The FINANCIAL — Nepal’s largest wind-solar hybrid power system was switched on December 12 in the Hariharpurgadi village of Sindhuli district, financed by a project supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
“Access to clean, reliable, and affordable energy will help the village to connect to the world through Internet and mobile phones, and will create opportunities to boost local income,” said Mukhtor Khamudkhanov, ADB’s Country Director for Nepal. “The electricity from the mini-grid will also open the door for commercial activities in the village and help small businesses get off the ground.”
The project, now providing electricity services to 83 rural households, has installed 20 kilowatt wind turbines complemented by 15 kilowatt-peak of solar photovoltaic panels. The system produces 110 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of energy per day, which will easily meet the village’s electricity demand of 87 kWh per day, according to ADB.
This subproject, implemented by the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC), represents an example of the government’s commitment and ADB’s efforts to scaling up decentralized off-grid approaches to rural energy in Nepal.
“Six years ago, the Government of Nepal, with support from ADB, launched its first mini-grid wind-solar system in Dhaubadi in western Nepal,” said Ram Prasad Dhital, Executive Director, AEPC. “The success of these two projects has demonstrated that clean energy is indeed a viable option to provide reliable energy access to rural Nepal through wind-solar hybrid systems.”
The wind-solar hybrid system was installed under ADB’s South Asia Subregional Economic Cooperation Power System Expansion Project. The project, with a total cost of $16.2 million, was also partly financed by the Government of Nepal, the Scaling up Of Renewable Energy Program under the Climate Investment Fund, and the local community.
“We appreciate ADB’s continued support to strengthen the power sector in Nepal and implement innovative renewable energy solutions to help the country achieve the Sustainable Development Goals,” said Prakash Mathema, Secretary at the Ministry of Population and Environment.
