Costs of Micro-Hydro Power Sites

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Overview

Micro-Hydro Power (MHP) projects come along with a big variety of costs. Planning and developing a site brings a number of country, probably regional specific costs. Similar to that are costs for operation and maintenance. All different cost categories play a role for individual projects, while big difference between countries due to different framework condition might occur. A clear cost analysis upfront is highly recommended.


Costs

Cost Factors are Eventually:

  • a locations feasibility check by respective personal
  • land/water ownership/usage
  • civil construction (canal, wear, intake, pipes, powerhouse)
  • electro-mechanical equipment (turbine, generator, load controller)
  • power grid (evtl. transformers, powerlines, house-cabeling, load limiters, meter installation, ...)
  • operation & maintenance (collecting tariffs, running and maintaining the assets)


Some remarks regarding costs:

  • Land & water requirements are mostly small. But there may be interference with existing schemes (irrigation) or legal issues to be considered.
  • Order to delivery of electro-mechanical equipment may take half a year. Ensure to order in time.
  • Costs for power lines and household connections often require a substantial amount from the overall budged.
  • Any mhp scheme supplying a group of households has to install fixed procedures to cover operation & maintenance.
  • This includes the collection of tariffs from each user.



Example: Micro-Hydro Power (MHP) Costs in Rwanda


-> Rwanda Energy Situation



Further Information


References