Myanmar: New sub-station expected to light up Kayin State villages

Myanmar: New sub-station expected to light up Kayin State villages

Several villages in Kayin (Karen) State may soon be hooked up to the
electrical grid once a new sub-station comes online, according to an
official from the State Electric Power Enterprise.

"We are trying to distribute power to Myawady, Kawkareik, Kyondoe, Sukali
and Waw Lay Myaing from the 230-kV Mawlamyine power station via the Thin Gan
Nyi Naung sub-station, which is 95 percent complete. We are trying to
provide 24-hour electricity in Myaing Gyi Ngu within this year," said U
Thein Shwe, a deputy chief engineer at the Kayin State Electric Power
Enterprise.

Myanmar has among the lowest electrification rates in the world. Less than a
third of the population has access to a reliable electricity supply,
according to the 2014 census.

Among the 308,000 households in Kayin State, more than 45 percent rely on
candlelight - a fire hazard - for light. Less than 30% are connected to the
national grid, which currently reaches only centralized villages proximate
to power stations - like those Hpa-an, Hlaingbwe, Zar Ta Pyin, Thandaunggyi,
Thandaunglay, and Bawkali towns.

U Thein Shwe said that will soon change with the Thin Gan Nyi Naung
sub-station. He added that plans are also in place to distribute power to Ka
Ma Maung and Hpa-pun via Kaw Lon Island. A planned 33/11 kV sub-station
would also distribute power to Kya-in Seikkyi township.

Myanmar generates far less electricity than it needs to meet the demand,
especially in the ballooning commercial capital, Yangon.

The energy master plan, drafted in partnership with the Asian Development
Bank, envisions 100% electrification by 2030, in part by massively scaling
up coal power plants, and connecting homes to the national grid.

In rural villages, only the lucky few have access to electricity through
costly diesel generators or solar panels. State media reported in March that
one hour of diesel power in rural Myanmar costs almost as much as running
electricity for 24-hours in Yangon.

"Everyone is waiting for the government [to provide] electricity," said U
Naing, a resident of Win Yaw from Kya-in Seikkyi Township.

"Our village only receives power from the community electricity generator
from 7pm to 9 pm. It is a burden for us since we have to pay K700 per unit.
It would help the economic growth in the region if everyone had electricity
. and could run small businesses like grinder mills and animal feed
processing mills," he added.

Under the $5.8 billion National Electrification Project (NEP), the World
Bank is subsidizing a solar panel project. The Department of Rural
Development sold and installed the reduced-cost panels at 11,442 households
in five townships in Kayin State last month.

"The state government and [private companies] have signed contracts to carry
out projects for increasing power distribution. If the coal-fired power
plant is successfully built in Wut Gyi, then electricity can be provided to
many factories and workshops," said U Tin Myo Oo, the State Hluttaw MP from
Kya-in Seikkyi township.

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Link to Original Article:
http://www.bnionline.net/news/karen-state/item/3408-new-sub-station-expected
-to-light-up-kayin-state-villages.html

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com