At the United Nations SE4ALL Forum in May 2015 there was much good discussion on mini-grids. Anytime the mini-grid technology was specified, it was assumed to be solar PV. However, there are other -- unsung but proven mini-grid technologies that have long provided electricity -- such as micro hydropower, biomass gassifiers, and small-scale wind. Needless to say, during the four-day event attended by 2000 persons and a multitude of speakers, we were ecstatic to hear at least one member of a high-level panel highlight micro hydropower! The panelist was from the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN), working across 30 countries on an array of sustainable development projects.
Northern Pakistan mountains. Photo: Ashden Awards AKDN's evolution began with the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (AKRSP) established in 1982. Since then, AKRSP has been committed to the remotest (and likely some of the most beautiful) high altitude regions -- the Northwest Frontier (Chitral) and Baltistan -- where living conditions are harsh and communities are resilient. AKRSP has blazed trails in this region, literally. With ample glacial melt waters in the region and little electrification, community micro hydropower became a flagship of AKRSP's multi-faceted, participatory rural development approach, focusing on social, economic, and institutional development. AKRSP's approach and achievements have justifiably won the prestigious Ashden Award and the Global Development Network's Japanese Award for Most Innovative Development Project.
 Capacity breakdown of AKRSP's micro hydro projects. Source: AKRSP |  Regional breakdown of AKRSP's projects in northern Pakistan. Source: AKRSP |
Micro hydro project civil works structure and penstock. Photo: AKRSP Scalability using a Participatory, Iterative Approach
AKRSP's guiding philosophy has been that marginalized communities have an innate potential to manage their own development. In fact, AKRSP was the first to facilitate community-owned and managed infrastructure in Pakistan, including micro hydropower, irrigation channels, and roads. In its earliest projects, AKRSP observed the gap between public sector services and village households. Thereof, at the core its approach has been the development of village-level organizations (VOs) that are capable of interfacing with local government agencies. As AKRSP's lead Miraj Khan writes, "VO's, when informed and empowered, can negotiate and better bargain for these [public] services on behalf of their members, than otherwise fragmented and powerless rural societies." Khan attributes its achievement of nearly 200 community-based micro and mini hydropower projects to community organizations. He also attributes the scaled success to a "living design" and "learning by doing" between AKRSP and the communities, where the program was iteratively improved based on the lessons of each project.
When AKRSP's model proved its success at scale, it was not long until mainstream development actors requested AKRSP's support to replicate the model. For example, the Sarhad Rural Support Programme (SRSP), also an Ashden awardee, came into being when USAID and the Pakistan government partnered with AKRSP. Such replication has further scaled up AKRSP's model, with VO's still at its foundation.
AKRSP's guiding philosophy has been that marginalized communities have an innate potential to manage their own development. In fact, AKRSP was the first to facilitate community-owned and managed infrastructure in Pakistan, including micro hydropower, irrigation channels, and roads. In its earliest projects, AKRSP observed the gap between public sector services and village households. Thereof, at the core its approach has been the development of village-level organizations (VOs) that are capable of interfacing with local government agencies. As AKRSP's lead Miraj Khan writes, "VO's, when informed and empowered, can negotiate and better bargain for these [public] services on behalf of their members, than otherwise fragmented and powerless rural societies." Khan attributes its achievement of nearly 200 community-based micro and mini hydropower projects to community organizations. He also attributes the scaled success to a "living design" and "learning by doing" between AKRSP and the communities, where the program was iteratively improved based on the lessons of each project.
When AKRSP's model proved its success at scale, it was not long until mainstream development actors requested AKRSP's support to replicate the model. For example, the Sarhad Rural Support Programme (SRSP), also an Ashden awardee, came into being when USAID and the Pakistan government partnered with AKRSP. Such replication has further scaled up AKRSP's model, with VO's still at its foundation.
Sarhad Rural Support Programme project in northern Pakistan. Photo: SRSP
Micro hydro stream in northern Pakistan village. Photo: Ashden Awards Leveraging the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
While the United Nations Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is one way for community-based decentralized renewable energy (DRE) projects to become financially viable, in practice few DRE developers have been able to meet the complex application requirements and the institutional bundling of smaller, kilowatt projects into substantial megawatts. In 2009, AKRSP became one of the few to successfully leverage CDM using a community-based approach, initiating a 7-year program involving 90 micro hydropower projects with a total capacity of 15 MW for rural electrification. The program, costing USD 17.42 million, has started to build AKRSP'S Community Development Carbon Fund, approved under the CDM efforts of Pakistan. For this AKRSP has an Emission Reduction Purchase Agreement (ERPA) with the World Bank. The CDM project will generate an estimated 612,342 tCO2eq (ton carbon dioxide equivalent) of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) in the first 7-year crediting period, with the option of renewing for two additional 7-year periods. As of now, 42 projects are in operation and 10 have been commissioned this year, all generating CERs. For the remaining 38 projects, AKRSP is seeking support for capital costs. Further details on the program can be found here.
