One of the main goals of the key instrument for combating climate change, the Paris Agreement, is to keep the global temperature rise to well below 2 ° C by 2050. However, one of the primary conditions for achieving this goal is a complete global transition to renewable energy sources (RES) by that time. In that context, let's understand what these RES are and why they are so important?
The Central Asian International Environmental Forum ‘Strengthening cooperation for environment and sustainable development’ was held in Tashkent on June 5-8, 2018. One of the key topics of the forum was renewable energy and energy efficiency. Experts from international organizations that are actively involved in promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency in the regions of Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia and Asia were invited to participate in the forum. Representatives of delegations from Central Asian countries and Afghanistan spoke about the national policies and priorities of the states of the region in renewable energy development and energy efficiency improvement.
Renewable or green energy is energy from sources that, on a human scale, are inexhaustible. Such sources are sunlight, water flows, wind, tides and geothermal heat.
Transition to renewable energy is a major component of adaptation to climate change, in addition to energy efficiency (economical use of energy resources). Firstly, renewable energy sources allow generating electricity without emitting greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. Secondly, most of them do not produce solid domestic waste. Thus, the advanced countries of the world are already trying to stop using conventional fuel and switch to alternative energy sources. So, after the UN Sustainable Development Conference "Rio + 20", Germany declared that it will completely switch to renewable energy by 2050.
However, in the Central Asian region, such initiatives are unfortunately still at an early stage. The leader among the countries is Kazakhstan, but even in Kazakhstan the share of green energy sources at the moment does not exceed 1%. According to bnews.kz, "55 renewable energy facilities with a total capacity of 336 MW are currently operating in Kazakhstan, which produced about 1.1 billion kWh of green energy in 2017." However, in his Address to the people of Kazakhstan, President Nursultan Nazarbayev called for achieving a 30% renewable energy level by 2030. Since 2009, favorable conditions have been created at the legislative level, through introduction of fixed tariffs, guarantee of purchase of energy generated from RES and exemption from tax liabilities.
There is still certain potential for development of alternative energy resources in the Central Asian region. A year after the signing of the Paris Agreement, namely, since 2016, Kazakhstan has made significant efforts to develop the renewable energy sector. Kazakhstan's Minister of Energy K.Bozumbayev said that "by the end of 2017, generation of electricity from renewable sources in Kazakhstan increased by 22%."
The main problem of alternative energy sources is the high cost of generated electricity. In order to solve this problem, Kazakhstan decided to switch to the auction system. As reported by zakon.kz, on May 23, 2018, the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan put RES facilities on the first auction in Central Asia. The event was held in an unusual online format, and the winners were the most efficient projects that offered the lowest cost. When carrying out this auction, Kazakhstan used the experience of such countries as the Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Chile and Mexico. Kazakhstan hopes to attract foreign investors through this measure.
In addition, according to abctv.kz, negotiations are underway with South Korea, which plans to share its renewable energy technologies. Some of the examples of such technologies are solar panels for buildings, parking lots that are illuminated at night by the energy stored in batteries, etc.
At the same time, Afghanistan has already approved a strategy for implementing RES in all sectors of the economy. The Director General of the National Environmental Protection Agency of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Shah Zaman Maiwandi, noted that energy efficiency improvement is extremely important in the context of the growing energy consumption. The speaker noted the potential of renewable energy exports to other countries.
As for the rest of the Central Asian countries, according to the data presented by "LIVEN. Living Asia", “Tajikistan could be the eighth country in the world in terms of electricity production, as its hydropower potential is estimated at 527 billion kWh per year. However, the country is able to generate on average no more than 16.5 billion kWh." Despite the disappointing statistics, they have much we can learn from. For example, deputy head of the Electric Power Industry Department of the Ministry of Energy and Water Resources of the Republic of Tajikistan, Khol Yunusov, told in his report that the country has a huge potential in solar and hydro energy. Over 200 small HPPs have been built in the country, and feasibility studies for introduction of solar energy have been prepared in 138 villages.
Speaking about the situation in renewable energy of the Central Asian countries, it should also be noted that in May 2017, the President of Uzbekistan, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, adopted a state program for development of renewable energy and energy efficiency. In an interview to Caravanserai, representative of Uzbekenergo Muzaffar Mukhitdinov stated that "the program will help to increase the share of renewable energy from 12.7% to 19.7% by 2025". This scenario does not look that ambitious, especially as, according to Professor R.Avezov, Uzbekistan is rich in solar energy, "the potential of which is 98.5 percent of all renewable energy sources combined." Director of Uzbekenergo Bahadyr Ganiyev made a report saying that the country has approved road maps for RES, and the law on PPP is under consideration.
As for Kyrgyzstan, the use of alternative energy sources is driven by limited reserves of fossil fuels. As noted by the head of the UNIDO Office (United Nations Industrial Development Organization), Marat Yusupov, Kyrgyzstan is involved in the UNIDO interregional project "Upscale Small Hydropower Development in Selected Countries". Representative of the State Committee for Industry, Energy and Subsoil Use, Adima Musayeva, spoke at the forum about the current situation in application of renewable energy in the Kyrgyz Republic. The country has adopted a law on RES, which establishes basic provisions, and tariffs are currently being established. 94% of all energy is generated by HPPs (currently 12 operating small HPPs).
According to the Chairman of the Society for Nature Protection of Turkmenistan, Serdar Allekov, an energy saving program for 2018-2024 was adopted in Turkmenistan, which provides for introduction of renewable energy sources and preparation of a law on alternative energy. A plan of measures has been developed to implement this program, including preparation of a legislative framework. A roadmap for development of solar energy is also being developed with the assistance of the Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Turkmenistan. All the country’s major facilities have switched to gas. At the same time, according to the speaker, large-scale use of RES is unprofitable, but it is acceptable on a small scale at the household level in hard-to-reach places. He also noted that there is a downside to the use of renewable energy sources. For example, if large areas are used for wind turbines, this will change the direction of wind. The same is true for solar energy, as the thermal balance will undergo changes as well.
In conclusion, it should be noted that the main problem in the development of renewable energy is the lack of the necessary financial resources, rather than unwillingness. Unfortunately, the most of subsidies still goes to the electrical energy sector. This problem was noted in the report of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe. "17 countries of Southern and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus and Central Asia receive just 0.2 percent, which is 0.4 billion US dollars, of world investments in the renewable energy development."
Summing up, it should also be noted that increasingly more attention is paid to alternative energy sources, in the Central Asian region as well. Participants of the Central Asian International Environmental Forum concluded that the volume of energy production in Central Asia is low as compared to other regions, and the region falls behind in introduction of RES. Nevertheless, there is dynamic development. The main challenges are still the oil and gas sector, energy efficiency and the need to streamline work with the International Financial Institutions.
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Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Program for the Aral Sea Basin (CAMP4ASB)
