 86% of all energy services. In actual mass the consumption
increased by 27.5%, while Nepal’s forests shrunk over the monitored time period by ~ 22%. The
per capita traditional fuel consumption decreased from 1,072 kg per year in 1990 (with a
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
population of 18.1 million and an assumed mixed traditional fuel energy value of 12 MJ/kg) to
987 kg (or – 8%).
This, resulting from the sharp increased consumption of imported petroleum
fuels in urban areas (the typical climbing up on the “energy ladder”38 in developing countries).
Compared to the average world wide per capita biomass consumption between 1994 and 2005 of
1.9 kg (average population of 6 billion people and a total annual biomass consumption of ~ 50.7
EJ39, with an assumed mixed traditional fuel energy value of 12 MJ/kg), Nepal still has a 42 %
higher biomass per capita consumption of 2.7 kg per year (25 million people and 12 MJ/kg).
During the same time period there has been an almost five fold growth in the consumption of
non-renewable petroleum energy resources, mostly for the transport sector. With 57%, or
183,402, of all of Nepal’s registered vehicles in 2001 being in use in the Kathmandu valley40, it
is clear why Kathmandu suffers from serious air pollution problems. Also the massive increase
in coal consumption, in particular from 1999 to 2000, with an almost four fold increase, indicates
that the industrial use of heat energy (especially for the brick kiln industry) is sharply increasing.
Electricity consumption, though almost exclusively generated with hydro power in Nepal,
increased almost 3 times over the monitoring period, with an average annual increase of ~ 10%.
While that indicates an infrastructural challenge to meet such a demand growth, the amount of
electricity consumed in the whole energy mix was still only 1.47 % of the total in 2002.
The energy services generated through renewables (not including any solar energy services),
show a widely fluctuating picture year by year with growth rates between 10% – 30%, and more
than a ten fold overall increase during the recording period. But the actual energy generated by
renewables is still very low, and contributes less than 0.5 % of the whole energy generation mix.
The high rate of growth in energy consumption indicates the need for clearly defined long-term
energy policies, which take the unique and fragile Himalayan ecology into consideration. These
policies must be sensitive to the delicate environment, allowing people to utilize the locally
available renewable energy resources on a competitive basis with the non-renewable energy
resources. That would allow Nepal to protect what can still be protected, and may help to restore
to some extent what has already been harmed through the uncontrolled growth in consumption of
fossil fuels and inefficient combustion processes.
3. Approaches for Improved Energy Services for the Poorest of the Poor in Nepal’s
Remote Himalayan Villages
As mentioned above, 80% – 85% of Nepal’s 27.6 million people live in rural areas, and ~ 80%,
or 22 million, still have no access to electricity. In the following chapters various approaches to
improving the energy services, mostly for lighting purposes, for marginalized and disadvantaged
mountain communities, are highlighted and discussed.
3.1.
Grid Connection
Nepal’s national grid (total length is 4,346 km) is designed, built and maintained by the
government owned NEA, providing around 1 million customers with grid electricity. These
consumers are mostly located in the few urban areas and highly populated flat, subtropical
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
southern part of Nepal (see figure 5).
The few existing grid extensions into the more rural areas
are characterized by frequent overloading, poor reliability, high line losses and power theft. The
lack of grid extensions is understandable in the context of Nepal, as they are usually very costly,
long-term investments. Further, the remote and mountainous areas are not only a challenge from
the technical and geological point of view, but are sparsely populated, with few consumers per
square km, with low energy demands and low expected load growth. Consumers are charged a
flat rate, if at all, which provides no incentive to conserve electricity.
Figure 5: NEA’s existing national electricity
grid, which is mostly connecting urban areas in
the flat low altitude areas of Nepal.
Picture 4: Even though this resident had to
provide land for transmission poles, it has not
enabled the electrification of the home.
All of these conditions have placed great pressure on NEA, and the company has recently been
restructured into three business units, the generation, transmission and distribution and customers
services (retail)41. These units now aim to become profit-making businesses. Thus there is now
even less hope for future rural electrification projects through NEA, which are non-profitable but
serve the poor and remote mountain communities. Further, existing rural power generation plants
are being sub-contracted either to interested private companies or to the communities
themselves, to run them as local businesses. But most of the micro hydro power plants have been
originally designed and built with the traditional approach “100 watts per household” for
incandescent bulbs, making them too big and too costly for the local communities to maintain
and repair.
3.2.
RAPS Systems
Nepal’s unique geographical and topographical conditions demand new approaches and
technologies in order to reach the 22 million people living in difficult and remote mountain areas
without electricity. A viable option to grid extension is the generation of electricity within, or
near to, a community, using locally available renewable energy resources. One solution that is
growing in popularity is to generate the required power locally through a Remote Area Power
Supply (RAPS) system. A RAPS system can be defined as a power generation system,
generating electricity for rural homes and communities. Such systems are small scale (usually
0.9 is used (Picture 7),
which consumes 7 – 11 watt (and is comparable with a 35 – 55 watt incandescent bulb with
respect to its light output), the power generation can be 5 times smaller for the same amount of
homes and lights. Further, CFL lamps have life expectancies of 8,000 – 12,000 hours. Thus, a 2
kW pico hydro power plant would be enough to provide the same lighting services for the same
village.
Even less power needs to be generated if 1 watt white light emitting diode (WLED) lights, as
shown in Picture 8, are used. Further, the expected life time of WLEDs is between 50,000 –
100,000 hours according to the manufacturers. But in comparison to good quality CFL lamps,
with around 80 lumens / watt, WLEDs are still 50% – 100% lower in their lumens / watt rating.
While the future prospects for increased light output of WLEDs looks very promising46, some of
the best WLEDs (as e.g. the Nichia NSPW 510BS with a 50° light angle), produce only 26
lumens / watt. However, we have already some of the latest WLEDs under testing (Nichia
NSPW 500CS with a 20° light angle), which have been rated by the manufacturer to produce 56
lumens / watt. While still more WLED lamps have to be installed in order to match a CFL lamp’s
light output, the power generation can though be reduced by a factor five – ten for the same level
of service.
