An Overview of Renewable Energy Sources and Their Energy Potential for Sustainable Development in Myanmar

Abstract

Myanmar has an abundance of renewable energy resources. It has around 50% of forest cover and the gifted geographic locations with four main large rivers flowing across the country. Besides, its economy is mainly based on agriculture. Among the major renewable energy sources in Myanmar, hydropower plays a key role in electrification of Myanmar while biomass provides the major energy supply for cooking and heating in rural areas. Besides, in the years to come, the utilization of solar energy and wind energy will also be emerging to fulfill the additional energy requirements of the country. Therefore, this study highlighted the renewable energy sources and their future energy potential for increasing the energy self-sufficiency in Myanmar. It was observed that Myanmar had the total installed capacity of approximately 3300 Megawatts from the renewable energy sources in 2016, remaining a large amount of future installed capacity potential. If the sustainability and constraints about renewable energy sources would be managed efficiently, Myanmar could meet the future energy requirements for sustainable development of the country.