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the flow

TONIBUNG: 2022 HIGHLIGHTS AND A STRONG START IN 2023

1/19/2023

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In 2022, HPNET member TONIBUNG (Friends for Village Development) continued to advance an ambitious array of initiatives to generate impact from community-based renewable energy, both at the policy level and on the ground in partnership with Indigenous communities in Malaysian Borneo.  Two key developments from 2022 are highlighted below, along with an exciting update from January 2023 regarding a first-of-its-kind international knowledge exchange event.

For more exciting updates, be sure to ‘like’ and ‘follow’ TONIBUNG’s very active facebook page.

Sabah RE2 Consortium
Since August 2021, TONIBUNG has been part of the Sabah Renewable Energy Rural Electrification Roadmap (Sabah RE2) Consortium in collaboration with Forever Sabah, Pacos Trust and Green Empowerment.  Supported by the Malaysia-UK PACT (Partnering for Accelerated Climate Transitions) programme, the Sabah RE2 initiative aims to build momentum towards “a future of energy equity, right livelihoods, and wellbeing for rural Sabahans” by advocating for renewable energy as a viable solution for energy access in off-grid communities.  

TONIBUNG’s primary role has been to lead stakeholder training and conduct feasibility studies of potential mini-grid design concepts.  Thus far, the team has conducted feasibility studies in 57 communities for 35 potential mini-grids across Sabah, the findings of which are summarized here.


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Map displaying feasibility studies conducted by TONIBUNG for the SabahRE2 initiative, including for micro hydro, solar and solar-hydro hybrid mini-grids. Credit: SabahRE2.
The Sabah RE2 Consortium has produced a number of rich outputs, including an interactive Demand Map for unelectrified villages in Sabah and other multimedia knowledge products, which can be accessed at sabahre2roadmap.org.

Micro Hydro Training in Bandung, Indonesia

To advance knowledge exchange objectives of the Sabah RE2 initiative, Tonibung engineers and technicians traveled to Bandung, Indonesia for micro hydro development training hosted by Heska Hydro in November, 2022.  HPNET members Pak Komarudin (Protel Multi Energy) and Pak Aji Subekti (Reneconsys) facilitated training on electronic load controllers and mini-grid design fundamentals.  As part of the training, the team also visited two micro hydro sites to enhance their understanding of civil design and to learn about operations and maintenance.  The exposure visits further strengthened the participants’ understanding of the theoretical teachings from the classroom sessions at Heska Hydro.

Inter Learning Exchange on Community-Led Renewable Energy

From January 8-11, 2023, participants from Kenya, Nepal, Cambodia and the Philippines gathered in Kampung Buayan, Ulu Papar, Sabah for the Inter Learning Exchange on Community-led Renewable Energy, co-hosted by TONIBUNG and Right Energy Partnership (REP). 


Participants shared knowledge from their own in-country experiences and learned from the pioneering work of TONIBUNG on implementing community-based micro hydropower in partnership with Indigenous communities.  The participants learned how the community of Kampung Buayan operates and maintains their community hydro mini-grid through a sustainable approach, leveraging capacity building efforts by TONIBUNG and other local partners.  The guests also saw first-hand how the community hydro has generated socioeconomic opportunities, including by enabling motorized agro-processing and allowing children to study at night, among other outcomes.


We extend our thanks to TONIBUNG Founder and HPNET Board Member, Hon. Adrian Banie Lasimbang, for his input on this blog post.  To learn more, contact TONIBUNG at tonibung@gmail.com. 

This article was developed by HPNET Thematic Coordinator, Lara Powell.

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INDIA-INDONESIA PARTNERSHIP:  PICO HYDRO DEVELOPMENT IN MEGHALAYA

1/16/2023

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Meghalaya is one of India’s eight states making up the country's rich bio- and ethnically-diverse northeastern region.  Since 2013 HPNET members have worked to advance community-scale hydro in Meghalaya for last-mile energy access:

  • In 2013, International Rivers and the Nagaland Empowerment of People thru EnergyDevelopment (NEPeD) hosted a micro hydro exchange event focusing on NE India, which connected HPNET to the Meghalaya Basin Development Agency (MBDA).
  • In 2015, HPNET enabled India practitioners to attend HPNET’s Members Gathering held in Indonesia at the Hydropower Competence Center (HYCOM), connecting them to Pt entec Indonesia.
  • In 2016, MBDA and HPNET held a regional exchange in Meghalaya, with VillageRES and PT entec Indonesia as co-facilitators.
  • In mid-2019, International Rivers and partners, including HPNET, hosted a tri-country dialogue in Meghalaya, with CSOs and local practitioners from Nepal, Myanmar, and India.
  • In late 2019, HPNET supported a reconnaissance field visit to understand field-based challenges to pico hydro scale up in NE India.
  • In 2021, HPNET and International Rivers held a three-part virtual exchange focusing on  Ganges, Brahmaputra, Meghna, and Salween (GBMS) Rivers, providing regional inspiration from across S/SE Asia and customized capacity building.  
  • The 2021 event included a special keynote by Mr. Augustus Suting, Special Officer at MBDA.
In between each of these milestones have been strategy dialogue among members. As such, when MBDA released a tender to accelerate pico hydro for rural electrification, HPNET members already had working relationships and a keen understanding of challenges and key solutions to leverage the opportunity.
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Below Mr. Ramasubramanian Vaidhyanathan (“Rams”), who has long been committed to the sub-region, provides a brief and exciting update on the most recent technical developments brought forth by a partnership between HPNET members VillageRES and Pt entec Indonesia.

To date an estimated 1000 villages remain unelectrified in the northeastern state of Meghalaya in India, out of approximately 6000 villages.  In 2022, MBDA identified about 200+ micro hydro sites for implementation located throughout the state in communities of the Khasi, Jaintia and Garo ethnic tribes.  The identified potential for most of the sites was 3 kW.  A few had a much higher potential but for this tender, projects were limited to 5 kW.

VillageRES (Village Renewable Energy Systems India Private limited) participated in the tender in partnership with EMSYS Electronics Private limited, a solar energy company based in Bangalore. The consortium was awarded 45 sites located throughout Meghalaya.   
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VillageRES entered into a manufacturing license agreement with PT entec Indonesia to manufacture their new cross flow turbine design with 150mm diameter runners. The turbine is called CFT 150/21.

The fabrication began in July 2022.  Pt entec Director, Mr. Gerhard Fischer, and the team helped us a lot with fabricating the first few pieces – updating drawings, dimensions, a few design corrections, etc. We fabricated the units in the south Indian industrial hub of Coimbatore, in the state of Tamil Nadu. 
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We are very pleased with the results: the turbines have come out very well made and were cost effective to fabricate. We also tested a few of the turbines at a site in Meghalaya and the performance was fantastic. We will be assessing the performance of this model more thoroughly once all the units are installed.
During the installation process, we found that many of the sites were situated right next to a waterfall and the penstock was installed at nearly a 90 degree angle without any proper support. While it was logical and easier to select sites that had an obvious sufficient head, other aspects, such as the design of the intake structure, penstock route, and penstock support appeared to have been completely overlooked. We realised that the on-site assessment methodology that we utilize in training has to be much more detailed and maybe periodically conducted to continue to build the capacity of the sector’s local personnel. Unless this is carried out, the project sites are prone to failure within a year or two of the installation.

This guest blog post was written by Mr. Ramasubramanian Vaidhyanathan (“Rams”), Director of VillageRES and HPNET Board of Representative Member for India.  
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He can be reached at ​​rams@villageres.com. 
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E-LEARNING & EXCHANGE OPPORTUNITY: LOCAL MANUFACTURING OF TURGO TURBINES

6/2/2022

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We are very pleased to announce a new E-Learning opportunity: Local Manufacturing of Turgo Turbines.  The course will be held from June 22-29, 2022 as part of our SEEED Accelerator E-Learning series, in partnership with the University of Bristol (UoB), People Energy and Environment Development Association (PEEDA), Nepal Yantra Shala Energy (NYSE), Kathmandu University Turbine Testing Lab (TTL/KU), and Hydro Empowerment Network (HPNET), with support from Energize Nepal Project (ENEP) and WISIONS.  Offered at no cost, the 1-week, virtual course aims to advance local manufacturers in the global South who have experience in designing and fabricating small-scale (<1 MW) hydropower turbines.  Time commitment and pre-qualifications are explained below.

At the core of the course curriculum is an open source Turgo turbine design package, developed by PEEDA in collaboration with the UoB, TTL/KU and NYSE.  Participants will have access to engineering drawings, a design spreadsheet and a 3D CAD file, within a practical training experience that includes opportunity for live interface with instructors.  In turn, discussion and exchange will facilitate feedback to aid further refinement of the design package, particularly to enhance its application in different contexts.  Thus, participants will benefit from a practical skill-building opportunity, while contributing to the upscaling of Turgo turbine deployment across the global South. 
Format:  E-learning, 1-week self-paced, with two live sessions (course kickoff and Q&A)

Duration:  June 22 - 29, 2022

Core Topics:  Turgo Turbine - Open Source Design
  • An introduction to the Turgo turbine, including pros and cons
  • Manufacturing method
  • Walk-through of design spreadsheet
  • Overview of manufacturing drawings 

​​Resource Provided:  
  • Access to relevant SEEED modules
  • Design spreadsheet*​
  • Manufacturing drawings* 
​*Drawings and design spreadsheet will be provided to those who attend the live Kick-off Session on June 22.  This is because the instructor would like to convey important information regarding the design, and receive feedback from participants.  

