Monday, July 29, 2019

Nepalis consume 245-KW of electricity every hour

Due to regular supply of the power, a Nepali household consumes 245 kilowatts (KW) of electricity every hour in 2018-19 – some 38 per cent more than in the fiscal year 2017-18 when they used to consume 117 KW – according to a study. The government has, however, aimed to increase the per capita electricity consumption to 700 KW per hour by the fiscal year 2021-22.
The study ‘Energy Progress Report,’ also revealed that the increased use of gadgets and electrical appliances lately has also fuelled the power consumption of the Nepali households.
Earlier, demand for electricity was concentrated only during peak hours but with the regular supply of electricity, the consumer behavior has also changed, it reads, adding that the electricity network has expanded and upgraded projects connecting 420,000 new households to the national grid in the fiscal year 2018-19 leading to hike in power consumption.
Though, hydropower projects with a combined capacity of 195 megawatts (MW) were concluded in the fiscal year 2018-19, only 78 MW was added to the national grid and some 117 MW is in the testing and commissioning phase. The electricity demand as of Tuesday stood at 1,061 MW against the generaton of 1,073 MW in the fiscal year 2018-19. The government has, though, targeted to add 760 MW in the last fiscal year it could add only 10 per cent of the target to the national grid by the end of the fiscal year.
The Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) expects to connect around 43 hydropower projects with a combined capacity of 1,150 MW to the national grid in the current fiscal year.
The hydropower projects promoted by the state generated some 420 MW, whereas private hydel plants generated 434 MW, imports from India stood at 207 MW, and the power utility exported 50 MW, the NEA report claimed, adding that with increased power generation, transmission lines also were expanded in the last fiscal year. “The government has been able to add more than 600 kilometres of transmission lines and 30 new distribution substations – domestically and cross border electricity transmission network – in the last fiscal year,” the report reads adding that the electricity has reached 95.5 per cent of the population. “Some 99 per cent of urban population enjoys access to electricity but some 95 per cent of rural people are receiving power through a mix of grid and off-grid systems.”
In 2010, only 65 per cent of the population had an electricity connection, according to the report, “Some 1.3 million – out of the 29 million Nepalis – remain to be connected to the electricity supply at present.”
The NEA also claimed that Nepal’s access to electricity has also increased at an annual rate of 4.3 per cent, which is much higher than the global average of 0.8 per cent. But it’s not surprising as Nepal had the least access to electricity compared to global access to electricity. Nepal has been recently starting to connect to the electricity. The NEA has targeted 100 per cent access to electricity within a few years, well ahead of the target year 2030 set by Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7.
Currently, only eight districts – Bajura, Humla, Jumla, Kalikot, Mugu, Dolpa, Rukum (East) and Solukhumbu – remain to be connected to the national grid, out of the 77 districts, the NEA added.

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