National Exhibition and Seminar (Title : Climate Change Mitigation : Role of Renewables) on Renewable Energy . Dhaka, Bangladesh,  24-25 March, 2008

 

Focus on Climate Change Mitigation: Role of Renewable

 

CMES experience of the rural home electrification through Solar PV within a micro credit arrangement
 
Muhammad Ibrahim

 

Districts:

 

Dinajpur                                   Sirajgonj                      

 

Rangpur                                   Tangail

 

Lalmonirhat                  Gazipur

 

Chapai-Nowabgonj                  Patuakhali

 

Rajshahi                                   Borguna

 

Jhalokathi

 

 

Sizes of the systems

Total systems installed:              1689

  Systems          Percentage       Type of customers

 

  50 pW                       60%                 Well to do service holders            

                                                            or businesspersons.

 

  40 pW                       32%                 Solvent service holders            

                                               or businesspersons.

 

  30 pW                       4%                   Relatively lower income   

                                                          section of the villagers.

 

  65 pW                       2%                    Mostly families of service- 

                                                 holders in cities and foreign 

                                                countries.

 

The Technical Package

 

65 pW             5 tube lights (10 w), 1 B/W TV,

                        1 Mobile phone charging point

 

 50 pW                        4 tube lights, 1 B/W TV,

                        phone charging point.

 

 40 pW                        3 tube lights, 1 phone charging point.

 

 30 pW                        2 tube light.

                        l Experimental LEDs.

 

 

The economic package

 

System (pW)	Price (Tk.)	Down Payment (Tk.)	Loan amount (Tk)	Monthly  Installment (Tk.)
				1yr	2yr          3yr
65	36,600	7,320	29,280	2684	1464	1058
50	29,500	5,900	23,600	2164	1180	853
40	23,000	4,600	18,400	1687	920	665
30	19,000	3,800	15,200	1394	760	549

 

 

Recovery Rate

 

Low (80%) compared to mainstream microcredit   

     of CMES (99%)

 

l  Usual Reason for overdue given by customers

 

    -    System failures, non-availability of power

    -    Temporary bad income or bad harvest

    -    Person responsible payment not available

 

  l Unauthorized by-passing of charge controllers as

      well as genuine maintenance problems

 

 

Major Challenges

 

 

Overdue recovery

 

 ·      Sparse density of the systems

 

 ·      System failures: battery, balance of system.

 

 ·      High overhead cost

 

 ·      Difficult procurement of panels

 

 ·      Increasing panel prices

 

 ·      Logistics for repairs & maintenance.

 

           ·   Uncertainty in prices and procurements being

               major impediment in extension.

 

CMES strategies

 

Attractive dissemination

 

       ·        Adaptive R&D

 

       ·        Maximum decentralization through

 

            -     training local young personnels and   

                 engaging them

 

             -    decentralized manufacture of BOS.