Pre-Qualifications:  All local manufacturers based in Asia, Africa, or Latin America, who submit the Application Form by June 15, 2022, will be accepted.  Those based in other regions can contact the instructor at joe.butchers@bristol.ac.uk.

Estimated Time Commitment:  Live sessions and self-work modules

Live Sessions starting at 8pm Philippines (find your local time here):
  • Kick off session:  June 22, 8 - 9:30pm Philippines: 1.5 hours*
    *Mandatory to attend live session for receiving design spreadsheet and engineering drawings.
  • Q&A Session: June 29, 8 - 9pm Philippines: 1 hour**
    **If not possible to attend, viewing the recording is strongly recommended.​

Self-work via the SEEED E-Learning platform: 
  • Module D, Water Resource Assessment: 2.5 hours (optional)
  • Module E, Terrain Assessment & Basics of Design: 4 hours (optional)
  • Module F,  Power Output & Turbine Selection: 2 hours (optional)
  • Module K, Turgo Turbine - Open Source Design: 2 hours (mandatory*)
                    *Module K is mandatory for receiving a course completion certificate.

Application Form:  Apply no later than June 15, 2022 at the link below.

REGISTER HERE
Why Turgo?
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As a medium head turbine, the Turgo offers a viable option for sites where head and flow characteristics make the choice between Pelton and Cross-flow turbines difficult.  Based on hindsight from Nepal, for sites where this choice is difficult, the Turgo presents a beneficial option both in terms of performance and cost.  Other benefits include that the Turgo deals well with silt and that it operates at a higher speed than the Pelton which enables direct drive transmission at much lower heads.  Thus, the Turgo may require fewer parts, improving its reliability. 

The engineering drawings that will be provided in the course are for a direct drive Turgo turbine design that can be used for heads between approximately 45and 90m and flow rates from 100 to 150 L/s.  Currently, the design has used a direct drive transmission, however, the design could be adapted for use with a  belt drive transmission.  In the near future, the design team plans to develop Turgo design packages for various heads and flow rates. 
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The different flow passages for the Pelton and Turgo turbines. Reference: P.N. Wilson, A high-speed impulse turbine, Water Power (1967).
Background
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This E-Learning opportunity has stemmed from a 2-year project of PEEDA, UoB, KU and NYSE: Upscaling Locally Manufactured Turgo Turbine: Dissemination and Demonstration.  Focused on the Nepal context, the primary aim of the project is to improve the technology readiness level of the Turgo turbine through capacity building, knowledge transfer and the development of an open source repository for Turgo turbine system design.  Following multiple stages of design improvement using computational fluid dynamics (CFD), an improved blade design was then 3D-printed in Kathmandu, providing a mold for casting.  All other components were also designed such that all components could be manufactured in Nepal.  

The turbine has now been built and installed at a pilot site in the Taplejung District of Eastern Nepal.  The system is rated at 32 kW and is now running and awaiting testing by the KU Turbine Testing Lab.  Site-based testing equipment has been procured, including an ultrasonic flow meter and digital pressure transducer, which will be used for testing efficiency. 
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Pilot Site. Credit: Energize Nepal, School of Engineering, Kathmandu University.
Through this project, an in-person workshop was also held in Kathmandu in April 2022 to introduce the Turgo to other manufacturing companies in Nepal and begin to elicit feedback on the design and resources that had been developed.  Feedback was largely positive with some useful suggestions for improving ease of use, which will be integrated into the materials provided in the SEEED E-Learning course.  The upcoming course will provide further opportunity to extend and improve upon the design and resources provided, based on feedback from practitioners based in different contexts. 

Looking Forward

Currently, the open source design package is for a direct drive Turgo turbine designed for heads between approximately 45 and 90m and flow rates from 100 to 150 L/s.  A longer-term objective is to develop design packages for various runner sizes with corresponding blade designs, such that a manufacturer could utilize the open source tools for any head and flow rate where Turgo is possible.  That is, they would be directed to the appropriate blade size and pitch-to-center diameter (PCD) with corresponding engineering drawings for other components.  Another longer-term aim is to develop a knowledge transfer process and approach that can potentially be replicated for different turbine types, across different country contexts.  The upcoming course will be an important step in the development and improvement of said process.

Learn More
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To learn more about the Turgo turbine and the project that led to the open source design package, check out the project description and this blog post by course instructor, Dr. Joe Butchers, Teaching Associate in Engineering Design  at the University of Bristol.  For further background on HPNET’s SEEED Accelerator and previous E-Learning courses, see here.
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GLOBAL SYMPOSIUM ON SUSTAINABLE WATER AND ENERGY SOLUTIONS

6/1/2022

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Sustainable water and energy solutions go hand and hand, as key cross-cutting factors that intersect with multiple Sustainable Development Goals.  From June 13-15, 2022, the Global Symposium on Sustainable Water and Energy Solutions will be held in Brazil and Paraguay, convened by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, hosted by ITAIPI Binancional, in partnership with Sustainable Water & Energy Solutions Network. The main objective of the symposium is “to enhance the capacities of relevant stakeholders including governmental institutions to effectively manage the water-energy nexus and interlinkages with other SDGs covering the social, economic and environmental dimensions of sustainable development”. 
 
Three HPNET members will be presenting at the symposium:  Satish Gautam, National Programme Manager of the Renewable Energy for Rural Livelihood (RERL), a joint project of the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre (AEPC) Alternative Energy Promotion Center (AEPC) and UNDP in Nepal; Sherzad Ali Khan, Regional Coordinator of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) in Pakistan; and Jade Angngalao, Indigenous People's Energy Access Specialist for HPNET’s efforts in the Philippines. Satish Gautam will present in Session 2: Sustainable Water and Energy Solutions & Energy Case Studies.  Sherzad Ali Khan and Jade Angngalao will both present in Session 7: Sustainable Water and Energy Solutions - Economic Interlinkages.

More information about this event is available at the website of the Global Sustainable Water and Energy Solutions Network at this link. 
 
The event will be offered in a hybrid format.  To join virtually, register in advance at this link.
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SAVE-THE-DATE:  TRAINING ON FUNDAMENTALS OF COMMUNITY-SCALE HYDRO MINI-GRIDS

12/21/2021

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Have you wondered what hydro mini-grids are, and how they differ from other renewables?  
Have you come across a stream and asked how much electricity it could produce?  
Do you know the range of ways mini-grid communities can co-create social enterprises?   

Are you familiar with community hydro and would like a refresher on the fundamentals?   
If so, consider taking advantage of an upcoming virtual training opportunity on the fundamentals of community-scale (<1 MW) hydro implementation! ​
​As part of our SEEED Accelerator, HPNET is offering a 6-week training focused on technical and local enterprise aspects of community hydro systems, made possible through support from Skat Foundation, DGRV, GIZ, and WISIONS.  ​The interactive, self-paced, virtual training will take place from February 7 to March 18, 2022, and is offered at no cost.
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The online portal will feature videos, articles, quizzes, discussion forums, and other engagement opportunities, ultimately leaving you well-versed on key implementation topics.
What is the SEEED Accelerator?

Building on 40-years of experiential hindsight on hydro mini-grid sustainability and impact, HPNET developed an initiative called Social Enterprise for Energy, Ecological and Economic Development (SEEED). Earlier this year, we launched the SEEED Accelerator to support practitioners and communities to customize proven sustainability mechanisms to local contexts, enabling climate resilience and socio-economic co-benefits through community-scale hydro. 

The first cohort of the SEEED Accelerator kicked off in August through a partnership with International Rivers.  We are excited to continue advancing the SEEED Accelerator in 2022 with support from Skat Foundation, beginning with the Fundamentals of Community Hydro training. 


What topics will the training cover?

​The Fundamentals of Community-Scale Hydro Mini-Grids training will provide participants with a solid introduction, which can also be useful as a refresher course, on the foundational elements of sustainable community-scale hydropower implementation.  While technical in focus, the training emphasizes climate resilience and other socio-environmental co-benefits.  An engineering or science background can be beneficial but not required.  The modules are as follows:
  • Orientation to Hydro Mini-Grids
  • Social Enterprise Models for Mini-Grids
  • Demand Assessment
  • Water Resource Assessment
  • Terrain Assessment
  • Power Output Design

What time commitment is required?

The training is flexible in design to accommodate your busy schedule.  Participants are encouraged to attend a live kick-off session on February 7, as well as weekly live sessions for Q&A and discussion for each module of the 6-week program.  In between the live sessions participants will be expected to do self-paced learning using the SEEED learning management system. Although optional, the live synchronous sessions will provide a valuable opportunity to connect with experts and peers. They will be planned for morning Sub-Saharan Africa and afternoon/evening Asia Pacific time zones.
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The time commitment for each of the 6 training modules is estimated as follows:
  • Kickoff session: 1 hour (Optional)
  • Live Q&A and peer-to-peer dialogue: 1 to 2 hours./week (Optional)  
  • Self-work: 1 to 2 hours/week (Required)

Registration

Registration is now open! CLICK HERE TO REGISTER no later than February 1, 2021.  All interested individuals are welcome to apply to join the training.  

