Sustainable energy options for Cambodia discussed

Sustainable energy options for Cambodia discussed

Representatives from the Konrad Adenauer Foundation, the Ministry of
Environment and a handful of climate advocates met in Phnom Penh yesterday
to brainstorm ways the country can transition to a "sustainable energy
future".

Peter Hefele, head of Asia's energy security and climate change at the
Konrad Adenauer Foundation, said yesterday that a transition to renewable
forms of energy was "the biggest issue we focused on" but noted that, in
order to get these energy projects off the ground, Cambodia's energy
sector's regulatory framework would need to be retooled.

Currently, control over Cambodia's electrical grid is centralised, but it
would have to be opened up to introduce renewables into the picture.
Micro-grids that run off of solar panels, for example, would need to be
developed in remote areas that are now disconnected.

"Solar and biomass energy will be especially important in the remote areas
of Cambodia," Hefele said. "Wind opportunities are limited, but biomass is
very important for an agricultural society." However, he added, financing is
still an issue for many of these projects.

"It's easier to get a loan for $500 million for a coal-fired power plant
than it is to get a $500,000 loan for a solar project," he noted, adding
that private investors are often very reluctant.

With that in mind, the government should take out loans and invest its own
money to subsidise solar and biomass projects, he said.

"There is still a gap with pricing, so private-public partnerships could be
an option. The ADB [Asian Development Bank] and the European development
banks are interested in financing green energy," Hefele noted. "But it will
need five to 10 years of support and subsidisation."

There is consensus that large hydropower projects and coal-fired power
plants - which the Kingdom has long pursued - are detrimental for the
environment, and that developing countries could leapfrog the pitfalls faced
by many developed nations by adopting greener technology to meet their
growing energy needs.

However, energy expert Paul Chapman, executive research director of the
consultancy AARN Global, said Cambodia's government is heading in a
different direction.

"The government has an ambitious plan to build out the centralised grid, but
micro-grids could disrupt that," he said. "Micro-grids are harder to control
and that's a risk for the government."

Instead, Chapman said the government often focuses on big energy projects
that rely on hydropower or coal and can easily be integrated into the
central grid. Solar power could eventually be used in the grid, too, Chapman
noted, but it would require complicated engineering skills currently
unavailable in Cambodia.

But when asked whether Cambodia's government appeared prepared to invest in
speeding up the transition to clean energy, Hefele said there is "a lot of
debate" happening now.

"But I always emphasise that they have to find their own solutions," he
said. Other countries have done this and they can avoid some of the pitfalls
from other countries."

Ministry of Environment officials declined to comment.

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Ref:
http://www.phnompenhpost.com/national/sustainable-energy-options-cambodia-di
scussed

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John Diecker
APT Consulting Group Co., Ltd.

www.aptthailand.com