Picture 7: High quality CFL Lamp 11 watt
(from Ultralamp), with a high Power Factor
(PF) of >0.9, and with a life expectancy of
8,000 – 12,000 hours. Its light output can be
compared with a 55 watt incandescent bulb.
Picture 8: Nichia NSPW 510BS (9 diodes with
a 50° light angle) WLED lamp, consuming 1
watt, with a life expectancy of > 50,000 hours
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Our aim was to design an elementary rural village electrification system for lighting purposes for
the poorest and most remote mountain communities in Nepal. It is obvious that WLED lamps are
the most appropriate and sustainable solution to fulfill the local people’s identified demands for
minimal lighting. Their high availability (light emitting diodes are almost unbreakable compared
to incandescent and CFL lamps) and sustainability (with an extreme life expectancy of >20
years), makes them very suitable for such projects.
4. Technologies Appropriate for Improved Energy Services in Nepal’s Remote Himalayan
Villages
With the identified and estimated renewable energy resources in chapter 2.1. and the approach
needed to reach remote and impoverished mountain villages and communities with an
elementary rural village electrification project discussed in chapter 3.3. and the most appropriate
and sustainable lighting technology for the context evaluated in 3.4., the base is laid to choose
the right renewable energy technology.
Among the various available renewable energy technologies, very small hydro power plants,
solar PV systems and small scale wind turbines, seem to be the most applicable technologies. It
is important in order to increase the possible success of a project, that the most appropriate and
sustainable technology for a defined context is chosen. This leads to initial questions such as:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Is the technology chosen based on: Least-Cost, Preferred by the Community,
Sustainable?
Has sustainability been considered before efficiency?
Can the power system be technically, economically, socially and environmentally
sustainable?
Can the consumer afford the energy services over the life cycle time of the system?
Can the end users participate in all steps of the projects and can they be trained to operate
and maintain them?
Is the technology also culturally appropriate and acceptable to the end users?
Can needed spare parts be made available from the local/national market in due time and
for an affordable price?
Can all stakeholders’ (end users, project implementer, donor) expectations be met?
Can new activities and possible income generation projects be an outcome?
Can the overall living conditions of the villagers be improved?
These questions have to be asked and answered satisfactorily by all stakeholders of a project.
This is time consuming, with often additional costs, which are hard to justify.
In the following we will look into the three major applicable and locally available renewable
energy technologies for Nepal’s remote mountain villages, hydro power, solar PV systems and
small scale wind turbines.
4.1.
Hydro Power Plants
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
With Nepal’s vast hydro power potential of 42,130 MW, it is obvious that this technology is the
one to consider first. The hydro power industry in Nepal distinguishes between large scale (≥ 10
MW), medium scale (≥ 1MW ≤ 10 MW), small scale (≥ 100 kW ≤ 1 MW), micro hydro (≥ 5 kW
≤ 100 kW), and pico hydro (≤5 kW).
As the context of our study is small scale power generation,
for basic lighting services only, this paper’s analysis is limited to pico hydro power plants.
4.1.1.
Pico Hydro Power Plant and Case Studies
As the name indicates, pico hydro power plants intend to generate miniscule amounts of power
from a small stream or river. The actual amount of power generated is ≤ 5 kW, and they are
mainly intended as power generation plants for remote villages which have identified their
energy service demands as basic lighting, as part of their first exposure to electricity.
Thus in Nepal in the mid 90’s NHE (Nepal Hydro Electricity) developed, with input and field
test results from the main author, the first pico hydro power plant, generating 200 watts. It was
mandatory that only material and equipment that is available, or could be manufactured, in Nepal
was used in making this plant The principle of using a motor as a generator, according to the
famous book “Motors as Generators for Micro-Hydro Power”, by Nigel Smith47, was the basic
approach, as small induction motors are these days widely and cheaply available in Nepal. Using
a motor as a generator achieves not the highest efficiencies, but it is an appropriate technical
solution for the context in which they will be used. The technology is easy to understand, operate
and maintain, and rough enough to survive the harsh and difficult conditions under which they
have to work for years, with a low failure rate.
A first 200 watt (though in the field only producing initially 165 watt) pico hydro power
propeller turbine, was installed in the village of Thalpi, in the remote Jumla district of northwestern Nepal in 1997, followed by the second in the neighboring village of Godhigaun in 1998.
The pico hydro power plant is designed with a low negative head, and uses 25 liters of water per
second. The negative head means, that the pico hydro plant has a conical shaft of 8° after the
propeller turbine. That shaft is 2.1 meters long, and can be installed in between the farmers’
terraced fields, which are frequently watered. In this way no additional water to run the pico
hydro power plant needs to be diverted from the fields. As each pico power plant is in itself a
contained unit, it is easy to add further plants in series if the energy demand of the end users
increases. For the Thalpi village a total of 30 households (with a total of 245 people) and three
WLED lamps (each consuming 1 watt) for each household were installed. There was no detailed
life cycle cost analysis carried out (as most of the local materials used have no trade value and
thus would need to be estimated first).
But every household pays 15 NRp (Nepali Rupees, which
is 20 cents US $ (spring 2006), towards the maintenance, security and repair costs, to make the
systems sustainable.
It has become customary that all the transmission cables (armored cables) are buried
underground, despite of the substantially increased cost. This is justified because of the
enormous amount of forest degradation in Nepal’s high altitude Himalayan areas, and thus no
further trees for transmission poles have to be cut throughout the lifetime of the power plant.
Further, underground cables are protected from the often harsh weather conditions, such as snow,
torrential rains, storms and lightning.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
In both the following case studies from the first two pico hydro power plant installations in the
Jumla district (see pictures), no cement has been used either for the power houses or for the
water canals, which get their water from diverted small streams.
Picture 9: The Thalpi village people built the
whole power house and stone/wood water
canal, as part of their project input, thus being
rightly proud of their pico hydro plant.
Picture 11: Pico
hydro power plant
generating 165
watt
Picture 12: Wooden
water canal of the
Godhigau pico.
Picture 10: The power house, and the water canal of
the Godhigau village 165 watt pico hydro power
plant are built with local wood, with no cement
which is prohibitive expensive.