Other opportunities to look out for

Stay tuned for additional training opportunities coming up in 2022!  We will soon announce registration for two subsequent trainings, taking place in March:

Climate Resilient Solutions to Hydro Mini-Grids: March 21 - 25
We are excited to conduct a 4-day training on leveraging watershed management and Indigenous governance values and ecological knowledge to enable climate resilience of community hydro systems. 

Agroecological Benefits of Hydro Mini-grids: March 28 - 31
How can community hydro electricity and watersheds support sustainable food production?  Learn how and exchange ideas in this 5-day training on agroecological benefits of hydro mini-grids.

​Sign up for our newsletter to stay in the know and feel free to direct any questions to  secretariat@hpnet.org.


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"HIDDEN NO MORE":  AN INTERVIEW WITH A MINI HYDRO SHAREHOLDER, HASANA FATIMI

12/10/2020

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Our Hidden No More series features women micro hydro practitioners who have transformed gender barriers to generate energy access for marginalized communities.  While our past interviews focused on women who facilitated micro hydro as members of the implementing organization, in this edition we have the rare opportunity to feature a woman leader from within the community, Ms. Hasana Fatimi.

Hasana is a local hero amidst the most isolated and remote valley of Chitral, Pakistan. Her journey is embedded in the thriving community-based and women share-holding models that have transformed micro and mini hydropower (MH) development across the most inaccessible, yet the most beautiful valleys across Pakistan.   This approach to MH has been developed by the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) as a part of its community-owned utilities initiative.

Special thanks goes out to our Board member Meherban Khan, AKRSP's Coordinator for Utility Companies, for helping to make this interview possible.

PictureHasana Fatimi. Credit: H.Fatimi
Can you tell us a bit about yourself?

I am Hasana Fatimi. I belong to a small village of 200 households called Bang, located in Yarkhun Valley, of Upper Chitral District in Pakistan. I am one of the few women in this valley and the only female in my family with a master’s degree.

​Currently, I work as a sales officer in the Yadgar Utility Public Limited Company, our community-owned utility that supplies electricity to 1200 households (in 24 villages, including Bang) using electricity generated from a 800kW mini hydro system. I’ve been working here for the last three years.




How did your education, i.e. master’s degree, help you in your professional life?

We belong to a very isolated area in the northern part of ChitraI. I enrolled in Abdul Wali Khan University in Chitral for the master’s program and graduated in 2017. My village and the university were 150 km apart, connected through a broken road, and hence I lived at my relatives place which was close to the university. The knowledge gained during my university life has helped me immensely in my professional career.  

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Bang village, Chitral. Credit: AKRSP
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Bang village, Chitral. Credit: Google Earth
How do you identify yourself -- a women entrepreneur, a community leader, or an energy practitioner?

In this valley, women haven’t had a lot of opportunities to work and contribute to their household. After completing my education, I started my career as a teacher in a private school but that felt insufficient, as I wanted to do something for the women in this area. I then decided to be an entrepreneur, as I always wanted to be an inspiration for the women in my region. I wanted to show them that everything is possible, to dream big and to aspire for more meaningful things in life.  
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Hasana Fatimi working at the Yadgar Utility Company. Credit: H.Fatimi
How did mini hydropower arrive in Bang village, and how were women involved? 

Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) has formed and mobilized village organizations that are led by both men and women. They are combined to form a cluster known as Community Organization (CO) of which all men and women of the village can become a member. The CO put in a request to AKRSP for a 800 kW mini hydro plant. Before that they had a 50 kW and 100 kW plant constructed by AKRSP, which were only used for lightning purposes and didn’t equip us in cooking or business ventures.   
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Yadgar Utility Company mini hydro powerhouse. Credit: AKRSP
On the basis of this resolution by village men and women, AKRSP started work on the design, site selection, feasibility, fund arrangement etc. The women were present in all meetings, dialogues and identification areas component. Women were involved in the construction phase, and were part of the supervisory and management committee of the cluster board. However, they didn’t take part in the design phase, as it is technical work and women are not educated enough to carry out that task. 

How is AKRSP facilitating mini hydro efforts in Yarkhun valley?

AKRSP is a community-based development organization. It is focused on integrated rural development in Gilgit Baltistan and Chitral (GBC) region of Northern Pakistan.The Water and Energy Security (WES), funded by Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by AKRSP, is the program that supports mini hydro development in this valley.  

AKRSP, the implementing partner for our mini hydro project, had prior experience of establishing over 200 micro hydro plants and thousands of water development projects that were operated by local communities. The project was framed to transform the traditional community-based approach to manage small scale micro hydro, into modern utility companies. The project followed an ambitious, market-based financing plan, raising 20% equity, 50% donor funding (i.e. SDC), and 30% bank loan to be offset later from the carbon income [yet to materialize] and tariff collection. 
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Yadgar Utility Company site. Credit: AKRSP
AKRSP has a major role in the development of this area. It has worked in every important aspect of living and improved the living standard of the people in this valley. Basic needs like providing clean drinking water to electricity, health, education, agriculture development, roads, and every aspect of life have been improved due to the role of AKRSP. 

AKRSP supported the construction, operational phase, and funding for our mini hydro project. They invested and made us shareholders for the sustainability of the project.  Until the project becomes self-sustainable, AKRSP supports us with the maintenance and running costs of the plant.    ​
PicturePenstock and powerhouse of the Yadgar Utility Company's mini hydro system. Credit: AKRSP
They also provided technical support to our utility company, e.g. train operators and connect households to the company. They continue to assist in locating investors for the sustainable development of other mini hydro in the valley. So basically AKRSP is providing support to communities in terms of skills building and finance for the long-term sustainability of electricity in the valley. 

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​How did the local community become involved in the mini hydro project?


We underwent the usual protocol of AKRSP, which consisted of dialogues, in which the communities established the need for electricity and the willingness to engage in a micro hydro project.  The communities contributed in the construction, and eventually they became shareholders and now they are the owners in this venture. The project started around 2012, but due to financial constraints, it was delayed till 2015. It was a hybrid model of financing. Initially, it entailed a grant, followed by obtaining a loan, and ultimately it was sustained by investment from the community, who eventually became the shareholders in the project. 

The money that is usually collected through community mobilization for the formation of a maintenance fund, was later on transformed into equity. The initial minimum contribution per household was fixed around PKR 6000 to contribute to maintenance funds. The minimum contributions were set by AKRSP at PKR 10 Million for the community as a maintenance fund or community contribution for the project, which is an equivalent of approximately 5% of the project cost. With the transformation of the unit into public limited companies, the initial investments/contribution of the community members were converted into shares and transferred to individual persons as share capital. The value of 1 share was set at PKR 100. Furthermore, the minimum investments were reduced to PKR 1500 for women, so that the women members of the community could also participate as shareholders/members of the company. 

How many women are involved in this project and what is their background?

More than 400 women are shareholders in this mini hydro project. A small portion of the women are educated and most of them are housewives, but many of them have started their own businesses at household level. In this mini hydro project, we have obtained a loan and our sales are not high enough to meet the loan repayment, given the high operational and maintenance costs. But we are moving in the right direction and by 2023, we will hopefully repay the entire loan and then the company will receive profits, and we will receive shareholder dividends.  

What was it like for the women in the area before the mini hydro project? 

We had everything in terms of natural resources, but we didn't have electricity to ensure basic facilities and sustainable development in the valley. There were no diesel generators and everyone used kerosene lamps. 

PictureWomen cooking using kerosene lamps. Credit: AKRSP
There was a rare case of a kerosene stove for cooking, but it was destroying the food quality due to the smell. Most of the locals in the valley were using firewood and cutting down the precious forests of the valley. 
We would spend most of our time gathering fodder for the livestock, fetching fuelwood for heating purposes, and using indigenous techniques for threshing grains, which was very tough and time-consuming.   

According to you, what has been the overall impact of the mini hydro project in Bang village?

Bang village consists of 200 households and the mini hydro plant is 7 km away from the households. Community-based hydro has been operational here since 1995 when AKRSP first constructed the 50 kW micro hydro system, but it only fulfilled the basic needs of lighting for the households across the valley. So there were various restrictions in place for using electric appliances such as rods, heaters, rice cookers, and ovens, which didn’t fulfill our basic needs. 

After the completion of the 800 kW mini hydro project, the majority of households started using electric appliances for cooking meals, chapati, tea making and heating purposes. This has not only resulted in increased output and productivity, but has also helped us to focus on our children because it saves us time and energy.

PictureWoman cooking using electric stove. Credit: AKRSP
Before the mini hydro, women in the area spent a major chunk of their day washing clothes and making butter manually, as households have a good number of livestock in the valley. Now use of the washing machine and butter churner will save us a lot of time, which are used for productive purposes. In addition, use of electricity for cooking will also save time, as cooking meals with fuel wood not only required more time but the smoke was hazardous for health too.  ​

PictureWoman working at a utility store in Bang village. Credit: AKRSP
New businesses are also propping up as a result of the additional electricity, which have improved the living standards in the valley. In fact, it has been amazing to see that women who didn’t have formal education, have also started opening up their own businesses, due to the availability of electricity in the area.

