Kathmandu, Sept 11: Electric cooking, particularly induction stoves, could reduce Nepal’s recurring LPG shortages and save billions of rupees spent on imports. Yet policy uncertainty and delays have slowed efforts to promote the alternative.
Nepal Oil Corporation is currently losing Rs 8 billion to Rs 10 billion a month from LPG sales. The country consumes around 45,000 to 46,000 metric tonnes of LPG a month, or about 550,000 metric tonnes annually, according to NOC spokesperson Manoj Kumar Thakur.
The corporation incurs a loss of Rs 411 per cylinder because it buys LPG at a higher price from India and sells it domestically at a lower price. Thakur said switching gradually to electricity produced within Nepal is the best long-term solution to recurring LPG shortages.
NOC has only 10,000 metric tons of LPG storage capacity, enough for about a week. Thakur said Nepal also needs to expand storage, reduce its complete dependence on Indian transport by building pipelines, and explore the natural gas deposits identified in Dailekh.
He said NOC could consider redirecting money spent on LPG imports toward electric stove promotion only after the government adopts an integrated energy policy.
Private power producers say Nepal’s electricity market is constrained by the Nepal Electricity Authority’s monopoly over power trading, preventing consumers from getting cheaper electricity.
Mohan Kumar Dang, president of the Independent Power Producers’ Association, Nepal, said allowing private companies to sell electricity directly to local governments or consumers would accelerate electric cooking.
Seven private companies have sought electricity trading licences from the Energy Ministry for the past eight years, but none has received approval.
The ministry says it is preparing to amend the law because existing legislation does not allow private companies to trade electricity.
Energy Ministry spokesperson Mohan Kumar Shakya said the government does not have a separate plan to replace LPG completely but aims to increase electricity consumption, which would gradually displace gas.
The Nepal Electricity Authority says power supply is sufficient, particularly during the monsoon, and it is upgrading transformers and distribution lines to support higher household consumption.
Meanwhile, the Alternative Energy Promotion Centre is running programmes to expand electric stove use, especially among low-income and rural households. The government plans to promote electric stoves in around 500,000 households, alongside biogas and improved cooking technologies.
People’s News Monitoring Service
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