Picture 13: Installation
of the Thalpi pico in
the wooden canal
Picture 14: First test if
light can be generated.
What a life experience!
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Picture 15: Even under
harsh climate condition
(down to – 20° C) the
pico was performing
well and flawless.
Picture 16: Now there is
no need anymore to burn
“jharro” to have a small
light inside the home,
and the air is clean.
Picture 17: Besides
socializing, basic
literacy education is a
major part to increase
the people’s awareness.
Picture 18: The
young ones
grow now up
with light inside
their homes.
In each village several people, chosen by the village pico hydro power plant committee, have
been trained to operate and maintain the pico power plants, and to inform the project
implementer of problems they can not handle. One of them is also a watch man, responsible for
the security of the power plant. He is paid a small monthly salary from the fees collected each
month from the users. Thus the pico hydro power plants are managed fully by the local village
and the sense of ownership is high as they all have put a lot of hard work into carrying of the
equipment, organizing all the local building materials, and building of the power plant.
The first 1.1 kW pico hydro power plant (with 80 liters of water a second, and 2.5 meter negative
head, which gives an average efficiency of ~ 56%) is in the installation phase in a remote village
called Kholsi in Humla. As the lights are usually on only for several hours in the morning and
evening, the power plant has a low load factor. As this village has a high altitude climate, they
are always in need of warm/hot water. Thus a “water heating dump” load was designed for any
overproduction (full power during the nights and days), to a 500 liter hot water polyethylene
storage tank, well insulated with locally available materials. Thus the community has access to
warm water for washing and in the morning when they start cooking their rice. In this way again
more fire wood for cooking can be saved, additional to the savings already achieved (on an
average ~ 40% if properly used) through the improved smokeless metal stove (pictures 39 & 42).
What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of a pico hydro power plant?
Advantages:
• It is a locally available and maintainable technology, cheap to run and easy to operate.
• It runs under harsh and low maintenance conditions.
• The generator is so small that it can be carried by only one person.
• Several pico hydro power plants can be installed in series once the power demand grows.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
•
•
•
No cement is needed for the construction of the power house and water canals, as
carrying it by air plane and then by porter to the high altitude area, increases the price ten
times.
The local end users can be involved in each project step, especially in the building phase,
as they have to organize all the local materials such as wood, stones and mud.
Through the intensive participation of the local community a strong sense of ownership is
created, which is important for long-term sustainability.
Disadvantages:
• The technology (the induction motor and simple propeller blades) is not very efficient.
• It is designed for a “first time” rural village electrification, mainly for lighting purposes.
• The pico generators are induction motors, thus starting a motor could lead to difficulties
in regard to severe voltage drop or even loss of excitation (but the pico power plants thus
far installed are all exclusively only for lighting purpose).
4.2
Solar PV Systems
With an average solar irradiation of 4.8 – 6.0 kWh/m2 (see 2.1.3.) for Nepal as a country, in the
high altitude areas the solar radiation resource is in most places at the upper end of the scale, if
the location is not extremely shaded from surrounding mountain ranges or in a deep valley. That
highlights the importance of having exact and reliable data for the local prevailing conditions.
Again, one of the crucial points for each solar PV village project is to use and install as much as
possible locally available or locally manufactured equipment. That increases the appropriateness
of the project, and helps the local industry to grow in a more independent way, creating new
income for the society, as well as teaching new skills to craftsmen – all important parts of a
holistic community development project.
It is important to underline, that any rural village electrification project is never implemented as
an individual project, but as part of a much wider long-term holistic community development
project in that particular village and area. Thus e.g. the elementary rural village electrification
case studies described in the chapters 4.2.2. and 4.2.3. are each part of a holistic community
development project including a smokeless metal stove and a pit latrine for each family, access
to clean drinking water from various taps in the village, a greenhouse and a non-formal education
(NFE) project for mothers and out of school children. In this way synergistic benefits occur and
increase the overall positive development outcome for each village, family and person
substantially beyond those of a single individually implemented project.
4.2.1.
Solar PV Home Systems (SHS) and Case Study
The most straightforward approach is to install a small scale solar PV system for each single
home, called a solar home system, or SHS. This was also in the mind of the policy makers for the
solar PV home system subsidy program as mentioned in chapter 2.1.3. On each house one solar
PV module, mostly between 20 – 40 watt rated power output is installed, with up to three 10 –
20 watt fluorescent tubes. Each system has a solar deep cycle battery of 40 – 75 Ah capacity and
a simple charge and discharge controller, to protect the battery from too high discharge and
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
charging rates. The price for such a SHS is high, around NRp 20,000 – 25,000 (~ US$ 278 –
347), and thus is not affordable by anyone in the remote areas without a subsidy.
There are now many cheaper SHS available on the growing SHS market, but their quality and
performance is often questionable and thus they are not considered to be appropriate for remote
areas (nor in fact anywhere else), and thus they are not considered further in this study. The SHS
subsidy program created by the government’s AEPC (Alternative Energy Promotion Center),
started in 2001, and is defined as follows )
1. Subsidy will be provided to SHS of 10 WR, 20 WR and 30 WR or more.
2. The maximum subsidy for SHS of 30WR capacity or more will be NRp 8,000 per system.
3. Additional 50% and 2.5% subsidy per SHS system will be provided to the users in remote
village development committees (VDC).
4. The level of subsidy will be reduced each year at the rate of 10%.
5. The subsidy for SHS used by public institutions such as the VDC buildings, school, Club,
Health, post/ Centre etc. will be as high as of 75% of the cost.
Poor families will not have the economic capability to purchase a SHS once the subsidy has run
for a few years, as the purchase cost is too high, and there is no substantial cost decrease in the
foreseeable future for solar PV equipment. Further there is no clear follow-up program in place
despite the requirement that the installers’ are paid the last 10% of the total subsidy only after the
SHS has been running for one year. That is not enough of an incentive to provide the end users
with appropriate quality equipment which will last far longer. Thus most of the installers do not
really count on the last 10% and there is very little forethought to how the installed SHS can be
followed up and maintained beyond that one year time period.
