Ridi Hydropower prepares to issue primary shares to locals

Yet another hydropower company is going public that will make it the sixth listed company at the secondary market.

Ridi Hydropower Development Company – that is constructing 2400-KW hydropower project – is offering shares to the locals next week in the first phase before floating Initial Public Offering (IPO) to the public.

The company is floating 300,000 units of primary shares — at face value of Rs 100 per unit — to the locals of Ridi Khola Small Hydropower Project affected districts of Palpa and Gulmi districts from Friday.

A local investor can apply for a minimum of 50 units and a maximum of 5,000 units of ordinary shares that have three years lock-in period.

The hydropower company has set aside 120,000 units of ordinary shares for those directly affected by the project residing in five VDCs of Gulmi — Ruru, Dugam, Siddheshwor, Kheha and Argali — and the remaining for the locals of Gulmi and Palpa.
Promoted by Arun Valley Hydropower, the hydropower project has projected 10 per cent appreciation of net worth in the next three years.

The hydropower companies, if they want to go public, must float a minimum of 10 per cent of issued capital to the locals first, according to the amended Securities Registration and Issuance Regulation – 2065.

The locals’ shares will have a lock-in period of three years meaning they can sell their shares only after three years of listing.

Over two dozen far west villages face food insecurity

Dolpa, Humla, Bajura, Bajhang, and Darchula districts are likely to experience a deteriorating food security situation, according to a report.

The twenty-five Village Development Committees (VDCs) of Dailekh and Rukum that are currently under Phase II require close monitoring as the situation might further deteriorate to Phase III — highly food insecure — said District Food Security Networks (DFSNs).

However, food security situation over the next quarter is expected to remain stable in most parts of the country except for the far western hills and mountains and Karnali, where seasonal deterioration is projected due to the depletion of household food stocks, and rise in food prices, it said, adding that recent harvest of summer crops coupled with incomes from high value commodities, remittances, and wage employment have contributed to seasonal improvement in household food security across the country.

Likewise, the food security situation has improved — during the months of October to December 2012 — significantly as compared to the previous quarter — July to September 2012 — and the situation is reportedly stable overall, according to the Nepal Khadya Surakshya Anugaman Pranali (NeKSAP) DFSNs of 72 districts across the country.

"Exceptions were found in 25 VDCs, mostly in Rukum and Dailekh districts, where pocket areas have been classified as 'moderately food insecure under Phase-II'," it said, attributing the failure in maize crop production coupled with limited employment opportunities for the deterioration of food security situation.

For the rest of the country, the food security situation has improved due to the summer crop harvest and increased availability of other income sources that has increased overall household income and purchasing power through sales of high value commodities and a rise in wage rates.

The report stated good sales of high value crops like citrus, ginger, honey, large cardamom, and dairy products in the hills, whereas sugarcane, fish, nuts, and banana in Tarai, and apple and Non-Timber Forest Products like Jatamasi, Katuki, Sugandhawal in the mountains have contributed to an increase in household income.

According to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), wage rate index has increased by 29 per cent as compared to the same period last year.

Despite the overall seasonal improvement in the food security situation, a significant number of the population, equivalent to a quarter of rural households, reportedly consume an inadequate diet, it added.

Dalits, wage labourers and households in the mountain region have a higher incidence of inadequate food consumption, the report said, adding that a joint crop verification mission of the Ministry of Agricultural Development, World Food Programme (WFP), and Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), reported that the production of main summer crops of paddy, maize and millet has declined by 11.3 per cent, 8.3 per cent and three per cent, respectively as compared to last fiscal year 2011-12.

The total summer crop output for current fiscal year 2012-13 is estimated at 6.8 million metric tonnes (MT) — 4.5 million MT for paddy, two million MT for maize, and 0.3 million MT for millet.

The food security situation is expected to deteriorate in the far western hills and mountains especially in Karnali and in some VDCs of Rukum and Dailekh over the next quarter.