Moreover, people have started educating themselves at night, due to the availability of internet facilities. This wasn’t possible before, as there wasn’t enough electricity, but this is a huge change now, which will have a positive impact on the literacy rates and livelihoods of the valley. 
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A mother and a son studying at night using electricity from the mini hydro system. Credit: AKRSP
Before this mini hydro project, there were no hospitals or lab facilities in the valley. Thanks to the electricity now, we have hospitals that not only have maternity services available, but also have birthing centres to ensure safe and healthy child births in the valley. Moreover, we can see that the health of the locals, especially the women, has improved due to the hospital and the easy access to it now. The general diseases in the area have also reduced, and the eye problems in particular have reduced considerably. 
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The scope of this mini hydro project is very diverse and it has been a blessing for the people of this area. All in all, the scope and impacts of mini hydro are very positive and diverse, and it has had a life changing role for our society.

Tell us about your first encounter with the mini hydro project, and what are your daily responsibilities? 

I participated in an interview for the position of a sales officer in the Yadgar Utility Company and was selected. When I started my job, I got the opportunity to interact with people in the mini hydro sector, and also with the community directly on a daily basis. 
My daily routine involves selling prepaid electricity units and collecting cash in return. I look after the Vending Point System, where consumers come and top up their prepaid cards in return for electricity. Everyday I meet 7-8 women, who visit the Vending Point System and I guide them in starting their own micro-business. 
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Hasana Fatimi at the Vending Point System selling pre-paid electricity. Credit: H.Fatimi
I also link the customers to the training section of the utility company, which provides training in business management, bookkeeping, business planning etc. Moreover, I connect the locals who are seeking loans to set up their own businesses, with the most suitable institutions.  

How does the Vending Point System work and how accessible are they?

The Bang village spans across an area of 16 kilometers and it is divided into four areas. Every person has to travel 1km to reach the Vending Point System.
PictureA transaction at the Vending Point System. Credit: AKRSP
We have four Vending Points Systems, in which 5-6 villages are connected to each other. There are only two Vending Point System managers in the entire valley of 1200 households. Out of these four Vending Point Systems, two are managed by women, and two are closed. This is very inspirational for women in the valley, as it indicates that women are not only able to operate this technology, but are entrusted with this very crucial component of the mini hydro system. The Vending Point System means that there is a prepaid system in place, where each person has a card. The locals come to the Vending Point System and tops up their cards with kW units, by paying cash and loading the kW into their respective electricity meters. 

What kind of impact do you see from your role of advising the enterprise for women?

Earning money and contributing to the household makes the women independent. My guidance and support to the women in my valley has helped them start their own household businesses and they are now able to contribute to their household finances. They now have a chance to highlight their local products in the national and international markets too. This includes learning skills, such as the sewing machine and embroidery, that results in beautiful clothes for the women. 
PictureA woman ironing clothes using electricity from the community mini hydro system, while her child looks outside. Credit: AKRSP

Women are also now more aware and preserve their excess food, such as milk and chicken, in the refrigerators due to the availability of electricity. This includes apricot, pear, cherry, peach, apple and other fruits. The fruits are then further made into various jams using the electricity, mainly in the months of september and october, when the fresh fruits are available. The jams are used in the household, and also sold in the nearby households across the valley. In order for these jams to be sold in the market, we need machinery and a sustainable business model, with proper training in packaging and marketing. That would lead to an increased income generation and improved livelihoods across our valley. 

Was there difficulty at the start to convince the women to do business?

Initially, it was a challenge to mobilize them. They were afraid to start their own businesses, as they were afraid of failing and losing their hard earned money. This idea was and is still being complemented by the men, who blame them for failing and hence, they’re a little hesitant now. 

AKRSP is providing these women with soft loans now, and this is a great incentive for women to take risks now. This has led to women giving back to their household and has earned them great respect in the community now.
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Hasana, did you yourself face any challenges because you're a woman, at any time during university, or education, or during your project?

Being a woman, I had to face the patriarchal attitudes of the people in the valley. I also need to account for the societal pressures and geographical limitations that are imposed on women. Moreover, it was a great challenge to fund my university education and then finding a job after graduating, was another uphill battle that I fought. I now have to keep a fine balance between my job and the household chores.

Furthermore, it was not easy to equip the local community. I mobilized the women and explained to them the dynamics of the area. During my professional life, people would sometimes come in the evening and ask to charge their card, and this is not easy for women to manage. Men would come to the Vending Point Systems after 6 o'clock to top up their cards, and in some instances, I’ve had to go to the point after office hours, and top up their cards. 

Do you see both young and old women interested to start their own businesses?

Educated women are more focused on their education, and are trying to get out of the valley in search of better opportunities. Other women who are enrolled in post-graduate degrees, are starting their own businesses too. However, unmarried women are preferring jobs as they have to shift to other areas after getting married, and hence might not be able to work then. This is because they know that after getting married, they might have to relocate to possibly even more remote areas or go into more conservative families - where they might not find a job or be able to work respectively. In this area, we have 10-15 businesses that have been started by women, out of which, 10 have been started by older women.

If the women weren’t involved in this mini hydro project, what do you think would have been the outcome?

Without the women, the result will only be 30% of what we have now. The demand for electricity by women is very high, as they’re using electrical appliances at home. Most importantly, we’re now shareholders in the project, and are a major part of the decision making process. They're part of the discourse now, are negotiating their demands and are discussing important issues such as prices and tariff-designs. They're debating on the frontline now, and this is very encouraging for the women community across our valley.

What impact has the mini hydro project have on you/how has your knowledge and experience developed?

Dealing with a diverse group of people has definitely broadened my view of the world. Moreover, supporting conflict resolution in the community has enhanced my skills greatly. In the beginning, I was a little hesitant to engage with the community, but I adjusted eventually. Now I’m extremely motivated to spread awareness and solve the issues of the community. 

What other programs can support women? What kind of solution do you think can help? 

Equitable business opportunities, vocational training, and household level decision making are extremely vital in the upliftment of the women in our society. If the women in my valley become more financially independent, then they’ll be able to exercise greater power in the household decision making.
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Vending Point System operator. Credit: AKRSP
What is your hope to improve women's lives in your community?

Financial support by the NGOs and the government, women empowerment, vocational training and motivating women to start their own businesses will be extremely essential to uplift the women in our valley. We need to attract them to entrepreneurship, and help them learn the necessary skills to promote their local products and culture to the world.
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Yarkhun Valley in Chitral, Pakistan. Credit: Google Earth

For more insights on AKRSP's work, be sure to check out our program case study Evolution to Inclusive Social Enterprise.
 
If you enjoyed this Hidden No More interview, sign up below to receive our newsletter and hear from other women change-makers in the sector!
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MANAGEMENT APPROACHES FOR SUSTAINABLE HYDRO MINI-GRIDS

8/29/2020

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We are glad to have Mr. Bikash Uprety, Technical Advisor at Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH to kindly share his thoughts on micro hydro management models, with a focus on Nepal's experience.

PictureCredit: Bikash Uprety
​In his recent Linkedin article, he explores four different management models, namely the community-based model, the cooperative model, the private management model, and the leasing model.

​Moreover, he also outlines strategies and three phases of planning to effectively implement micro hydro projects.

The full text of the article can be accessed here.

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WATCH: STREAMSIDE CHATS - EDITION 1, RECOVERY & RESILIENCE

6/30/2020

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Introducing:  StreamSide Chats
​

We’re excited to announce the launch of a new video podcast series: StreamSide Chats!  Through this platform we’ll chat with experienced practitioners about the ins and outs of small-scale hydropower and its wide-reaching implications for community empowerment. Join us, as we discuss technology, policy, environment, social impact and other multifaceted aspects of energy access and community-scale hydropower.  ​StreamSide Chats brings together grassroots innovators and international experts, providing firsthand insights from the field, framed within broader, multi-country and multi-thematic analysis.

Edition 1: “Recovery and Resilience” - PART 1​
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Our first StreamSide Chat kicks off the series with a timely discussion of the centrality of energy access to an inclusive COVID-19 recovery, and the role of micro/mini hydropower in building back more resilient systems. HPNET manager, Dipti Vaghela, chats with decentralized renewable energy specialist, Divyam Nagpal, who shares his thoughts on shaping long-term recovery and resilience through the lens of energy access. The Chat highlights the need to rethink the way we measure impact -- to prioritize long-term objectives and support local actors.​
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Edition 1: “Recovery and Resilience” - PART 2

In Part 2, Director of Clean Energy at Winrock International, Bikash Pandey, joins the discussion, bringing three decades of  experience in policy review, program design and implementation across all decentralized renewable energy (DRE) technologies. We chat about the missed opportunity of micro/mini hydropower as the mini-grid underdog, and best practices for supporting resilient, high social impact solutions providing lessons for the rural economic recovery needed ahead.

Join the discussion!
​

How do you think COVID-19 recovery and resilience can be shaped from the lens of energy access? 
​​What barriers prevent us from shifting from kilowatts to social impact?​

Over the next few days, we’ll be posting these questions and more, in our post-Chat social media forum. Share your insights on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. 
  • Twitter - @HPNEThydro
  • Facebook - @hydroempowerment
  • LinkedIn - Hydro Empowerment Network (HPNET)

In case you missed it
​

Earlier this year we released a new video, providing a glimpse of how local micro/mini hydro practitioners collaborate with off-grid communities to advance sustainable development. 