Therefore it is recommended that SHS projects should be run as part of a long-term holistic
community development project, with the end users as active partners (participating through
their voluntary work as well as some financial contribution) together with the implementer (who
works on a long-term basis in that area) and the donor agency (who provides the main project
funding according to an agreed project proposal and budget).
The following pictures show SHS
implemented in Khaladig village in Jumla, as part of a holistic community development project.
Picture 19: The first step is always to raise
Picture 20:
Picture 21: Both
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
awareness in the community and to inquire and
define what their needs for energy services are.
Transportation is one genders have to be
of the hard tasks.
involved equally.
Picture 22: On the job training
through hands on installation
Picture 23: Teaching and
learning go hand in hand
Picture 25: 20 watt fluorescent
tube
Picture 26: Training the end users to maintain and conduct
basic repairs is crucial for sustainability of every solar
energy project.
4.2.2
Picture 24: One 40 watt
solar PV module for 3 lights
Village Cluster Solar PV System and case study
While SHS are a very appropriate technology to bring light into the homes of single homes in
remote villages, we learned that an even better approach is to get the whole village motivated to
apply as a community for an elementary rural village electrification project. That brings the
dynamic, skills and work force of the whole village community into the project. Further, it
creates a challenge and responsibility for each person of the village to participate in the project,
thus including the poorest, marginalized and handicapped. The common planning, designing and
building of the village power system creates a strong sense of community project ownership.
Over the years, two approaches, the village cluster solar PV system and the village central solar
PV system have been developed in order to electrify a whole village. Which of the two
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
approaches is chosen depends mostly on the village’s situation in regard to the positioning of the
houses and the village’s geographical position compared to the sun’s path over the year.
The village cluster solar PV system defines individual clusters of up to 15 houses in such close
proximity to each other, that all of them can be easily interconnected with each other through
armored underground cables. The house in the middle is the cluster’s power house with one BP
275F silicon monocrystalline solar PV module with 75 WR on the flat mud rooftop. Further, one
charge- and discharge-controller and an appropriately sized and well insulated battery bank are
installed inside the house. Each house has three WLED lamps. Thus up to a maximum of 15
homes, with 45 WLED lamps are connected to one cluster, with 5-6 hours of light per day. Each
cluster has a newly developed electronic fuse to protect the system from misuse and overloads.
The following pictures show and explain the village cluster solar PV system in Dhadhaphaya
village in Humla, installed as part of a holistic community development project from January
2005 on. Since September 2005, 18 clusters (with a total of 1,182 WR installed solar PV
modules)48, for 170 homes (total 1,067 people), with 510 WLED lights are operational. Each day
the trained local operators provide power from the cluster power houses to each cluster house for
a total of up to 6 hours, 2-3 hours in the morning and 3-4 hours in the evening.
Picture 27: clusters,
each with 8-15
homes connected
Picture 28: One 75 WR
module, adjustable to the
season, fixed with stones
Picture 30:
Picture 29: Cluster
power house with charge Checking the
battery and charger
controller and battery
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Picture 31: Project staff and user install the solar PV
systems together, creating knowledge, skills and ownership
4.2.3
Picture 32: 3 WLED lamps per
household create clean indoor air.
Central Village Solar PV System and case study
If the geographical conditions are favorable and the houses are built closely together, the
elementary village solar PV system can be built as a central system, with a central village power
house containing the battery bank and the charge- and discharge-controller for the whole village.
On top of the central power house a 2-axis self tracking frame, developed and built in Nepal,
holds four 75 WR solar PV modules, enough to power the whole village of Chauganphaya with
63 homes and each with 3 WLED lamps. In January 2004 this central village solar PV system
was installed and has worked since without interruption. All 63 homes are interconnected with
the power house in the shortest possible way via 50 – 80 cm deep buried underground armored
cables. Three sizes of armored copper cables are used. 4mm2 for distances over 20 m (maximum
50 m), 2.5 mm2 for distances between 10 m – 20 m and 1.5 mm2 for distances ≤ 10 m.
The whole system is protected with a central electronic fuse, so that any misuse or overloading
of the system causes the immediate shut down of the system. The electronic fuse was developed
because it is not possible, in such remote places, to get any glass fuses which are commonly used
otherwise in solar PV systems. Experience shows that many SHS have failed because the charge
controller glass fuse broke and the users either did not know that there was a fuse, as they were
not trained to maintain the system, or they could not get a spare glass fuse in the local market.
Some months later, when the battery has not been recharged it fails too and normally that’s the
end of the SHS and the dream of light inside the home.
Picture 33: In the middle of the village of
Chauganphaya the local people have provided the
land to build the central solar PV system power
house. From the power house all homes are
connected via armored underground cable, buried at
a depth of 50 – 80 cm.
Picture 34: The local people built the
power house with their own materials. It
contains the battery bank, which provides
up to 5 days power for all the lights
during no-sun days, and a charge and
load controller (pictures 37 & 38).
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Picture 35: The north-south
axis can be changed from 5° to
60°, according to the sun’
seasonal position.
Picture 38: The battery bank
well insulated in a locally
made wooden box.
Picture 41: Light
Picture 36: The tracker
follows the daily sun path
from east-west, and back in
the morning to east, by itself.
Picture 39: The light project is
never on its own. The metal
stove is always part of it.
Picture 42: Smokeless Metal Stove
Picture 37: Charge- /
discharge-controller, with
separate load controller,
inside the power house.
Picture 40: Total 189 WLED
lamps in 63 homes are now
installed in Chauganphaya.
Picture 43: Pit Latrine
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Picture 44: Pit Latrine
Picture 45: Greenhouse
Picture 46: Drinking water
In a holistic community development projects, light inside the home has to go along with a
smokeless metal stove, a pit latrine, a greenhouse and clean drinking water, as above shown.
4.3.
Small Scale Wind Generator System and Case Study
The utilization of wind energy through ever increasing sizes of wind generators and wind farms
has become the major new renewable energy technology on the market. The wind technology
and the manufacturing industry are mature and new development and creative designs are
occurring at an amazing rate. Through wind farms, generated electricity has become highly
competitive to the major fossil and nuclear power plants in many European countries. Nepal will
not generate its major energy needs from large wind generators or wind farms in the foreseeable
future. Rather, the valuable local wind resource of particular geographical places can be utilized
for small scale applications, be it for single homes or rural villages.
