In brief
Nearly all of Nepal’s electricity is generated from hydropower—its surplus earmarks a $200 million export income. Yet monsoon flooding that destroyed 12 plants and killed thousands highlighted the vulnerability of a system that relies almost entirely on mountain glaciers. Experts now warn that Nepal must diversify into wind and solar, which have far larger untapped potential, and redesign how it builds dams to survive rising climate risks.
Almost 100% of Nepal’s electricity comes from hydropower, earning roughly $200 million a year in export revenue. The recent monsoon floods, which killed more than 1,300 people, exposed the fragility of a grid that depends on fragile mountain glaciers.
Floods destroyed villages near the Nepal‑Tibet border and damaged 12 hydropower stations in the Trishuli River basin, cutting more than 10 % of the country’s total generation capacity and threatening the livelihoods of households that have finally gained a year‑round supply since 2018.
State‑owned operators acknowledge that climate‑related disasters are increasing, and officials say the country must rethink how it designs and sites new plants. “The time has come for a rethink of our hydropower policy,” said the Nepal Electricity Authority’s spokesman Rajan Dhakal.
Experts argue that the country has untapped capacity in wind and solar—solar’s potential is ten times larger than hydropower’s, a figure cited in a German‑aid agency report. Diversifying could reduce single‑point failures, but practical limits exist because many hillsides continue to supply the fast‑flowing currents that hydropower harnesses.
Flood‑damage claims have already cost insurers around $40 million in payouts to 20 privately owned plants over the past three years, pushing premiums higher and business costs up.
At a global climate conference, Nepal’s representative Manjeet Dhakal urged international partners to share data, assess climate impacts, and jointly develop early‑warning systems, pointing out that the nation’s hydropower strategy—though low in emissions—belongs to a system that cannot withstand increasingly extreme weather.