Check it out, to better understand small-scale hydro, “the underdog” of decentralized renewables, and its proven long-term socioeconomic benefits. 

WATCH: Who Are We: The Hydro Empowerment Network (HPNET)
​
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EXCHANGE VISIT TO advance micro hydro in NORTHEAST INDIA

12/17/2019

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PictureRams in route to NEPeD site. Credit: NEPeD
Nagaland is one of the "seven sisters of India," the seven northeastern states of India, endowed with a multitude of indigenous communities, rich biodiversity and extensive hilly forests.

Earlier this month in Nagaland with support from WISIONS, HPNET organized a knowledge exchange visit for Ramasubramanian Vaidhyanathan, the Board of Representative Member for India also known as "Rams", to share his micro hydro expertise with practitioners at Nagaland Empowerment of People through Energy Development (NEPeD).

NEPeD has a well established approach and direction to do sustainable micro hydro projects. Moreover, due to NEPeD's work doing in-house manufacturing at their CERES facility, it is well positioned to support local practitioners and advance the sector throughout Northeast India. This visit aimed to support NEPeD in building on its considerable achievements

Through decades of work on micro hydropower initiatives in Eastern Ghats of India and elsewhere globally, Rams has earned the title of "micro hydro guru" within the network. He supports training, design and manufacturing of Pelton, crossflow, and pump-as-turbines, along with system-wide implementation aspects.

​The exchange visit endeavoured to synergize NEPeD's committed efforts to Rams' several decades of expertise, in order to advance sustainable micro hydro sector in northeast India. More specifically, the purpose of the visit was to:
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  • Assess casting facilities and raw material availability;
  • Assess the fabrication workshop and team at Centre for Excellence for Renewable Energy Studies (CERES);
  • Assess what other turbines could be fabricated with the present infrastructure
  • Visit one or two sites to assess the implementation issues, ownership model, revenue generation, etc.

Rams gave a positive assessment of the casting facilities and availability of raw material. He has reported back that the CERES has a well equipped fabrication workshop with CNC operated lathe and milling machines, an arc welding machine, angle grinder and cutting machine. Casting fabrication is outsourced to the neighbouring institution, the Nagaland Tool and Training Centre. The aluminum castings for the runner buckets and the PMG cores are sourced from Guwahati foundries.

As for his assessment of the CERES fabrication workshop and team, Rams shared that the workshop is well positioned to fabricate turbines of up to 50 kW, and that the team is highly motivated and experienced in the installation of turbines. Moreover, in addition to the fabrication centre, there is a test rig available to test turbines, ram pumps and electric load controllers (ELCs). 

Rams found that with the existing infrastructure, Pelton turbines and cross-flow turbines can easily be fabricated at CERES up to a capacity of 50 kW. He advised that larger units can be taken up once the team gets hands-on experience on the 50 kW scale.

In addition, communities supported by NEPeD do horticulture that can have significantly greater local economic benefits with electricity-based processing.  Enabling this requires the NEPeD pico hydro systems to be upgraded to micro hydro capacities that can generate enough electricity for horticulture livelihoods. HPNET's facilitation of multi-stakeholders to move forward in this direction is a part of our initiative Social Enterprise for Energy, Ecological and Economic Development (SEEED).

Based on the outcomes of the visit, we foresee NEPeD upscaling its capacities as well as playing an important role as a regional practitioner advancing the micro hydro sector in northeast India.

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Rams at NEPeD hydroger site. Credit: NEPeD
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PELTON TURBINE TRAINING AT CREATECH, Philippines

12/11/2019

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Last month, practitioners from Philippines and Malaysia gathered for a training session on Pelton micro hydro turbine fabrication. The session was the second part of a two-part training organized by HPNET and Sibol Ng Agham At Teknolohiya (SIBAT), to strengthen local capacities in fabrication and manufacturing.

The training responded to the knowledge exchange needs of HPNET Members in the Philippines and Malaysia who require skills to design and build Pelton micro hydro turbines.

Following an online training in November, the in-person training ran from December 2 - 7 and was held at SIBAT's Center for Renewable Energy and Appropriate Technology (CREATech) in Capas, Tarlac, Philippines. The overall aim was for participants to acquire knowledge of the design, manufacturing and testing of Pelton turbines, including fabrication of the Pelton runner assembly.
Participants benefited from an opportunity for hands-on learning, in addition to technical and theoretical presentations. 

Within Pelton Turbine Design, sub-topics covered included:
  • Single and multi jet turbines;
  • Vertical and horizontal axis turbines;
  • Direct and belt drive systems;
  • Net head calculations and shaft calculations;
  • Pelton runner sizing;
  • Bearing and belt selection;
  • Other components.

The resource person for this training was HPNET Member Mr. Ajith Kumara from Simple Engineering, a senior micro and mini hydropower specialist based in Sri Lanka. Mr. Kumara has extensive experience training practitioners in design and fabrication aspects of various electro-mechanical components of small-scale hydropower.

This training was made possible by SIBAT, WISIONS and Simple Engineering.


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INDONESIA - PHILIPPINES EXCHANGE

11/25/2019

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HPNET members in Indonesia and the Philippines are joining forces to provide high quality micro hydro equipment to community-based projects in Mindanao.

The ASEAN Centre for Hydropower Competance (HYCOM) and Pt Entec Indonesia, both global experts for micro hydro technology transfer, are supporting the Yamog Renewable Energy Development Group, Inc., the pioneering NGO committed for nearly three decades to providing electricity to marginalized communities in Mindanao, to explore establishing local manufacturing of cross-flow turbines.  

After multiple online exchanges, in June 2019 HPNET Board members Gerhard Fischer and Ardi Nugraha visited Yamog in Davao City to gauge the local team's capacity for local manufacturing.  Then in October 2019, Yamog's technical leads visit Pt Entec and HYCOM in Bandung, Indonesia to better understand quality standards practiced in Indonesia.  The collaboration is gradually moving toward the goal of locally manufactured cross-flow turbines in Mindanao.

HPNET facilitated the start of collaboration between PT Entec and Yamog in 2018 and the network has benefited immensely from the ongoing contributions of both organizations. It is great to see continuous knowledge exchange (often self-initiated, as in this case) between these long-standing HPNET Members.
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HPNET AT KIREC 2019

10/28/2019

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This past week, HPNET took part in several panel discussions at KIREC 2019, the 8th International Renewable Energy Conference. Thank you to REN21 and other organizers for an informative week, and for the opportunity to take part! We'd like to thank Sustainable Energy for All (SEforALL) and Alliance for Rural Electrification for inviting us to share on public-private partnerships for sustainable community-scale hydro. Our thanks also go to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) for the opportunity to discuss socio-economic impacts of energy transformation.
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HPNET Manager, Dipti Vaghela, and HPNET Member Ayu Abudullah, at KIREC 2019. Credit: HPNET
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INDONESIA:  TRAININGS AND EXPOSURE VISITS HOSTED BY ASEAN HYDROPOWER COMPETANCE CENTRE (HYCOM)

10/8/2019

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Micro hydro development in Indonesia started around 1991 with the support of GIZ (German international cooperation). Later on, Energising Development (EnDev) Indonesia implemented many MHP projects until 2014, with Entec AG Swiss / PT Entec Indonesia as consultants. 

The ASEAN Hydro Competence Centre (HYCOM) was inaugurated in 2011 and is jointly operated and managed by PT Entec Indonesia and the Technical Education Development Centre Bandung (TEDC). In addition to PT Entec and TEDC, HYCOM was established with the support of:
  • ASEAN Center for Energy (ACE) and GIZ
  • Entec AG
  • Renewable Energy Platform Swiss (REPIC)
  • University FH Technik (Zurich)

HYCOM works to promote small-scale hydropower and disseminate know-how in the sector. Offering hands-on training and application oriented research, HYCOM endeavours to improve the implementation and operation of small-scale hydropower installations worldwide. To date, HYCOM has conducted about 40 trainings and workshops with 350 participants from 25 countries, and has hosted approximately 500 visitors from all over the world.

​This quarter HYCOM conducted three knowledge transfer activities, which are described below by guest bloggers and HPNET Board Members, Mr. Gerhard Fischer and Mr. Ardi Nugraha.

TRAINING FOR MICRO HYDRO OPERATORS

In the past 3 months, HYCOM conducted two trainings for micro hydro operators. The trainings focused on Operation and Maintenance concepts and procedures, economic consequences of neglected maintenance, safety issues, understanding turbine characteristics and other practical issues of operation from water hammer, cavitation, synchronizing, alignment, balancing issues and very important  environmental issues. The attending practitioners raised many practical issues from their experience, which will help us to improve our trainings with relevant subjects. 

