World Small HydropoWer development report 2013

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Published in 2013 by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Center on Small Hydro Power (ICSHP).

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This report was jointly produced by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Center on Small Hydro Power (ICSHP) to provide information about small hydropower. The document has been produced without formal United Nations editing. The designations employed and the presentations of the material in this document do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of UNIDO and ICSHP concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries, or its economic system or degree of development. Designations such as “developed”, “industrialized” and “developing” are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process: Mention of firm names or commercial products does not constitute an endorsement by UNIDO or its partners. The opinions, statistical data and estimates contained in the articles are the responsibility of the author(s) and should not necessarily be considered as reflecting the views or bearing the endorsement of UNIDO and its partners.

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Recommended citation: Liu, H., Masera, D. and Esser, L., eds. (2013). World Small Hydropower Development Report 2013. United Nations Industrial Development Organization; International Center on Small Hydro Power. Available from www.smallhydroworld.org.

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3 Asia 3.3 South Asia 3.3.2 Bangladesh Md. Abdul Wazed, Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology, Bangladesh Key facts

Population 161,083,8041

Area 147,570 km2

Climate Tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October)

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Topography Mostly flat alluvial plain (80 %); terraces (8 %) and hilly in southeast (12 %).

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Rain pattern

Average annual rainfall: 2,499 mm.2 Dry

season: November to May. Rainy (monsoon) season: June to October

Electricity sector overview The electrification rate in the country was 41 per cent in 2009 and population without electricity was about 95.7 million.

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The installed capacity of power plants in Bangladesh (end of 2011) was 6,693 MW. The breakdown per unit type is shown in figure 1. The Kaptai hydropower scheme on Karnafuli River, with a generating capacity of 230 MW by five units, is the only hydropower plant operated by Bangladesh Power Development Board (BPDB).

Figure 1 Electricity generation in Bangladesh Source: Bangladesh Power Development Board

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Small hydropower sector overview and potential The first micro hydropower unit of 10 kW has been installed in a village of Bandarban through private initiatives. The project is providing electricity to 140 families in the village and to a Buddhist temple. A relatively small potential of mini hydropower generation can be found in the hill tracts area of Bangladesh. Several studies on the feasibility of hydropower in Bangladesh have been released over the past decades, revealing that most of the potential sites are micro- and pico-scale.

Several initiatives had been launched by the engineers of the BPDB and the Bangladesh Water Development Board (BWDB) in association with foreign experts to investigate the potential for mini or micro hydropower utilization in Bangladesh.

3 They identified

12 potential sites for the development of mini hydropower plant in 1984. Out of these 12 sites, only the Mahamaya Chara was taken up for development of an integrated project for flood control, irrigation and power generation and accordingly, a working group was formed by the engineers of BPDB to carry out groundwork of the project. The project has not been commissioned yet.

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In 1992, under the Flood Action Plan (FAP), Northeast Regional Water Management Project (FAP-6) conducted a preliminary assessment of selected rivers in the Northeast Region. The investigation on the most promising rivers and sites shows their suitability for development of run-of-river low head schemes. Based on mean monthly discharges and an assumed five metres head, the hydro potential of the 10 major and medium perennial rivers (with sufficient flow for power generation throughout the year) of the Northeast Region is estimated at 161 MW, with an annual energy production of about 1,410 GWh.

Figure 2 Small hydropower capacities in Bangladesh Source: Local Government Engineering Department, Institute of Fuel Research Development There are rivers carrying high discharges during the monsoon season and very low discharges during the dry season. They have relatively high longitudinal slope across alluvial fans close to the Indian border. Most of the rivers have low flows in the winter months and sometimes they dry out completely. Nine rivers were identified in a study. The potential of these rivers is estimated at 35 MW with an annual energy production at 307 GWh, however the estimated plant capacities are not available Some other potential sites identified by researchers would be economically viable if projects combine small hydropower with measures such as flood control, irrigation and tourism. For example, there are at least 19 potential sites of hydropower generation in the Teesta barrage project, the largest irrigation project of the country having 10 sites with more than two-metre head. The constructions of these regulating structures have been completed and most

76%

10%

5%

4%

3%

2%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Gas turbines

High-speed diesel

Heavy fuel oil

Coal

Hydropower

Furnace oil

0.010 MW

0.15 MW

0 0.05 0.1 0.15 0.2

SHP potential

SHP installed

capacity

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of them are in operation. These sites can be investigated for development of small hydropower projects. Local Government Engineering Department (LGED) has implemented the Bamer Chara Irrigation Project in Banskhali Thana under Chittagong district with an intention to provide irrigation facilities to 355 hectares of land. A large reservoir has been built in this project for dry season irrigation. Water enters the project area through a gated spill way and flow is controlled downstream by a conventional regulator. Currently LGED is examining the flow rate in the spillway and exploring the scope for installing a micro hydropower plant at the site. Some studies have been conducted on a channel in Halda River near Madhunaghat Bridge on the Chittagong – Kaptai road in the Chittagong district as a possible site for micro hydropower. The average flow velocity is 0.75 m/s, average flow rate is 787 m

3/s and

average available water head is 3.28 m. The monthly average flow rate and available head in Mohamaya chara, Bamerchara, Sapchari and flow rate in Sailopropat, and Bandarban have been reported. The results of the studies conducted by LGED and by the Institute of Fuel Research Development (IFRD) of Bangladesh Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) are shown in table 1 and 2 respectively. Table 1 Potential micro-hydropower sites in Bangladesh (Kilowatts) Name of the canal with location Power

potential

Nunchari Tholi Khal in Khagrachari 5 Sealock Khal in Bandarban 30 Taracha Khal in Bandarban 20 Rowangchari Khal in Bandarban 10 Hnara Khal in Kamal Chari, Rangamati 10 Hnara Khal in, Hang Khrue Chara Mukh, Rangamati 30 Monjaipara micro hydropower unit 10 Bamer Chara irrigation Project 10

Source: Local Government Engineering Department Note: Sites identified by local government engineering department officials.

