World Small Hydropower Development Report 2013

Transcription

1 World Small Hydropower Development Report BOLIVIA

2 Disclaimer Published in 2013 by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Center on Small Hydro Power (ICSHP) UNIDO and ICSHP All rights reserved This report was jointly produced by United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and International Center on Small Hydro Power (ICSHP) to provide information about small hydropower. The document has been produced without formal United Nations editing. The designations employed and the presentations of the material in this document do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of UNIDO and ICSHP concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries, or its economic system or degree of development. Designations such as developed, industrialized and developing are intended for statistical convenience and do not necessarily express a judgement about the stage reached by a particular country or area in the development process: Mention of firm names or commercial products does not constitute an endorsement by UNIDO or its partners. The opinions, statistical data and estimates contained in the articles are the responsibility of the author(s) and should not necessarily be considered as reflecting the views or bearing the endorsement of UNIDO and its partners. While every care has been taken to ensure that the content is useful and accurate, UNIDO and ICSHP and any contributing third parties shall have no legal liability or responsibility for the content or the accuracy of the information so provided, or for any loss or damage caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with reliance on the use of such information. Copyright: Material in this publication may be freely quoted or reprinted, but acknowledgement is requested, together with a copy of the publication containing the quotation or reprint. Recommended citation: Liu, H., Masera, D. and Esser, L., eds. (2013). World Small Hydropower Development Report United Nations Industrial Development Organization; International Center on Small Hydro Power. Available from

3 2 Americas 2.3 South America Bolivia (Plurinational State of) Lara Esser, International Center on Small Hydro Power Key facts Population 10,290,003 1 Area 1,098,581 km 2 Climate varies with altitude; humid and tropical to cold and semiarid 1 Topography Rugged Andes Mountains with a highland plateau (highest point: Nevado Sajama 6,542 m) hills, lowland plains of the Amazon 1 Rain pattern Variable, depending on location and elevation Electricity sector overview In Bolivia, electricity is nearly exclusively generated by private companies from hydropower and thermal power plants mainly based on natural gas (figure 1). The total installed capacity in 2010 was 1,459 MW and the contribution of renewable sources other than hydropower is almost negligible. 2 While 85 per cent of the electricity was produced within the National Grid System (SIN, Sistema Interconectado Nacional), 15 per cent was produced in isolated systems (mainly by diesel-driven generators. The main energy authority in Bolivia is the Ministry of Hydrocarbon and Energy. 3 Biomass Gas-diesel turbines Hydropower Gas turbines 0.97% 1.15% 35.15% 62.73% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% Figure1 Electricity generation in Bolivia Source: Autoridad de Fiscalización y Control Social de Electricidad 4 Bolivia has one of the lowest rural electrification rates of South America, covering only 77.5 per cent (hence, 2.2 million people without electricity) in Small hydropower sector overview and potential According to the Bolivian Electricity Control Authority (AE), installed hydropower capacity in Bolivia is MW of which only 21.3 MW corresponds to small hydropower, distributed between three plants with individual capacities of 3.3 MW, 8.7 MW and 9.3 MW (the latter not connected to the National Grid System) (figure 2). 6, At least 22 stand-alone projects with a combined capacity of 600 kw small hydropower plants have been carried out by the Universidad Mayor de San Andrés (UMSA) hydro programme (see below). The small hydropower potential for Bolivia is not known. SHP installed capacity SHP potential unknown Figure 2 Small hydropower capacities in Bolivia 21.3 MW Moreover, Bolivia offers a robust multilateral investment fund (MIF) network offering micro-green finance. Out of the 30 available microfinance institutions (MFI) six offer green micro loans at an average cost of 9 per cent. 3 Renewable energy policy A new Rural Electrification Decree was approved in 2005 (Supreme Decree No ), which aims to increase rural electricity access through the extension and densification of electric networks, development of renewable energy and a change in the energy mix (substitution of diesel by natural gas, biomass and other renewable energies), and an increase in distribution capacity. The Rural Electrification Decree and its associated regulatory framework encourage stakeholders in the energy sector to establish partnerships with other governmental agencies to implement the rural electrification plan. 4 In 2006 a new Law for Universal Access to Electricity (Ley de Acceso Universal) was proposed. Under the framework of this Law, the programme called Electricity for a Decent Living has been designed to improve both rural and urban electrification. The medium term goal ( ) is to achieve universal access in urban areas and a 70 per cent access in rural ones. By 2020, in the final stages, rural access should increase to 87 per cent, and universal coverage should be reached by The Law also mandates the creation of a Common Fund for Universal Access to Public Electricity Service (FOCO) and creates a cofinancing mechanism of the National Government with Prefectures, municipalities and the private sector. Approval of the Law and the related mechanism is expected soon. 4 The Hydro Programme (el Programa Hidroenergético) by the UMSA is dedicated to the development of technologies to utilize water resources. It aims to achieve technological packages, developed at different research projects, ready to be transferred to end users, preferably the rural population, in order to alleviate rural poverty. The programme works on the basis of local initiatives by helping local actors with project identification and design phase, as well as fundraising. During the construction phase the programme directs, supervises and manages the 1