Training 1: Operators of Indonesian small hydro plants (July 8 - 12, 2019)

In July, HYCOM facilitated a training for 12 participants by PLN (Indonesia's government-owned utility) and KfW (a German state-owned development bank) “Sustainable Hydro Power Program”. This program was hosted at PUSDIKLAT (a training centre of PLN) involving 3 trainers from Germany. The training involved activities at the HYCOM centre, which made use of the hydro laboratory equipment, as well as visits to hydropower sites near Bandung (750 kW, 2MW up to 1000 MW).
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Trainees on a field visit to a mini-hydro project, examining the electro-mechanical equipment. Credit: A. Nugraha
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Trainees at HYCOM centre in Bandung, Indonesia. Credit: A. Nugraha
Training 2: Operators of Sarawak, Malaysia mini hydro plant (Sept. 29 - Oct. 4, 2019)
A training event was held for 9 operators and engineers from the power utility of Sarawak, Malaysia. The training was conducted by PT Entec using the HYCOM laboratory equipment and visiting MHP equipment manufacturers, as well as visiting one hydropower plant near Bandung to study the maintenance system. (The plant, a 250 kW standalone MHP in a tea plantation, has been operational for 17 years using equipment made in Bandung.)
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Malaysia-Indonesia training and exchange event at HYCOM centre. Credit: A. Nugraha
EXPOSURE VISIT:  Ethiopia Practitioners (Aug. 30 - 31, 2019)
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As early as 2008, an exchange of MHP know-how and turbine manufacturer training was held in Indonesia, conducted by PT Entec Indonesia and financed by GIZ. Participants from Ethiopia and Indonesia came together to learn general MHP know-how, and they received a license training for the T15- 300 cross flow turbine used in hundreds of MHP projects worldwide.

The achievements of this training were that three T15 cross flow turbine sites and some propeller low head were installed in Ethiopia and local manufacturers had “new ideas“ to improve their low cost turbines up to 25 kW.
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Indonesia-Ethiopia Exchange Event, 2008. Credit: PT Entec Indonesia
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Indonesia-Ethiopia Exchange Event, 2008. Credit: PT Entec Indonesia
This past August, PT Entec conducted another exchange event with participants from Ethiopia. From August 30th to 31st 2019, a delegation of EnDev Ethiopia visited Indonesia for an exposure visit. GIZ is presently planning the implementation 9 micro hydro sites in the frame of the EnDev project. The delegation (consisting of 3 GIZ/EnDev staff and 3 government officials) visited the HYCOM training centre, which is established at P4TK-BMTI, a training institution for vocational teachers in Indonesia. P4TK-BMTI is presently taking care of renewable energy (hydro, PV, biomass, wind) on the vocational school level. The delegation expressed interest to cooperate with this institution for vocational training in future.

We see a good opportunity for HPNET to support a south-south technology transfer linking the experiences of the network with the African micro hydro market.

Interested in a video tour of HYCOM?  Check out the video below!

Guest blog post written by Mr. Gerhard Fischer (Director of PT Entec Indonesia and HYCOM, and HPNET Board of Advisors Member) and Mr. Ardi Nugraha (Senior Manager of PT Entec Indonesia and HYCOM, and HPNET Board of Representatives Member for Indonesia).

They can be reached at 
office@entec.co.id 
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EXCHANGE VISIT:  MICRO HYDRO PIONEERS IN MALAYSIA AND THE PHILIPPINES

10/6/2019

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This week, the SIBAT and CREATech team, from Luzon, Philippines, took the initiative to complement their 25 years of micro hydro development in the northern Philippines with a learning visit to Tonibung and CREATE’s work in Sabah, Borneo Malaysia.  Tonibung has been the pioneer of community-based micro hydro systems in Malaysia for 25+ years, focusing on indigenous communities and social enterprise.  Tonibung closely collaborates with Green Empowerment.  HPNET's collective knowledge has been greatly enriched by the active membership of all five organizations.
The SIBAT team took time to understand Tonibung’s local manufacturing developments and their approach to linking MHPs to social enterprise for scaling productive end use.

The team visited Longkogungan village and Kalanggaan village, along with Tonibung staff members Bill Baxter and Willery Larry, and Green Empowerment staff member Dan Frydman.

Here is what SIBAT engineer Ms. Benazir Bacala has to say about the recent visit:

“Visiting the sites of Tonibung made me appreciate more the work of NGOs. It was an adventure that we could never forget, risky hiking,  lots of crossing rivers...Very inspiring how Tonibung and its staff were also able to reach those villages in remote areas to provide sustainable energy to the communities and their efforts and dedication to help the people.

We learned a lot about their MHP with Pelton turbines, both direct couple and belt-driven systems, that were locally manufactured at CREATE.”
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PT ENTEC TEAM VISITS TONIBUNG IN MALAYSIA

9/20/2019

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PictureHPNET Board members from Pt Entec Indonesia at CREATE in Sabah, Malaysia. Image credit: A. Lasimbang
​

Last week, HPNET members in Indonesia and Malaysia came together to share their micro hydropower expertise and support each other's important work in energy access. HPNET Board members Gerhard Fischer and Ardi Nugraha of PT Entec Indonesia visited the TONIBUNG team at CREATE in Sabah, Malaysia to provide input on turbine design and fabrication techniques.

TONIBUNG has pioneered community-based micro hydro in Malaysia, working in partnership with  remote, indigenous communities for over 25 years. Despite their ample experience and expertise, the team is always looking for opportunities to improve their techniques and expand their impact.

HPNET facilitated the start of the partnership between TONIBUNG and PT Entec, way back when, and the network has benefited immensely from the ongoing contributions of both organizations. It is great to see continuous knowledge exchange (often self-initiated, as in this case) between these long-standing HPNET Members.
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JOIN US - LAUNCH OF HPNET'S 2019 WEBINAR SERIES!

3/24/2019

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In partnership with the WISIONS of Sustainability Initiative and Energypedia, we are conducting a 4-part, quarterly webinar series on hydro mini-grids -- starting this month.   Join us!  Details below.

Renewable energy mini-grids are a cost-effective and reliable solution for energy access. Within the technologies available for mini-grids, micro/mini hydropower (MHP) has added advantages. It's techno-economic characteristics, such lower levelized cost of electricity, per kilowatt cost, and no need for battery storage, make it economically viable for grid interconnection and productive end use applications.

​Because MHP hardware can be manufactured locally and maintained by local actors, MHP development imparts local skills and jobs, which can evolve into local MHP enterprises. In addition, MHP strengthens catchment area and watershed protection, in turn increasing the climate resilience of vulnerable communities in hilly regions.

The number of hydro mini-grids in rural areas of Asia, Africa, and Latin America far exceed other types of mini-grids. As a proven technology with an extensive track record, micro and mini hydropower is the focus in this mini-grid webinar series. The objective of the series is to facilitate exchange among diverse actors advancing small-scale hydro, and promote approaches that lead to long-term success and optimal local benefits. Each of the four webinars will respectively provide insight on MHP reliability, sustainability, financing, and planning for scalability.

WEBINAR 1, MARCH 28, 2019
MINI-GRID RELIABILITY:  THE ROLE OF TRAINING CENTERS FOR MICRO/MINI HYDROPOWER
Watch here:​

Stay tuned for the upcoming webinars here at this link!

WEBINAR 2, LATE JUNE

MINI-GRID FINANCING:  ENABLING THE ROLE OF LOCAL BANKS

WEBINAR 3, LATE SEPTEMBER
MINI-GRID SUSTAINABILITY: TRANSITIONING TO ENTERPRISE-BASED MICRO HYDROPOWER

WEBINAR 4,  EARLY DECEMBER
MINI-GRID PLANNING:  DATA MAPPING TOOLS FOR MULTI-ACTORS
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MEMBER PROFILE: YAMOG'S HOLISTIC APPROACH TO MICRO HYDROPOWER IN MINDANAO, PHILIPPINES

11/8/2015

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The 10 poorest provinces of the Philippines are located on the island of Mindanao.  As with other marginalized places in our world -- where rural, indigenous populations face social exclusion, frustration, and hopelessness in the face of extractive and inequitable economic and political systems -- portions of the island are controlled by separatist movements, with innocent indigenous communities caught in the crossfire between the government and the rebels.  The situation exacerbates efforts to bring infrastructure for basic needs (e.g. potable water and electricity) and magnifies the innate challenges of rural development work in developing contexts.
In March 1993, a small, young, and local group of alternative development professionals came together with the mission to improve the socio-cultural, economic, and environmental well-being in rural Mindanao, by promoting the sustainable utilization and management of appropriate renewable energy sources and other natural resources.  Versed in technical, ecological, and social aspects of sustainable rural development, the group was called Yamog, translating as dew drops in the Cebuano language. 
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Indigenous elder of Tablo village. Photo Credit: D. Vaghela
Distinct from the conventional community development approaches at the time, the pioneers of the Yamog Renewable Energy Development Group, Inc., pursued a path that was anchored on renewable energy as a springboard towards positive, meaningful and enduring change at the grassroots level, to end decades of deprivation.  It pioneered utilizing renewable energy, not only to lessen the dependence of poor communities on fossil fuels, but also to offer it as a vehicle for marginalized communities to become sustainable.

When Yamog was established 20-years ago, nearly half of Mindanao was un-electrified.  Even now Mindinao's largest city faces daily blackouts lasting 12 hours.  Yet, the nearly 2500 households that have electrified their villages with Yamog's help do not have to rely on the central grid and can access 24/7 electricity.  Yamog continues to facilitate other communities in rural Mindanao and Visayas in generating their own electricity from micro hydro or solar power.​

The effectiveness of Yamog's work is rooted its integrated approach to community-based micro hydropower.  In each project, Yamog's long-experienced staff of 7 are committed to instilling the environmental, institutional, social, and technical aspects that are critical to the project's life.
Watershed protection and strengthening
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Because the output of any micro hydropower unit is dependent on the stream flow, Yamog's implementation process starts with a focus on rehabilitating the source of the stream -- the watershed.  Yamog works closely with the community to evaluate, protect, and strengthen the watershed of the proposed micro hydro site.  After signs of a robust watershed and the community's will to preserve it emerge, Yamog moves onto installing the micro hydro hardware.

