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Roles of renewable energy technologies in improving the rural energy situation in Nepal: Gaps and opportunities

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  • Gurung, Anup
  • Karki, Rahul
  • Cho, Ju Sik
  • Park, Kyung Won
  • Oh, Sang-Eun

Abstract

Nepal is one of the least developed countries, with the lowest per capita energy consumption in the world. Traditional solid biomass plays a significant role in meeting the primary energy demand in the country, which represents about 87% of the total primary energy mix. Till date, only 50% of the population has access to electricity, and disparity between the urban and rural areas in terms of access to energy is prevalent. In order to improve the energy situation in rural areas, the Government of Nepal initiated the promotion and development of renewable energy technologies (RETs) through subsidies. Nepal has the potential to generate energy through renewable sources like mini/microhydro schemes, solar power, biogas and wind. It is estimated that more than 50MW of electricity can be generated from the micro hydro schemes, 2100MW from solar and 3000MW from wind. Moreover, the country has the capacity to develop about 1.1 million domestic biogas plants. RETs may provide ample opportunity to improve the vulnerable rural energy system in Nepal if the available renewable resources are optimally utilized.

Suggested Citation

  • Gurung, Anup & Karki, Rahul & Cho, Ju Sik & Park, Kyung Won & Oh, Sang-Eun, 2013. "Roles of renewable energy technologies in improving the rural energy situation in Nepal: Gaps and opportunities," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 62(C), pages 1104-1109.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:62:y:2013:i:c:p:1104-1109
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2013.06.097
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    3. Rana Pratap Singh & Hans Peter Nachtnebel & Nadejda Komendantova, 2020. "Deployment of Hydropower in Nepal: Multiple Stakeholders’ Perspectives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(16), pages 1-17, August.
    4. Tika Ram Pokharel & Hom Bahadur Rijal, 2021. "Energy Transition toward Cleaner Energy Resources in Nepal," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(8), pages 1-16, April.
    5. Satoru Komatsu & Yuki Yamamoto & Yutaka Ito & Shinji Kaneko & Ram Prasad Dhital, 2020. "Water for life: ceaseless routine efforts for collecting drinking water in remote mountainous villages of Nepal," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(8), pages 7909-7925, December.
    6. Bharadwaj, Bishal & Subedi, Mukti Nath & Malakar, Yuwan & Ashworth, Peta, 2023. "Low-capacity decentralized electricity systems limit the adoption of electronic appliances in rural Nepal," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 177(C).

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