While the United Nations Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) is one way for community-based decentralized renewable energy (DRE) projects to become financially viable, in practice few DRE developers have been able to meet the complex application requirements and the institutional bundling of smaller, kilowatt projects into substantial megawatts. In 2009, AKRSP became one of the few to successfully leverage CDM using a community-based approach, initiating a 7-year program involving 90 micro hydropower projects with a total capacity of 15 MW for rural electrification. The program, costing USD 17.42 million, has started to build AKRSP'S Community Development Carbon Fund, approved under the CDM efforts of Pakistan. For this AKRSP has an Emission Reduction Purchase Agreement (ERPA) with the World Bank. The CDM project will generate an estimated 612,342 tCO2eq (ton carbon dioxide equivalent) of Certified Emission Reductions (CERs) in the first 7-year crediting period, with the option of renewing for two additional 7-year periods. As of now, 42 projects are in operation and 10 have been commissioned this year, all generating CERs. For the remaining 38 projects, AKRSP is seeking support for capital costs. Further details on the program can be found here.
Productive use of electricity. Photo: AKRSP From Micro to Mini-Grids
Based on the overall progress of micro and mini hydropower in Pakistan, AKRSP has observed that most of the investment in the sector, particularly for the peripheral villages, focuses only on power generation, without addressing the issues of diversified demand of downstream users that has resulted from the change in economic conditions. AKRSP's sees great opportunity in linking increased power generation with economic and commercial activities in the main load centers for creating greater socio-economic development of the area. The productive use of energy by communities, with special focus on enterprise and income generating activities, will lead to the rapid growth of the local economy.
Based on the overall progress of micro and mini hydropower in Pakistan, AKRSP has observed that most of the investment in the sector, particularly for the peripheral villages, focuses only on power generation, without addressing the issues of diversified demand of downstream users that has resulted from the change in economic conditions. AKRSP's sees great opportunity in linking increased power generation with economic and commercial activities in the main load centers for creating greater socio-economic development of the area. The productive use of energy by communities, with special focus on enterprise and income generating activities, will lead to the rapid growth of the local economy.
To address this, AKRSP has concluded that although scattered and small villages with sufficient water flow and feasible sites naturally provide an easy option to construct a small unit for each village, in some villages the power generation is merely enough for lighting purpose. Yet in other villages, due to availability of more water, the units generate more power than needed. This situation has pushed AKRSP to think about developing a new system for improved power management and more productive use of energy created by micro hydro project with varied capacities. AKRSP’s new hydro development strategy entails increasing power output (capacities and efficiency) and connecting multiple small units for stable supply of electricity into a mini-grid, thereby creating greater economic opportunities by using micro hydropower. Similar efforts have been initiated in Indonesia, Myanmar, and Nepal. This video from Nepal explains technical aspects.
 Conceptual Power Density Map (normalized) for Northern Pakistan. Image: Thomas M. Mosier, Oregon State University |  Transmission line of micro hydropower project. Photo: AKRSP |
Micro hydro project silting tank. Photo: AKRSP AKRSP estimates that 2.3 MW of micro hydropower can be transformed from micro to mini-grids, benefiting 24 villages in two valleys of northern Pakistan. AKRSP has recently installed two mini hydropower units, of 500 kW and 800 kW, in Laspur and Yarkhun valleys of Chitral District, along with establishing two local utility companies for the operation and maintenance of these systems. AKRSP will conduct a feasibility study for connecting these units into a mini-grid that can provide power to more communities. The Laspur and Yarkhun valleys also include smaller mini-hydro units, ranging from 100-300 kW, where feasibility studies are being conducted for both mini-grids and grid inter-connectivity.
Other HPNET members have identified grid inter-connectivity and inter-linking multiple micro hydropower projects into mini-grids as prime priorities for sustaining the work of local practitioners. Local developers fuel local economies and provide better post-installation operation and maintenance services. HPNET looks very forward to learning from AKRSP's vision and firsthand experience to connect micro hydropower units at the sub-valley level, then at the valley, and finally with the national grid. While this is a common sense goal, most governments and international donors in the region are not familiar enough with its significance, especially as a viable alternative to destructive and inequitable, central-grid based power sources, such as coal and large hydropower, for rural electrification.
No doubt, in time, AKRSP will prove the viability of its vision for interconnected micro hydropower mini-grids, and HPNET will be ready to assist in transferring its know how to the region. More information and research on AKRSP's work can be found here.
By Nauman Amin and Dipti Vaghela
Other HPNET members have identified grid inter-connectivity and inter-linking multiple micro hydropower projects into mini-grids as prime priorities for sustaining the work of local practitioners. Local developers fuel local economies and provide better post-installation operation and maintenance services. HPNET looks very forward to learning from AKRSP's vision and firsthand experience to connect micro hydropower units at the sub-valley level, then at the valley, and finally with the national grid. While this is a common sense goal, most governments and international donors in the region are not familiar enough with its significance, especially as a viable alternative to destructive and inequitable, central-grid based power sources, such as coal and large hydropower, for rural electrification.
No doubt, in time, AKRSP will prove the viability of its vision for interconnected micro hydropower mini-grids, and HPNET will be ready to assist in transferring its know how to the region. More information and research on AKRSP's work can be found here.
By Nauman Amin and Dipti Vaghela