In the following pictures a self made 2 bladed wind turbine is presented, which was installed in
Jumla in 1998, as part of a first small scale wind test project. It ran, and provided power for one
home for 4 years (picture 49).
The wind turbine was installed in a valley in close proximity to the
house. Therefore the predicted power output of 180 watt, was seldom reached. The aim of this
project was to put to the test a self made wind turbine and to see if it can survive the harsh high
altitude (≥ 2,500 meters above sea level) Himalayan wind conditions and climate. If so, there is a
future potential for such wind turbines to be made out of local available wood for the blades.
The 18 m steel tower (Picture 51) was screwed together with three six meter long pieces of Ø
125 mm, Ø 100 mm, and Ø 75 mm from the bottom up. At heights of 9 meters and 16 meters,
three steel cables (Ø 8 mm) were fixed to the pole and anchored to the ground, in order to
stabilize and hold the tower firmly in place in any wind condition. The bottom of the steel tower
was anchored in a big stone pile, without any cement. During the four years of operation the
wind turbine performed satisfactorily. It did not need to be taken down once for repairs.
While there is still a long way to go in regard to technical issues such as: an improved and
appropriate design for the blades (in order to manufacture them by hand by local craftsmen); and
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
the right choice of the generator with a direct drive, encouraging results have been achieved. The
test phase has shown that there are ample reasons to pursue the research and development for
such small scale wind turbines, which can be manufactured and maintained by the local industry.
They can provide one more appropriate and sustainable renewable energy technology to meet the
needs of rural villages and communities, providing them with improved energy services for the
overall development of their living conditions. The following pictures show the self made wind
turbine with its different main parts, the installation and operation in Jumla.
Picture 47: Self made 2 bladed wooden wind turbine, wooden tail
with metal frame, and a Bosch car alternator as power generator.
The wooden blades are hand carved aerofoil shaped blades with a
blade diameter of 205 cm. From ~ 300 Rpm onwards the wind
generator provides 12 volts to charge the battery bank.
Picture 49: The self made wind turbine
charges a 12 VDC battery bank of 150
Ah capacity, enough for one home.
Picture 48: Bosch K1 14 volt
35 amps car alternator, 1:4
wheels with belt set system,
capacitors, electronic circuit
plate, brakes
Picture 50: Power generation
of maximum 180 watt can be
achieved.
Picture 51: Wind
turbine at 18 m
height.
5. Towards a Theoretical Basis for a Holistic Community Development Projects
Since 1996, the main author has had the opportunity to live and work in the most remote and
impoverished Himalayan villages in Nepal. After such a long time it becomes “obvious” that one
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
acts, feels and thinks more and more like the local people. These experiences were crucial to
achieving a deeper understanding of the “non-verbal” issues of a society and culture. Their needs
and “wants” become more understandable and appreciated once we realize that the daily
“comforts” most of us take for granted, such as having access to clean, immediate and sufficient
electrical power at any time by the flick of a switch, are not a common commodity in the
developing world. However electricity for lighting purpose is an important and consciously
appreciated service in these remote villages.
One important outcome over the course of the past 10 years was the development of increasingly
smaller scale renewable energy technology projects for elementary rural village electrification
for lighting purposes, designed and implemented in close relationship with the local
communities.
Another important result was the increased interest, positive response and willingness of the
villagers to participate actively through hard work and some financial contributions. This gave a
healthy push to expand the borders of the “common” approach to community development,
which can be summarized in a nut shell as being mostly the implementation of single projects,
with minimal presence in the village for short time spans, with minimal previous investigations
and minimal or no follow-up program. Thus the focus no longer remained only on single families
having light inside their dark, smoke filled room, but whole villages were addressed with the
proposition to implement a joint village – project team elementary lighting project.
Further, any lighting project was no longer seen as an individual self-contained project, but as
one part of a more holistic project, addressing people’s physical, social, mental and spiritual
needs in their life. With this approach the benefits of each individual project increase, as it gains
from the benefits of the other, simultaneously implemented projects. Synergetic benefits are
created which can bring far more changes than single implemented projects.
Thus the concept of the holistic community development (HCD) project approach took shape.
For example, the HCD 2006 Humla project, which started on the 1st January 2006 in two small
villages, includes the following individual, equally important, parts49:
1.
2.
3.
Smokeless Metal Stove and Indoor Pollution Monitoring and Data Recording Project
Pit Latrine Project
Elementary Solar Cluster PV Village Electrification Projects with WLED lights in one
village for 35 households
4. Elementary Solar Tracking PV Village Electrification Projects with WLED lights in one
village for 35 households
5. One Village Drinking Water System Project
6. Greenhouse and Solar Drier Project for two villages (as under point 3 & 4 mentioned)
7. Nutrition Project for
8. NFE (Non-Formal-Education) Children Project
9. NFE Mothers Project with teaching topics developed about the HCD project.
10. Slow Sand Water Filter Project for clean drinking water for individual households
11. Baseline Survey Data Collection Project in the villages of Tulin and Pamlatum (point 3 &
4)
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
12. Re-survey Data Collection Project in the villages of Chauganphaya and Dhadhaphaya (these
are the villages HCD projects have started in 2004 and 2005 respectively, and will continue
for the next 10 years (political and funding conditions allowing) to be partnered with and
followed up through periodical visits and annual re-survey questionnaires specially
developed for a HCD project).
13. Humla Spring and Drinking Water Testing and Data Collection Project (in order to be able
to identify the seasonal drinking water pollution and possible pollution sources, in order to
design appropriate drinking water projects and source protection).
14. Follow-Up Program Project for all 2002 – 2005 Projects (through periodical visits to all
installed smokeless metal stoves, pit latrines and lights, recording people’s experience and
suggestions of improvements)
15. Humla Staff Training Project (in order to have an ongoing and continuing project staff
education, in order to keep them interested, able to fulfill their job responsibility and
updated with the important and new technical, administrative, cultural and educational skills
needed for the HCD project implementation).
