Loadshedding Crisis in Nepal

Comment posted to MySansar.com blog!
March 2, 2008 @ 8:45 pm
http://www.mysansar.com/?p=2443#comments

Dilli ji,

I think your calculation is wrong. You cannot compare energy and power. 16 MW*24 hr = …MWh that is energy. But here in the peak period we need peaking capacity and 16 MW is added to the capacity which is already mentioned by NEA. That will surely help in reducing the loadshedding. Also we know NEA is not reducing it during peaking hour i.e. 6-7 PM. This is very clear that 16 MW is not going to help during that hour!

But I support your theme that NEA should have exercised other means of reducing the loadshedding…e.g. transmission loss, electricity theft. Can you imagine we have around 25% electricity loss which is official figure and if you count on unofficial figure then it is more than 40%. Probably in the world this is the height of T&D loss. Further NEA does not have any plan for demand side management. Studies show that saving 1 MW by using deamnd side management is cheaper than installing a new powr plant with equivalent capacity. But NEA is turning its deaf ear towards this concern. Also NEA could have utilized seasonal tariff, peaking and off peak tariff to even domestic user. More than 50% of the NEA’s energy is consumed by residential sector. If people would be given flexibility to use electricity with appropriate tariff according to the peaking hours, then the peak load could have been shifted. Instead of current 2 peaking load hours, it could have been made horizontal throughout the day n night. NEA is sitting like duck waiting for bankruptcy and ironically, it is only eyeing big hydropowers to save it from bankruptcy. For your kind information, with the kind of trend, for 10 years, there will be no relief from loadshedding. Every year 10% demand is found increased. We have no plan for any power addition. Whatever we are planning is for export only. Also every new installation of hydropower plant will at least takes 7 years (if no obstacles is faced, we have e.g. of middle marsyangdi). On top of that NEA does not have any plan for large reservoir type of hydropower. All hydropower in the pipeline is run of river type. Even you install these run of river type of hydropowers, this is not going to help reducing load shedding. In winter, we have problem of loadsheding because of less water discharge in the river and these run of river type of hydropower plants will not generate power as per their capacity during winter time. Probably you are quite aware that every year the loadshedding hours has been increased. This is nothing but electricity demand has been increasing yearly and with the constant power generation, NEA has no option but to increase the loadshedding hours. NEA has no plan of mitigating this problem so far! I think what NEA should do is expedite the task of increasing the capacity of transmission line to Indian border which is power hungry states of India during summer time. Come with favourable policies to IPPs. Sell power to India during summer time and in winter time, purchase power from India. At the same time, other measures at mentioned above should be taken alongside.

Shree