Small Scale Wind Energy Market and Institutional Model for Nepal

Abstract

Nepal is a non-urbanized country consisting of 3,915 Village Development Committees (VDCs), 3 ecological regions, 5 developmental regions, fourteen zones and seventy five districts. In Nepal, the demand for energy for various users is increasing with the increase in population and need for the self-employment. Various efforts have been made in Nepal over the past two decades to harness electrical power from the wind. For particular locations and applications wind turbines may be the most economical option for providing electricity. Despite this fact, several bad experiences with wind turbines and a lack of comprehensive wind data for Nepal have kept wind turbines largely absent from the Nepalese landscape. The intent of this paper is to discuss the small scale wind energy market in Nepal, the contributing key factors in sustainable scaling up of the system and describing key actors' role in institutional framework for the sustainable future. A method is introduced for demand side analysis, market, institutional framework and supply chain audit. The prime criteria for selection of study sites were wind potential area, proximity to a road head and the minimum possibility of connection of national electricity grid within a 10 year period. For the purpose of selecting the exact location or the study area, the study team had visited 11 different locations. Out of 11, only 7 study areas, 430 households were identified as technically, socially and economically feasible for promoting the small scale wind energy system. The study includes both primary and secondary data/information. The primary source includes direct visit at study area. Participatory Rural Appraisal, Focus Group Discussion, Key Informant Interview and Household Survey were executed in order to get the primary level data/information.