16. Humla Simikot Office Project (to keep the main office, the HARS (High Altitude Research
Station) in Simikot Humla (picture 52) up and running as the base for the implementation of
the HCD projects, as well as the testing and monitoring of the various new technologies
developed for the HCD projects before they are implemented in the village, and to keep up
the long-term solar radiation measurement and data recording).
As can be seen from the above list of projects, a HCD project, if taken seriously, is a complex
and intertwined undertaking, which requires clear structural organization and guidance. In the
case of the Humla projects it is a close partnership between the RIDS Nepal (Rural Integrated
Development Services) NGO (Non Governmental Organization) some donor agencies (mainly
The ISIS Foundation and LiN (Light in Nepal)) and the local communities and interest groups,
which build the base for a long-term involvement in these villages.
Further, it can be seen that while the main part of the HCD Humla 2006 project is clearly in the
implementation of projects in the villages, the RIDS Nepal project staff, who are all from the
local vicinity, are also continually encouraged to be involved in building their capacity through
further education programs. These could be a PC training, so that their planning and reporting
becomes more aligned with international donor agencies, or it could be a more technical
education through learning modules loaded on the PC (as there is no internet access available in
Simikot Humla).
Further, courses, such as nutrition or NFE course development and delivery are
planned to be taken in other, more urban based, topic related, institutions. That allows an NGO
such as RIDS Nepal to become more and more capable and able to carry the project
responsibilities by themselves, with the idea that one day the HCD projects will be led and run
by the local people only. And by that time they will be prepared and able to do the job with the
necessary enthusiasm, as well as the essential professional skills.
To start a HCD project is not an easy and straightforward task, as it involves not only technical
and organizational issues, but also the so called “soft issues”. These social and cultural matters,
are often far more crucial and time consuming to address in culturally appropriate and sensitive
ways. These are issues which are not easy to propose and “sell” to a donor, but are crucial for
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
long-term sustainability and thus success for a HCD project, which aims to improve the living
conditions of the local people in ways which respect them as equal partners.
6. Experience and Lessons Learned
To share in detail the experience of 10 intensive years of living and working with the
marginalized mountain communities in the poorest area of Nepal, the north western district of
Karnali, is an impossible undertaking for a paper like this. Further, to address the more detailed
technical issues of each applied technology is beyond the scope of this paper and many of these
aspects for solar PV systems have been addressed in another paper50. Thus, in the following
comments, some more general points, experiences and lessons learned through the implemented
HCD projects are listed, with the main focus on applied renewable energy technologies, to utilize
the local available renewable energy resources mainly for lighting purpose.
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Any renewable energy technology project for lighting purposes should be an integrated part
of a wider HCD project.
A HCD project is much more time demanding than a mere implementation project, with a
long-term (at least 10 years) vision and willingness to be involved in the village’s life.
It is highly advisable, if not essential, for the project staff to live in the village or in the
nearby vicinity of the HCD project area. That enables them to learn the local people’s
customs, culture, thinking patterns and local technologies (that have often been developed
over decades and centuries) These are crucial learning steps to enable a HCD project to start
on the right track and to make it as appropriate as possible from the beginning.
Each village context is unique and thus needs a clearly defined assessment, with the local
people as the discussion partners. This must precede the technical planning of the project.
The local people have to identify in qualitative and quantitative ways their own needs
before any project plan and proposal for a renewable energy technology project is prepared.
Identify the local most sustainable and available renewable energy resource, and then
determine the appropriate technology accordingly.
Develop and manufacture the equipment as much as possible from local resources and
through local manufacturers and craftsmen. That improves the local economy in a sound
way through income generation and teaching new skills and techniques. It also builds
capacity for maintenance and further projects.
As far as possible, use genuine parts and good quality products, as once the equipment is
installed in the remote area, the failure rate should be minimal. Repairs are expensive and
often impractical in remote locations.
Include in each project proposal some funds for equipment development. This is a difficult
and often not appreciated budget point by donors, but it is crucial to the implemented
projects becoming more appropriate and thus sustainable. It is important to realize that there
are no “off the shelf” solutions available for a particular village’s self identified needs.
Some funding should be devoted to reporting and monitoring of the project after installation
so that experience gained can be documented and passed on to future designers.
Engage as much as possible local people as project implementation staff. Take the
necessary time and effort to train and educate them for their job responsibilities. It will pay
off in the future, if local skilled professional people work in their own vicinity and
neighborhood.
Use as much as possible available local materials for project implementations.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
•
Always include theory, operating and maintenance training for the end users. Provide/create
channels so that they can communicate with the project implementer for years to come if
major technical, or social, problems occur.
It has been the author’s experience, that research and new equipment development has to take
place on an ongoing basis, in order to develop equipment which is locally manufactured. This
equipment is generally easier to maintain, and hopefully can cope better with the local conditions
and climate.
To implement newly developed equipment and
technologies is always a risk, thus in the case
of the Humla HCD projects, the HARS (High
Altitude Research Station) has been built
(picture 52).
At HARS all newly developed
technologies intended for village use, are first
monitored and tested, and if necessary they are
improved (see e.g. the high altitude SWH for
the Dhadhaphaya village, which is at the time
of writing in its test phase at HARS as
indicated in pictures 2 & 3).
This quality
assurance process will keep the failure rates
and system downtimes in the villages to a
Picture 52: HARS in Simikot Humla at 30°
minimum. Experience shows, that
northern latitude and 3,000 meter altitude.
sustainability and appropriateness are key
aspects of a project that must be addressed in order to deliver the intended energy services to the
beneficiaries. That means we must keep the end-users at the centre of our focus and develop and
install renewable energy technologies that can deliver what is expected by all stakeholders.
7. Conclusions
One of the main aims of this paper was to demonstrate to a wider readership of like minded
professionals, HCD project implementer and renewable energy technology enthusiasts that
appropriate solutions are available to make a difference to the 1.6. – 2 billion people still without
any access to basic electrical services such as light inside their homes. Renewable energy
resources are, unlike fossil fuels, far more equally distributed on the planet, and are more
sustainable in the long-term. They may not have the energy intensity (MJ/kg) as conventional
fuels and are not as easy to store and transport, but they are locally available, a great plus point.
