The Nepal Electrical energy Authority has determined to scale back the utmost buy value for electrical energy generated by photo voltaic crops because the state-owned energy utility prepares to obtain photo voltaic power by means of aggressive bidding.
The ability utility physique has determined to pay a most of Rs5.94 per unit for solar-generated electrical energy.
For the final three years, the authority has been paying Rs7.30 per unit for 3 years as provisioned within the Working Procedures on Grid-Linked Various Electrical Vitality Improvement-2017.
“A current board assembly determined to pay a most of Rs5.94 per unit to photo voltaic crops keen to promote electrical energy to us,” mentioned Suresh Bhattarai, spokesperson for the Nepal Electrical energy Authority (NEA). “We’ve proposed the brand new charge to the Electrical energy Regulatory Fee for approval.”
The fee is accountable for fixing the acquisition value of electrical energy or energy buy settlement (PPA) charge for the facility offered to the NEA by non-public sector producers.
Bhattarai mentioned that the NEA wouldn’t pay greater than what its board has accredited for the electrical energy produced by non-public sector photo voltaic farms.
“There might be competitors amongst solar energy producers at costs beneath the utmost charge,” he added.
Nevertheless, the fee is unlikely to take choice on the matter instantly for lack of officer bearers. After the elimination of its three workplace bearers just lately over their alleged failure to carry out their duties, the fee presently has no workplace bearers.
Final week, the federal government introduced vacancies for these vacant posts.
“I’m not conscious of the value advice of the NEA. If the NEA has really useful the utmost PPA charge for solar-generated electrical energy, a choice on the matter might be made after workplace bearers are appointed,” mentioned Gokarna Raj Pantha, secretary on the fee.
In late January, the NEA’s board had determined to obtain photo voltaic power solely by means of aggressive bidding by ending the mounted charge regime of the final three years maintained as per the choice taken on June 10, 2018. The board in January had additionally determined that it might set a brand new most value per unit for photo voltaic power.
In the meantime, the brand new value per unit proposed by the NEA has left the solar energy builders unimpressed.
“The discount within the most charge to be supplied to photo voltaic builders will have an effect on those that have already invested closely within the hope of promoting their electrical energy on the current Rs7.30 per unit,” mentioned Prakash Bikram Basnet, president of Photo voltaic Electrical Producers Affiliation Nepal.
In accordance with him, the affiliation had requested the NEA to maintain the utmost charge at Rs6.8 per unit.
“However the charge proposed by the NEA is much decrease than what we had proposed. We’ll focus on the problem amongst our members and draw the eye of the federal government to our issues,” mentioned Basnet.
He mentioned that the proposed most PPA charge may discourage potential and new buyers within the solar energy sector as organising photo voltaic farms has turn out to be troublesome as a result of excessive land prices and hovering photo voltaic panel costs.
The NEA, nonetheless, maintains that it determined to implement a aggressive pricing mechanism contemplating reducing costs of photo voltaic power internationally.
In November 2020, photo voltaic power costs in India hit a document low of INR2 per unit below aggressive bidding.
Bhattarai, the NEA spokesperson, mentioned aggressive bidding would assist uncover precise market value of photo voltaic power moreover contributing to reducing the value.
“It isn’t that photo voltaic crops right here would have the ability to promote electrical energy on the charge as low-cost as that in India however a aggressive bidding would assist to decrease the costs for the NEA,” mentioned Bhattarai.
One more reason, in response to the NEA, is that it’s in no place to obtain power from all photo voltaic producers who’ve utilized for PPA.
“We’ve obtained purposes for PPA for greater than 300MW in complete,” NEA’s Managing Director Kul Man Ghising informed the Put up in January.
In accordance with the Ministry of Vitality, Water Assets and Irrigation, the facility utility physique has already signed PPAs with 21 photo voltaic power producers for a complete of 110MW. As a lot as 21 MW of electrical energy has already been related to the nationwide grid, the ministry mentioned in a assertion in January.
The federal government has a technique of sustaining the contribution of photo voltaic power at 10 % of the entire power below the idea of Technology Combine.