Three potential sites (Sitakunda, Richang and Toibang of greater Chittagong, Bangladesh) for installation of micro hydropower plants are reported. It is mentioned that with the available head and flow rate a cross flow turbine or a waterwheel will be the best

option for the electricity production and the generator would be flexible enough to cover the range 500 to 3,500 W in these sites.

Renewable energy policy The Bangladesh government approved its first Renewable Energy Policy on 6 November 2008, encouraging investment in this sector to generate electricity from renewable sources to meet an ever-growing demand. The main renewable energy sources are solar energy, wind energy, biomass, biogas and hydropower. To achieve the objectives of its Renewable Energy Policy, the government has set a target of meeting five per cent of the electricity demand by 2015 by utilizing renewable energy, and 10 per cent by the year 2020. Currently, renewable energies contribute to less than one per cent of the country's total electricity generation.

Legislation on small hydropower Pico/micro/mini/small hydropower sites and plants in Bangladesh are situated in hilly areas (where there are natural falls), on the canal drops or at the dam-toe. Very often, hydropower requires dam or some sort of obstacle and thereby hampers the natural flow. Environmental impact assessment is mandatory for site selection and erection of such hydropower plant. Barriers to small hydropower development Some of the major barriers to small hydropower development in Bangladesh are:

Installation of hydropower plants requires land acquisition. It is often delayed due to litigation, poor maintenance of land records, etc. Reservoir schemes could result in displacement of families.

Most of the untapped hydropower potential is located in the remote areas of the country for which access roads will have to be constructed before work can commence.

Furthermore, power would have to be transmitted over long distances to load centres from these remote areas requiring construction of long transmission lines. Low load factor of hydropower reduces firm power due to strong rainfall seasonality and plants have low output during the dry season.

The process for getting clearance from the environment and forest agencies is cumbersome and involves inputs from many other agencies. Inter-State water disputes have come in the way of developing projects.

Table 2 Potential hydropower sites in Bangladesh Name of Water Fall Average discharge

(Litre/s) Electrical power

(kW) Annual energy production

(kWh)

Sailopropat, Banderban 100 5 43 800 Madhobkundu, Moulvibazar 150 15 131 400

Source: Institute of Fuel Research Development (IFRD) of Bangladesh council of Scientific and Industrial Research (BCSIR) Note: Sites identified by Institute of Fuel Research Development

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Hydropower projects, until recently, have been funded mainly by Government Agencies and hence only a limited number could be realized so far. Bank-lending to hydropower is low due to liquidity issues and due to the banking sector’s lack of understanding of small hydropower and its benefits. Interest rates are too high and loan tenure is short, hindering private small hydropower development.

References 1. Central Intelligence Agency (2012). The World Factbook. Available from www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/. 2. The World Bank Data (n.d.). Data: Bangladesh: South Asia. Available from http://data.worldbank.org/country/bangladesh#cp_cc 3. Bangladesh Power Development Board. Available from www.bpdb.gov.bd/bpdb/. Accessed December 2011. 4. Hossain, A. K. and Badr, O. (2007). Prospects of renewable energy utilization for electricity generation in Bangladesh. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 11(8): 1617-1649. 5. Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (2011). National data bank statistics. Available from www.bbs.gov.bd. Accessed December 2012. 6. Khan P.K.S., D. Chowdhury and S. Halder (2011). Installation of micro-hydro power plants in three selected locations in Chittagong-A feasibility study. Proceedings of the International Conference on Mechanical Engineering and Renewable Energy, Paper

ID: ICMERE2011-PI-100, Chittagong, Bangladesh, 22-24 December 2011. 7. Mondal, M. A. H. & Denich, M. (2010). Assessment of renewable energy resources potential for electricity generation in Bangladesh. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol.14(8): 2401-2413. 8. Razan, J.I., Islam, R.S., Hasan, R., Hasan, S., Islam, F. (2012). A Comprehensive Study of Micro-Hydropower Plant and Its Potential in Bangladesh. ISRN Renewable Energy, Article ID 635396, 10p. Available from

www.hindawi.com/isrn/re/2012/635396. 9. Rofiqul, M. and Others (2008). Renewable energy resources and technologies practice in Bangladesh. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Vol. 12(2): 299-343. 10. Wazed, M. A. and Ahmed, S. (2008). Micro hydro energy resources in Bangladesh: A review. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, Vol. 2(4): 1209-1222. 11. Wazed, M.A. and Ahmed S. (2009). A feasibility study of micro-hydroelectric power generation at Sapchari waterfall, Khagrachari, Bangladesh. Journal of Applied Sciences, Vol 9(2): 372-376. 12. Wazed, M.A. and Others (2004). Feasibility study of micro hydro power generation: case study: Madhunaghat sluice gate. Mechanical Engineering Research Journal, Vol. 4: 43-46.

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