Further, developing and increasing the access to renewable energy sources does not mean that
we start harming the ecosystem, as has clearly happened with excessive fossil fuel consumption.
It means that mankind has to come back to its “roots”, asking where do we come from, why are
we here on earth and where are we going? As to utilize renewable energy resources, in particular
on a small scale, means to work in tandem alongside the creator’s handiwork, putting it to good
use for our personal and society’s holistic development. We must understand that it is not for us
to dictate the speed and ratio of extraction of an energy resource, and thus forget all the
peripheral and even more the negative synergetic effects of being “out of harmony” with the
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
creation. We must also realize that over-exploitation of renewable resources such as wood and
water can be just as damaging as the over-use of fossil fuels. We have to come to an
understanding of what is available in renewable and sustainable ways and forms, and how it can
be put to our best and most efficient use. We have to re-think what are our “real” needs rather
than just our “wants”, which too often are not really needs but expressions of our greed.
Often we would not even need to step back and “un-develop” ourselves if we switched our
thinking from the use of fossil fuel resources to the use of locally available renewable energy
resources according to their availability and intermittency. We would need to become creative
and use our engineering skills and tools to make the most out of what is available. Thus efficient
use of energy, energy savings, new low power consuming energy technologies, energy storage
and energy conversion technologies and devices should be issues at the forefront of each
motivated and humane engineer. With the pico hydro systems, various different kinds of solar
PV systems, solar thermal technologies and project approaches presented in this paper,
appropriate technical solutions to improve the livelihood of millions of disadvantaged people
have been shown and discussed. It is not possible in the scope of this paper to be comprehensive
and address all the technical issues of each renewable energy technology mentioned. Rather it
tried to show possible paths and approaches, which should stimulate others to join, to start and to
put into action new contextualized technologies for their own situations. This will ensure that
more needy people can be reached in a more appropriate way and timeframe than we have been
able previously. That is part of our common responsibility towards our society.
8. Acknowledgment
The authors wish to acknowledge Govinda Nepali, Haripal Nepali, Bom Bahadur Rokaya, part of
our Humla RIDS Nepal NGO staff, whose dedication, creativity and endurance under often
extremely difficult living and working conditions has never dwindled. Further, special thanks to
The ISIS Foundation and LiN (Light in Nepal), whose partnership and ongoing funds have been
vital for all the Humla projects. Alex Zahnd records his and the community’s gratitude to
Kathmandu University for enabling him to continue this community research and development
work, not only in the laboratory but also in Humla, to produce the results and achievements for
those for whom they were meant.
9. Bibliography
1
NEPAL National Action Programme on Land Degradation and Desertification in the context of United Nations
Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD), HMG (His Majesty’s Government) of Nepal, Ministry of
Population and Environment Kathmandu, April 2004;
http://www.unccd.int/actionprogrammes/asia/national/2004/nepal-eng.pdf
2
From sub-tropical monsoon, warm temperate, cool temperate, alpine and tundra climate.
http://www.unccd.int/actionprogrammes/asia/national/2004/nepal-eng.pdf
3
CIA – The World Factbook – Nepal; ;
4
http://www.nepalinformation.com/, http://hdr.undp.org/reports/global/2004/pdf/hdr04_HDI.pdf, (Human
Development Index as mentioned in the Human Development Report for 2002)
5
Karnali Rural Dev. & Research Center. Governance in the Karnali, an Exploratory Study; Jumla 2002, page 5
6
The College of Wooster Ambassadors Program;
7
CIA – The World Factbook – Nepal;
8
Karnali Rural Dev. & Research Center. Governance in the Karnali, an Exploratory Study. Jumla 2002, page 5
9
Kathmandu’s Air Quality, CEN (Clean Energy Nepal), page 1,
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
10
Karnali Rural Dev. & Research Center. Governance in the Karnali, an Exploratory Study. Jumla 2002, page 5
12
Kathmandu Post. 1 billion Rupees “stolen” a year, 23rd April 2005
13
Biomass energy uses: an experience and application of alternative energy technologies in Nepal
Bishwa S. Koirala Environment Advisor, Rural Energy Development Program, UNDP, Nepal,
14
Renewable Energy in South Asia, Country Reports Nepal, chapter 2,
15
Alex Zahnd, “Firewood consumption survey on 16 villages in the Jumla district”, unpublished report 1999
16
IEA, World Energy Outlook 2002, chap. 13, page 367-8
17
Warwick H. Smoke-the Killer in the Kitchen, ITDG Publishing 2002
18
This agrees with data from India collected by UNDP in IEA, World Energy Outlook 2002, chap. 13, page 366
19
Health Impacts of Indoor Air Pollution; Prof. Kirk Smith, University of California, Berkeley; workshop held in
Kathmandu Nepal 7th June 2005
20
WECS (Water and Energy Commission Secretariat), 1999. WECS Bulletin No. 10., Kathmandu.
21
WECS Annual Report, 1999; http://www.sari-energy.org/ProjectReports/RegionalHydroPowerReport.pdf, part
3.1
22
Regional Hydro-power Resources: Summary and Analysis of Selected SARI Data, prepared for the USAID-SARI
Energy program (ww.sari-energy.org), and available from: November 2003, section 3.1
23
A. Zahnd, MEPG 501 Renewable Energy Technology Lecture Notes, chapter 1.3.2. Nepal’s Energy Scenario,
Table 17: Major hydropower generating stations in Nepal
24
Dr Upendra Gautam and Ajoy Karki Nepal: Thermal Energy for Export, in South Asia Journal July – September
2005,
25
Kathmandu Post. 1 billion Rupees “stolen” a year, 23rd April 2005
26
Hunwick R.J. (2002), The Rational Path To The Age Of Renewable Energy, Hunwick Consultants, August 2002
27
The convergence of heated air from the equator area in the tropopause, increase the air mass aloft around the 30°
northern latitude (the Hadley cell).