The process can add an extra year to the project implementation, often with additional communities to facilitate (e.g. where the upstream community managing the watershed is km's away from the micro hydro community downstream).  Yet, with increasing climate change impacting not only micro hydro but also the community's access to drinking and irrigation water, prioritizing resilient watersheds is well worth the added effort and time.
PictureMeeting with Yamog, the Mayor, and HPNET Coordinator. Photo Credit: Yamog
Involvement of local government

A key aspect to Yamog's work is facilitating communities to generate support from the leaders of their barangay (the most local administrative unit) for watershed strengthening and micro hydropower implementation.  Although challenging, this process has resulted in community hydropower units that have greater vested stake from the local government, and a paved path for the community to reach out to local officials regarding other village development needs. Support from local government can also help establish productive use for community income generation from micro hydropower, e.g. financing of agro processing units such oil mills and rice hullers.​

​Community governance of the technology

In parallel to watershed strengthening and micro hydro installation, Yamog facilitates the community to identify its governing strengths and build upon them, in order to develop a unified governance of the new micro hydropower unit.  Yamog staff build the capacity of community leaders to manage and lead project implementation from its start.  At various stages Yamog holds in-depth technical and institutional training for community members.  This has ensured that by the time of commissioning electricity generation, the community's governance structure can independently manage the electricity tariff collection, community fund, technical operation, maintenance, and productive use of the micro hydro system.
Local network of technical experts
​

Since Yamog does not fabricate its own turbines and load controllers, it ensures that the hardware developers commit to delivering high quality systems and local training to community-level technicians.  Having implement nearly 30 projects, Yamog has developed a village-to-village network of technical experts for civil works installation and trouble shooting of electro-mechanical components.  For example, the village masons from completed projects mentor the masons of new projects, carrying forward technical lessons of earlier projects.  This in-turn has led to a local knowledge sharing network that can sustain itself without the involvement of Yamog.  In addition, it has helped to diversify the skillsets in indigenous communities, where traditional livelihoods are at risk due to extractive activities of mainstream development.  
With a small team, instead of quantity of projects Yamog's work has focused on process and quality to ensure long-term sustainability.  Every year the team typically commits to 1-2 projects and implements them with utmost care, focusing on the elements explained above. 

While larger organizations, with greater number of staff and funding, can easily implement many projects in parallel, they can be prone to frequent staff turnover and prioritizing targets over processes.  In some cases this has led to micro hydropower units that are not long-sustained and soon need rehabilitation.  In this context, HPNET takes inspiration from Yamog's steady and process-focused momentum to establish community micro hydropower. 
​
To give you a glimpse of the Yamog's work in action, below is a brief case study of Lubo village's micro hydropower project.
​
PictureMicro hydro powerhouse. Photo Credit: D. Vaghela
Case Study:  Sustainability of Lubo Micro Hydro Project -- Two Years Later 
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The residents of Sitio Lubo continue to enjoy the benefits of having a 35-kilowatt micro-hydropower system. Since the renewable energy project was handed-over by Yamog to the Lubo Renewable Energy Community Association (LURECDA) in June 2013, the lives of the people in this isolated and marginalized community have steadily changed for the better.
 
Situated deep in the highlands of Barangay Ned, Lake Sebu in the province of South Cotabato, Sitio Lubo is an off-grid community inhabited by mostly Christian peasant settlers. It is about 65 kilometers from Koronadal City, South Cotabato.  It is populated by 150 households who, for many decades, have been resigned to their dismal fate of being deprived of opportunities that would improve their socio-economic situation. No one among them could have imagined that their vast water resource would someday lift them up from their collective sense of hopelessness and helplessness.

PictureYamog team with micro hydro community leaders. Photo Credit: D. Vaghela
At present, 127 households and selected strategic locations of the community are now brightly  illuminated at night by energy-saving bulbs. In effect, the 35-kilowatt water-driven renewable energy system has freed the residents of Lubo from decades of heavy dependence on kerosene as the main form of household lighting at night, and as a major source of energy for other community and household activities.
 
Moreover, about 20 households have engaged in small income generating activities after having procured refrigerators to store locally-made food products (which are kept fresh because of the presence of 24-hour electricity) for sale. Taking advantage of the presence of electricity, both men and women can also engage in income generating activities even at night. Schoolchildren are inspired to work on their nightly home works because of the presence of good lighting within their households. Gone were the days when they had to contend with the unsteady illumination from kerosene lamps which spewed a lot of carbon dioxide that endangered their health.

As a result, the Lubo micro-hydropower system is estimated to prevent the release of some 136 tons of carbon dioxide annually into the atmosphere as the community veers away from fossil fuel (i.e. kerosene and diesel generators). The modest contribution of this community to address global warming is manifested in its commitment to protect its watershed. Around 10 percent of monthly operation and maintenance funds collected from LURECDA member-households are allocated for reforestation activities. A healthy watershed also ensures steady supply of water that drives their micro-hydropower system.
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Two public schools with a total of 560 students are also now enjoying the comfort of having unhampered electricity during classes. For the first time, these students are now able to use computers for learning, while teachers can now also use computers to prepare lesson plans, learning aids, aptitude tests, and reports. Places for important social gatherings that utilize electricity for lighting and sound systems, like the Sitio Hall and local churches, are abuzz with activities.
PictureYamog micro hydro training. Photo Credit: Yamog
Early in the course of project implementation three years ago, Yamog invested a lot of effort in addressing the software component – that is social infrastructure building – a very crucial element for project sustainability. Capacity building activities in the field of technical operation and maintenance, financial management, organizational building and strengthening, and watershed management, have been conducted in order for the project beneficiaries to acquire the required knowledge, attitudes and skills that would improve their chances of effectively managing their micro-hydro system over the long term. Now it appears that all those efforts have generated very encouraging results as evidenced by the following:

  • 99% collection rate of monthly operation and maintenance contributions from member-households. LURECDA now has sufficient funds to meet operation and maintenance requirements.
  • Financial recording is excellent, with internally audited monthly and annual financial reports produced and readily made available to LURECDA members.
  • The trained power house operators, and weir/intake caretakers are still very active and committed to ensure efficient operation of vital electro-mechanical equipment that make possible the distribution of electricity to the households in the community.
  • LURECDA leaders (from the Board of Directors to the Operations and Maintenance Personnel) are in very high morale and functioning according to their assigned roles and responsibilities.
  • Regular recording on the logbook to monitor the daily performance and problems encountered at the power house is being done by the trained operators.
  • Regular cleaning of the forebay tank and the weir/intake is done every Saturday (at least for 2-hours).
  • Especially after a heavy rain, the operators are always quick to clean the weir/intake & forebay tank and rid them of any sedimentation and debris, and inspect the whole transmission and distribution lines as part of standard operation and maintenance procedures.
PictureNext generation of Sitio Lubo. Photo Credit: Yamog
Brimming with enthusiasm, the residents of Sitio Lubo are looking forward to the coming years with a list of more things to do. After two years of operating and maintaining their micro-hydropower system, plans of utilizing the almost unlimited supply of energy at daytime are afoot. Next in the drawing board are the construction of a corn mill, hammer mill (to produce feed stocks using organic raw materials for hog-raising), coffee huller, and other productive end uses of their MHP electricity. All these are aimed at raising family incomes. Fundraising for these spin-off projects would be a big challenge, but they are optimistic that they would achieve these additional facilities that they are aspiring for in the next two years.

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ONE STUDENT'S JOURNEY IN COMMUNITY MICRO HYDRO WITH HPNET

6/22/2015

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PictureACREST technician, Momanyi Oreri, fabricates a crossflow turbine runner on the lathe in his workshop in Bangang, Cameroon.
There are few singular moments in life that redefine who we are; always in retrospect, those moments are abundantly clear. In October 2010, as a wide-eyed and barely-sophomore civil engineering student, I sheepishly attended a callout event for Purdue University’s relatively new “Global Design Teams” initiative. The lights dimmed on one presentation entitled “Development of Community Power from Sustainable Small Hydro Power Systems -- A Capacity Building Project in Bangang, Cameroon”. The title alone appealed to my self-ascribed environmentalism, my burgeoning lust for nomadism, my engineering intrigue, and my misguided “do-gooder” morality. I approached the presenter, Dr. Laurent Ahiablame, after his slideshow and, informing him that I had no prior knowledge of small-scale energy projects, inquired what level of experience is required to become a member of the team. He said, “All are welcome in this field -- the technology is built for everyone. There are many people who will guide you along the way, if only you show the dedication.”

Now five years on, as I prepare to take on a new role as Projects Officer for Green Empowerment in Myanmar, I reflect on the decisions, experiences, and people that brought me from that presentation at Purdue University to this point.

Between 2011 and 2014, I took lead of the micro hydro project in Bangang village, Cameroon, tasked with developing a 40kW scheme featuring a collaboratively designed and locally fabricated crossflow turbine. Under the auspices of Purdue’s Global Engineering Program (GEP) and the African Center for Renewable Energy and Sustainable Technology (ACREST), my team ran the gamut of development successes and foibles. 