4 implementation of the project. The main actors, who are also the implementers and beneficiaries, often provide not only labor, but local materials. Before the project is finally transferred to the community for operation, maintenance and administration, an agreement on the management model is decided upon, in order to ensure sustainable management. This agreement provides drafts of rules and regulations and facilitates its adoption and implementation. Once transferred, the programme is limited to the provision of specialized technical assistance when called upon by the local organization. 7 More than 22 small hydropower plants with a combined capacity of 600 kw have been developed through this project. In 2007, the Vice-Ministry of Land Planning and Environment, through its National Plan of Development, established the Energetic Sovereignty and Independence Policy to promote the investigation and sustainable development of alternatives sources of energy, such as hydropower, biomass, wind, etc.) by implementing specific programmes. As of 2009, the role of issuing policies has been decentralized from the national Government to the prefectures (the Government of each state, in 2009, nine states won the bid for autonomy) who have become vital policy institutes with their own budget. In addition the Alcaldías, (the municipal magistrate) play a fundamental role as intermediate actors between the villages and the main institutional electricity providers. The Alcaldías also have their own economic policies and co-finance rural electrification projects. 8 Legislation on small hydropower The Government of Bolivia presses a strong importance on the central electricity grid which significantly suppresses the development of small hydropower. Until 1996 the tariff advantage (25 per cent discount for small users of the central grid) hindered the use of small hydropower and promoted the use of other resources such as solar. Companies such as Energética, as of 2009, have however considered increasing the use of small hydropower. 8 The Superintendencia de Electricidad is the main institute of the sector; they control the tariffs, monitor the quality and are also in charge of licence distribution. These stages were crucial for small scale systems, however, systems smaller than 300 kw were set free, from these obligations thus allowing easier implementation without the input of the Superintendencia de Electricidad. 8 Barriers to small hydropower development Various attempts at power market liberalization had little success, causing Bolivia to move towards greater Government intervention in the power sector. This is evidenced by the nationalization of Red Electrica, the grid operator, in Investment in the sector is often hindered by a stronger governmental presence. 3 The main disadvantage facing small hydropower development in Bolivia is the political predisposition towards the central electricity grid and the unequal distribution of funds. In addition, a lack of financial expertise in the department of tariffs to keep up with inflation rates, causes the plants to strongly rely on Government support. Political and financial constraints coupled with scarce local technological knowledge and training further hamper the growth of the small hydropower sector. Thus, not only do plants have to rely on governmental support but they also have to turn towards organizations and large corporations for aid. 9 However organizations such as the Instituto de Hidraulica e Hidrologia (IHH) shine a positive light on the future of small hydropower in Bolivia, thanks to their networking policy and follow-up habits with project benefactors. 9 Bolivia s value chain in relevance to overall renewables remains fairly underdeveloped with only one company active in small hydropower and two in the biomass sector. 3 References 1. Central Intelligence Agency (2012). The World Factbook. Available from 2. Organización Latinoamericana de Energía (2012) Energy Statistics Report. Quito. 3. Bloomberg New Energy Finance and Multilateral Investment Fund (2012). Climatescope 2012: Assessing the Climate for Climate Investing in Latin America and the Caribbean. New York. Available from www5.iadb.org/mif/climatescope/2012/img/content/ pdfs/eng/climatescope2012-report.pdf. 4. Autoridad de Fiscalización y Control Social de Electricidad (2011). Anuario Estadístico La Paz. Available from MG-ANUARIO-admin anuario_2011.pdf. 5. International Energy Agency (2011). World Energy Outlook 2011, 9 November Paris. 6. Grueso Gonzáles, Andrés (2007). Estudio sobre el impacto social, económico y ambiental de pequeñas centrales hidroeléctricas implantadas en comunidades rurales de La Paz, Bolivia. La Paz. Available from 7. Energypedia (2011). Bolivia Country Situation. Available from 8. Drinkwaard, Wouter (2009). The Diffusion of Micro- 2

5 hydro Power for Rural Electrification in Bolivia- a learning approach-. Eindhoven. Available from rd% pdf. 8. Wouter Drinkwaard, Arjan Kirkels and Henny Romijn (2010). A learning-based approach to understanding success in rural electrification: Insights from Micro Hydro projects in Bolivia. Eindhoven: University of Technology. 3

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