Empowering Micro Hydro Plant

With funding support from WISIONS and in partnership with UNDP-GEF supported Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood project under Alternative Energy Promotion Center, Winrock International implemented ‘Sharing Learning Across Projects: Operating Micro Hydro Plants as Commercially Viable Enterprises.

The project selected five financially and managerially weak Micro Hydro Plants in the Baglung and Gulmi districts to participate in the facilitated sharing of best management practices between successful and weak Plants. Chachlaghat MHP was one of those selected.

The series of knowledge exchange workshops empowered management committee and local representatives on improving managerial and financial systems, business plan and business model development and computer-based accounting systems.The project intervention resulted in significant managerial improvement of the selected Micro Hydro Plants in providing reliable power supply with remarkable increase in revenue generation and established the Micro Hydro Plants as profitable enterprises.

After project intervention, electricity sales increased up to 40% with additional households and enterprises connection and increased productive end uses, adoption of transparent accounting system, improved tariff collection, greater satisfaction among beneficiaries and better ownership of stakeholders.

The project shows huge potential for the Government and other development partners to focus on improving management of Micro Hydro Plants and increasing reliability of electricity connections through similar knowledge exchange programs in remaining 2,000 Micro Hydro Plants all over the country and establish them as profitable and sustainable enterprises.