Our first turbine prototype was funded by a competitive student grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, but barely a year after its inception, and merely three weeks into testing, that prototype was permanently decommissioned due to a catastrophic, indeterminable failure in August 2012. The specific mechanical failure was quickly pinpointed and reported in great detail in the team’s 2013 publication on the incident, but the devastating incident had a great bearing on my worldview as an engineer, as evidenced in the conclusion:

“Engineers’ constant pursuit of higher efficiencies in lieu of a true understanding of appropriate technologies, often a function of culture, and the resultant failures of those biases are well documented. The subsequent necessity for cross-disciplinarity is also well understood. The most compelling prospect for future research in the micro-hydropower field relies critically on the intersection of culture and engineering. All facets of true cross-disciplinarity and multiculturalism should be explored for successful project design and implementation."

PictureIndigenous technicians at Tonibung CREATE fabricate crossflow turbine components at their workshop in Penampang, Sabah.
Upon that revelation, my attention was drawn away from the engineering jigsaw puzzle that is micro hydro systems design and reinvested more purposefully in understanding the intricate and complex cultural fray that ultimately determines the success or failure of any micro hydro project. I found kindred spirits amongst faculty and graduate students in Purdue’s Department of Anthropology. My reflection of this revelatory time was chronicled writ large in my 2014 TEDxTalk, Community Power -- Realizing Sustainability in Development. This opportunity to speak, along with one last successful bid for funding to support hybridization of the Bangang system, effectively punctuated my tenure as team leader with the takeaway lesson that nothing trumps the culture element in community micro hydro. It is the single most accurate predictor of project success and failure.

Upon graduation, I was warmly welcomed into the familial micro hydro scene of South and Southeast Asia by Dipti Vaghela, a micro hydro practitioner and network coordinator for HPNET, and Dr. Chris Greacen, a small power producer policy expert and World Bank consultant. My conversations with them paved the way for the next stage in my journey: Borneo. 

Through HPNET’s extensive network of practitioners in the region, I was quickly introduced to Gabe Wynn and Adrian Banie Lasimbang. Banie, an engineer, serves as the founding director of Tonibung, a non-profit organization located outside of Kota Kinabalu in Sabah which strives to provide rural, indigenous villages with access to clean water and electricity through renewable energy and sustainable solutions. Founded in 1991 to equip relocated indigenous peoples with the skills needed to adapt to unfamiliar agricultural circumstances, the organization now prioritizes integrated projects that serve the greatest human need, prove sustainable over time, and have the possibility of broader impact beyond any single community. Gabe, an anthropologist and environmental scientist by trade, wears two hats as a co-director of Penampang Renewable Energy Sdn Bhd (PRE) -- a social enterprise company set up to cater to Tonibung’s technical renewable energy demands, such as turbine fabrication and consultancy; and as the Borneo Program Manager for Green Empowerment -- a Portland-based community development non-profit which he has been representing in Southeast Asia since 2011.

Between December 2014 and May 2015, I had the great privilege of interning under Banie’s and Gabe’s instruction at Tonibung’s Center for Renewable Energy and Appropriate Technology (CREATE). CREATE, founded in 2013 as direct outcome of HPNET’s 1st Annual Gathering of Practitioners, is a local fabrication facility which has recently begun manufacturing high-head, low flow pelton turbines for the Malaysian context. By the time I set foot in their workshop, CREATE was already well-primed for a push into locally sourced, locally fabricated crossflow turbines -- an entirely new animal for the highly skilled indigenous workshop technicians to sink their machines into. With my background in crossflow design stemming from my years in university, it was easy for me to feel at home in the CREATE space as we co-learned the nuances of civil works design and site selection.

PictureRendering showing what the finished TMT-100 turbine is expected to look like. The design from Remote HydroLight is currently being fabricated at Tonibung CREATE in Sabah, North Borneo.
Things progress quickly at Tonibung, and by March 2015, we had a site selected for crossflow implementation in a remote Murut village of the Bornean interior called Saliku. Pulling once again from HPNET’s wealth of knowledge and resources, we contacted a legendary (and prominently open source) turbine designer, Owen Schumacher, whose 20+ years working in Afghanistan yielded the implementation of hundreds of community micro hydro sites. Owen graciously afforded us personal, in-depth design guidance, recommending a crossflow design branded the “Traditional Mill Turbine”, or TMT, by his organization, Remote HydroLight.

Fabrication of Tonibung’s first crossflow turbine for real-world application began with the TMT-100 (so named for its 100mm effective width) in late April 2015 and continues to this time of writing, with fabrication expected to be completed by July 2015. You can stay informed about CREATE’s crossflow fabrication, and all other Tonibung activites, on their Facebook page. The open source nature of Owen’s simple TMT design allows for, and necessarily encourages, modification by workshop technicians around the world according to their local context and conditions. A complete list of Remote HydroLight’s open source turbine offerings can be found here, and their contribution to the field of open source Electronic Load Controllers (ELCs) can be found here.

Certainly, there is not enough space in a single blog post to identify all, or even most, of the influencers who have blazed the trail for me to pursue community micro hydro, but suffice it to say that my experience and good fortune has depended principally on the kindness of mentors, peers, and role models to help me find each new rung of the ladder. If one thing is certain, Laurent’s assurance to me lo those 5 years ago still holds as true today as it ever did. “All are welcome in this field -- the technology is built for everyone. There are many people who will guide you along the way, if only you show the dedication.”


By Patrick Pawletko, HPNET member

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Myanmar micro Hydro Evolution:  the Impact of ground-truthing and Multi-actor dialogue

3/30/2015

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Micro hydro in Myanmar has blown us away.  

Thanks to ground-truthing research done by the Renewable Energy Association of Myanmar (REAM), we came to know that Myanmar's micro hydro practitioners quietly, over the last few decades, have been designing, fabricating, installing, and sustaining several hundreds of community-owned micro hydro projects -- without external funding or technical support!  
This type of simple, steady, and scaled implementation of micro hydro is rare without external support.  HPNET member U Sai Htun Hla has commissioned 150 pico/micro hydro projects in the last 15 years.  His mentor, over 80 years old in age, U Khun Khaw, has commissioned over 100 projects and has stopped counting. :)  There are several others, including new practitioners from a younger generation, Ko Khun Aung Myo and Ko Zaw Min, who bring university training to micro hydro engineering and design processes, e.g. CAD tools for drawings and Google for self-training.
These practitioners have self-financed most of their projects, allowing the communities to repay the capital costs within 5+ years of commissioning.  Because the projects have been commissioned on very low budgets -- affordable by local communities -- they have been forced to use low quality hardware and no load controllers, leading to frequent technical issues.

But things are changing for the better:
  • In Nov. 2014, HPNET member U Aung Myint, General Secretary of REAM, spearheaded a practice-to-policy exchange on micro hydro, with support from the WISIONS SEPS grant and many others.  The exchange brought proven experts from Indonesia, Nepal, and Sri Lanka to Myanmar to firsthand dialogue with policy-makers, civil society groups, international aid organizations, and practitioners.
  • REAM's Nov. workshop encouraged the SE4ALL initiative -- led by the Myanmar government and the World Bank's off-grid energy program -- to invite the local practitioners to give their first-ever Power Point presentation and that too to an audience of high-level government, World Bank, and other national decision-makers!
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  • HPNET invited 2 Myanmar practitioners to its 2nd Annual Gathering of Practitioners, in Bandung, Indonesia, with WISIONS' support.  The practitioners were immensely inspired by the Indonesia's thriving private sector for micro hydro.  They saw the resulting transformation of turbine and load controller fabricators who had started with little experience but now offered standardized and fail-proof products.  With support from GIZ, the Indonesian fabricators had long formed an association of micro hydro developers, the Asosiasi Hidro Bandung, which has 100+ members committed to high quality micro hydro development and to lobbying for supportive policy.  The Indonesian progress relayed much-needed confidence to the Myanmar practitioners to build high quality hardware, be financially sustainable, and attract talented young engineers to their micro hydro work.
  • The Myanmar practitioners were so inspired by the Indonesians, that within days of returning from the HPNET meeting, they kick-started their own association.  The Small Hydro Power Association of Myanmar (SHPAM) is now collectively voicing for targeted financing, technical knowledge, and institutional capacity building to upgrade their work. 
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  • We eagerly await to see whether SHPAM's requests are answered by the agencies involved -- particularly the World Bank, as it is assisting the Myanmar government to design its SE4ALL program this month!  We are hopeful that micro hydro and other renewable energy mini grids are equally prioritized with mainstream but disenfranchising electrification paths being considered by the government and international financiers (including the World Bank).

This evolution is an example of how ground-truthing and in-person exchange can rapidly lead to new developments.  Without REAM's study of the field situation and multi-actor dialogue, the local micro hydro practitioners in Myanmar would have remained invisible to the government and the World Bank, during a very critical phase in Myanmar's energy planning.  And without the Myanmar practitioners' visit to Indonesia, their confidence to form an association to lobby for solutions to improve their work would not have quickly transpired.

We will keep you posted on how the micro hydro (r)evolution in Myanmar continues. :)


By Dipti Vaghela, HPNET Coordinator

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