This in turn causes the air pressure at the surface to increase. Hence, at northern
latitudes of around 30° a high pressure belt called “subtropical highs” (C. Donald Ahrens, Meteorology
Today, 7th edition 2003, Brooks/Cole, chapter 11, page 286) is created, providing good favorable weather to utilize
the incoming solar radiation
28
Renewable Energy South Asia, chapter 1.2.2., ; Center for Rural Technology Nepal,
29
Alex Zahnd, measured and minutely recorded solar irradiation data for Kathmandu from 1.1.04 – 31.12.05
30
Kathmandu’s Air Quality, CEN (Clean Energy Nepal),
31
Alex Zahnd, values measured and minutely recorded and averaged for the increased solar irradiation data on a 2axis tracking frame for the following places: Kathmandu University in Dhulikhel from the 1.1.05 onwards, for
Kathmandu from the 1.1.04 onwards and Simikot in Humla from 24.4. 2004 onwards.
32
These values agree rather well with the available NASA data generated solar irradiation from
http://eosweb.larc.nasa.gov/ for values of 30° south installed solar PV modules for each month for Nepal, for the
latitude values between 25°- 31°North, and longitude values between 79°- 88° East, as presented in Zahnd A. 2004,
Case Study of a Solar Photovoltaic Elementary Lightning System for a Poor and Remote Mountain Village in Nepal,
MSc in Renewable Energy Dissertation, chapter 8.3 page 99, Figure 8-2, Murdoch University, Perth, Australia
33
SWERA Nepal project and its solar resource maps are available from
http://swera.unep.net/swera/index.php?id=43
34
35
All pictures in this paper have been taken, and for this study prepared, by Alex Zahnd
36
For the SHS subsidy policy see:
37
This is the experience of the main author’s almost 10 years of field experience with solar PV systems for SHS and
whole villages in the remotest and poorest parts of Nepal, mostly in Jumla, Mugu and Humla, as reported in , Case
Study of the Tangin Solar PV Home System, in Case Study of a Solar Photovoltaic Elementary Lightning System for
a Poor and Remote Mountain Village in Nepal, MSc in Renewable Energy Dissertation, chapter 13, pages 151-156
38
Reducing exposure to indoor air pollution, ITDG publication, page 3,
http://www.itdg.org/docs/smoke/itdg%20smoke%20-%20part%203.pdf
11
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
39
averaged from Janet Ramage Energy A Guidebook, Oxford University Press, 1997; World Energy Statistics, IEA,
1999, and WEC 2005, ;
40
Kathmandu’s Air Quality, CEN (Clean Energy Nepal), , page 3
41
NEA Unbundling presentation;
42
as identified for the Nepal context in: Zahnd A. 2004, Case Study of a Solar Photovoltaic Elementary Lightning
System for a Poor and Remote Mountain Village in Nepal, MSc in Renewable Energy Dissertation, chapter 4.4.
43
Open fires create PM10 levels ≥ 20,000μg/m3. US-EPA 24 hrs average is not to exceed 150μg/m3 more than 3
times a year. Annual average not exceeding 50μg/m3, Smoke, Health and Household Energy, ITDG, September
2002
44
IEA, World Energy Outlook 2002, chap. 13, page 367-8
45
During 1996-2000 the writer lived in the remote mountain area of Jumla, where initially 23 micro-hydro power
plants have been installed over the course of a decade. Out of these 23 power plant only 3 were functional, providing
the local communities with light, all others were not operational due to technical and socio-economical problems.
46
Appropriate Lighting Technologies for the Poorest Mountain Communities in the Nepal Himalayas, workshop
presented by Alex Zahnd at the annual EWB Australia conference 1.12. 3.12.2005, Melbourne, Australia
47
Nigel Smith, Motors as Generators for Micro-Hydro Power, Intermediate Technology Publications, 1997
48
Of these, 15 clusters have one 75 Watt PV module, and three clusters one 19 Watt PV modules, as these three
small clusters have only 4 – 6 homes per cluster. Thus for 170 homes (in Sept. 2005), including an average annual
3% population growth over 10 years, a total 1,182 WR of PV modules have been installed, 7 Watt per household
with each 3 WLED lights consuming each 1 Watt
49
These individual projects are part of the HCD Humla 2006 project proposal, written by Alex Zahnd in August
2005, for the RIDS (Rural Integrated Development Services) – ISIS Humla 2006 project implementation proposal
for potential donors and funding agencies, and available upon request.
50
Design of an Optimized PV System for a Remote Himalayan Village, 28.11.-30.11.2005, ANZSES 2005
conference paper, Alex Zahnd & McKay Kimber, and available at:
, session 7, paper 24, Alex Zahnd, Presentation (power
point presentation of the paper) and PDF (actual paper).
10. Authors’ Biography
Zahnd Alex has a mechanical engineering degree from Switzerland, and a Masters in Renewable
Energy from Australia. His industrial experience ranges from development projects in extrusion technology for the
food and plastic industry, to pharmaceutical production plants. He lived and worked from 1996 – 2000 in one of the
remotest and poorest mountain communities in the Nepal Himalayas, in Jumla, as director of a holistic community
development project. Since 2001 he has been a member of expatriate staff of Kathmandu University, mainly
involved in applied research of renewable energy technologies, with implementation on a village scale in the remote
mountain districts of Humla and Jumla. He is currently working on his PhD in rural village electrification systems
for Himalayan villages.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
Dr. Haddix McKay, Kimber is a cultural anthropologist who specializes in
demography, health and human behavioral ecology. Dr. Haddix McKay has worked both full time and as a
consulting anthropologist designing studies of health and treatment of illness in remote areas of Nepal and Uganda.
She has lived and worked in Nepal frequently from 1994 to the present, and assisted in the design of locally
appropriate development schemes aimed at improving health conditions, particularly in the use of sustainable energy
technologies and in public health-related interventions such as latrine design, improved/smokeless cooking stoves,
lighting schemes, community based health training, and drama programs with specific health-related messages.
Dr. Richard Komp, is the author of PRACTICAL PHOTOVOLTAICS and has been working on solar cells since
1960. He has taught numerous courses and workshops on solar energy all over the world; is president of the Maine
Solar Energy association, has a small photovoltaic company, Sun Watt Corporation, and teaches graduate courses on
Solar Energy at the Universidad Nacional de Ingenieria in Nicaragua.
Proceedings of the International Conference on Renewable Energy for Developing Countries-2006
