Can pumped hydro be used to store energy in Nepal?

For several hours, overnight and seasonal storage, pumped hydro is much cheaper. Batteries and pumped hydro are complementary storage technologies. Hydrogen production in Nepal is unlikely to be significant. Hydrogen or hydrogen-rich chemicals such as ammonia could be used to store and transport energy in Nepal.

Does Nepal have a potential for off-river hydro storage?

Nepal has enormous potential for off-river PHES. The Global Pumped Hydro Storage Atlas [42, 43] identifies ~2800 good sites in Nepal with combined storage capacity of 50 TWh (Fig. 6). To put this in perspective, the amount of storage typically required to balance 100% renewable energy in an advanced economy is ~1 day of energy use .

How much hydro storage is needed in Nepal?

The Global Pumped Hydro Storage Atlas [42, 43] identifies ~2800 good sites in Nepal with combined storage capacity of 50 TWh (Fig. 6). To put this in perspective, the amount of storage typically required to balance 100% renewable energy in an advanced economy is ~1 day of energy use . For the 500-TWh goal, this amounts to ~1.5 TWh.

Is hydropower a good source of energy in Nepal?

Hydropower is one of the two sources of energy in Nepal that can play an important role in Nepal’s future economy. However, the hydro potential is a tiny fraction of the solar PV potential. Table 1 represents the annual energy estimate and power potential of four major river basins: Narayani, Saptakoshi, Karnali and Mahakali of Nepal.

Could hydrogen be used to store and transport energy in Nepal?

Hydrogen production in Nepal is unlikely to be significant. Hydrogen or hydrogen-rich chemicals such as ammonia could be used to store and transport energy in Nepal. However, this is unlikely to occur because the efficiency is very low compared with those of batteries, pumped hydro and thermal storage, which unavoidably translates into high costs.

Does seasonal solar-energy supply in Nepal need pumped-hydro storage?

Seasonal variation in solar-energy supply in Nepal is moderate, fluctuating from 75% of the mean in winter to 125% in spring . This means that significant seasonal storage may be required. A simple analysis of data in suggests an upper bound in seasonal storage of 50 TWh, which could be accommodated with off-river pumped-hydro storage .