WSHPDR_2013_Final_Report-updated_version

3.3 Southern Asia
Arun Kumar, Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India
Introduction to the region
Southern Asia comprises Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, Iran, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri
Lanka. All the countries have substantial large and
small scale hydropower potential, except for Maldives
and Bangladesh, the latter having limited hydropower
potential. India, Nepal, Bhutan, Pakistan, Afghanistan
and Iran are part of the Hindu Kush Himalaya region
which is rich in steep slopes, moderate rainfall, high
snowfall and biodiversity. However for various
reasons, the majority of the countries in the region
(except Iran) have limited access to electricity.
Table 1
Overview of countries in Southern Asia
Country
Population
(million)
Rural
population
(%)
Electricity
access
(%)
Installed
capacity
(MW)
Electricity
generation
(GWh/year)
Hydropower
installed capacity
(MW)
Hydropower
generation
(GWh/year)
Afghanistan abcd 30.00 77 15.5 820 843 400 802
Bangladesh ab 142.00 72 41.0 6 100 37 000 230 1 200
Bhutan b 0.71 65 - 1 506 7 320 1 489 >7 304
India b 1 155.00 70 75.0 173 626 811 104 33 606 114
Iran (Islamic Rep. of) be 73.00 29 - 62 000 220 8 488 17 900
Nepal be 29.00 81 43.6 641 3 664 2 410
Pakistan be 170.00 64 62.4 22 263 105 000 6 555 28 000
Sri Lanka b 20.00 86 76.6 2 684 9 882 1 357 5 634
Total 1 619.71 - - 269 640 971 372 52 789 63 364
Source:
a. International Energy Agency 1
b. International Journal on Hydropower and Dams 2
c. Afghanistan Energy Information Center 3
d. Afghanistan, Ministry of Energy and Water and Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development 4
e. United States Energy Information Administration 5
Small hydropower definition
The classification of small hydropower varies from
country to country, ranging from an upper limit of 10
MW to 50 MW (table 2).
Table 2
Classification of small hydropower in Southern Asia
Country
Small
(MW)
Mini
(MW)
Micro
(kW)
Afghanistan 1-10 0.100-1 5-100
Bangladesh .. .. ..
Bhutan 1-25 up to 1 up to 100
India 2-25 0.101-2 up to 100
Iran (Islamic Rep. of) 1-10 0.101-1 up to 100
Nepal 1-10 0.100-1 up to 100
Pakistan up to 50 0.150-5 up to 150
Sri Lanka 1-10 0.101-1 up to 100
Source: See country reports
Regional overview
All countries except Maldives have developed small
hydropower. The policies relevant for small scale
hydro-power development and ministries/
organizations dealing with the subject of small scale
hydropower development in different countries are
summarized below (table 3).
In Afghanistan, substantial reconstruction and
expansion of transmission and distribution systems
are carried out. General surveying and potential
assessment of mini and micro hydropower sites are
underway.
Bangladesh is dominated by flat land hence its
potential in hydropower development is limited.
Bhutan has developed only a limited small
hydropower capacity. For Bhutan, no study has been
conducted to assess the small scale hydropower
potential even though the mountainous region has an
excellent setting for small hydropower development.
Even though India has targeted an ambitious
hydropower development programme, its pace has
recently slowed down. It has achieved less than half of
target set for its 10 th - 11 th plan due to various delays.
Regulatory framework, encouragement and support
for renewable energy have been a moving factor for
the recent interest in small hydropower development,
especially in the private sector.
Iran has an ambitious hydropower development plan
and has developed 8,488 MW mostly during the
recent years. Even though the country has substantial
potential due to its mountainous terrain and its large
irrigation canal network, it has developed only limited
small hydropower potential. Iran’s efforts to involve
the private sector, especially in small hydropower, are
relatively low. Feasibility studies for small hydropower
projects have been completed and several schemes
are at different stages of development, but mainly
pending government agencies’ approvals.
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