Accessibility to energy helps reduce poverty

Nawalparasi village gets first Wind-Solar hybrid renewal energy project in Asia

Improving energy accessibility helps reducing poverty, according to the experts."The pilot project that has been operational in Nepal from today will be replicated in five other countries," said director general of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) Sultan Hafeez Rahman, during the wind-solar hybrid power inauguration here today.
Minister for Environment today inaugurated the 5kw-wind-solar hybrid power system in Dhaubadi of Nawalparasi, the first wind-solar hybrid power in Asia. “Some other VDCs are also under study for the new technology," Rahman said, adding that modern energy has the power to transform lives and communities, often in unexpected ways.
The wind-solar hybrid system was installed under ADB’s regional technical assistance (RETA) for Effective Development of Distributed Small Wind Power Systems in Asian Rural Areas for which the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) of Ministry of Environment is the implementing agency. The $3.8 million RETA will contribute to ADB’s 'Energy For All' initiative by increasing access to energy in remote rural areas that is expected to help reduce poverty."Energy fuels economic growth and poverty reduction," he said, "reliable and efficient energy services underpin the expansion of economic and employment opportunities, the continuing progress in social development, and the sustained improvement in standards of living.
"The project is based on ‘energy systems’ planning approach and has installed two sets of 5 kW wind turbines complimented by 2 kWp of solar PV panels to satisfy the village’s electricity demand of 43.6 KWh per day. It has also provided solar cookers, solar dryers and biogas systems to the villagers for extra income generation. Erecting greenhouses to absorb solar energy and manage water uses for high-value cash crop and vegetable production is also being planned which will augment income generation activities of the village community.
"Nepal’s chronic energy shortage, its abundant wind and solar resources, and most importantly the strong government commitment toward a low-carbon economy led ADB to select Nepal as the first pilot country for ADB’s small wind power initiative," ADB’s senior investment specialist Kangbin Zheng said, adding that the lessons learned in Nepal on the deployment of small wind power systems in rural areas will be very useful in scaling up the systems in Nepal and replicating in other ADB member countries.
"Nepal has more potential in the clean energy and the government is committed to develop and promote it, secretary at the Ministry of Environment Krishna Gyawali said.
The government is planning to update Rural Energy Policy making it more effective including the renewal energy, he said, adding that the Bill has been approved by the cabinet and soon the parliament will give its nod to make it an Act.

Food security situation remains stable

The overall food security situation has remained stable across the country.
“It is mainly attributed to a good harvest of winter crops (April-June) and employment opportunities generated by development aid,” according to Nepal Food Security Bulletin jointly produced by Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives and World Food Programme (WFP).
The main winter crops of wheat and barley production increased by 12.2 per cent and 9.6 per cent respectively compared to last year. Wheat production set a national record of 1.75 million metric tonne.
The situation, however, remains a concern for some in some pocket areas where crops were affected by localised natural disasters like insufficient rainfall and hailstorm, the report added.In Saptari the District Food Security network (DFSN) has identified 28 Village Development Committees (VDCs) in the south-western belt of the district as highly food insecure.
The report has attributed it to a 60 per cent reduction of wheat and spring paddy production due to a dry spell, which was cumulative to the 2010 reduction of 40-60 per cent in the main paddy production. Parts of the Eastern Hill and Mountain districts are reported as moderately food insecure, it said, adding that it reflected a seasonal deterioration in those areas where winter crops like wheat and barley are cultivated in limited areas and hence do not play a significant role in food security.
Most of the Mid and the Far Western Hill and Mountain districts reported a food secure situation, according to the report. Overall wheat and barley production ranged from normal to a 30 per cent or higher increase compared to last year.
Development programmes supported by various organisations have created good employment opportunities, it said, adding that main summer crops of maize and paddy are growing well across the country and the overall production outlook is good.
Good production of winter crops, wage employment opportunities created by development programmes, remittances, and regular supply of food to the local markets contributed to a stable food security situation across the country, it concluded, adding that a seasonal deterioration is reported in part of the Eastern Hill and Mountain districts where the winter crops of wheat and barley are cultivated in limited areas and do not play a vital role in food security.
The situation in upper Dolpa and some Village Development Committees in the northern and the southernbelt of Baitadi are likely to deteriorate to the highly food insecure phase during the next cycle as there will be no incoming harvest and employment opportunities as well as market supply will be affected by monsoon.
The food security situation in the rest of the country will remain stable expected to improve due to the positive outlook of summer crops.According to the central bank, High food prices remain a concern. The year-on-year inflation, measured by the Consumer Price Index, increased by 8.8 per cent in mid-June 2011 whereas the indices of the cereal subgroup increased by 10.4 per cent.