Solar power system in operation. A total of 11 solar power plant projects are currently under construction and development across Myanmar, with an installed capacity of 1,026 megawatts, according to the Electricity and Energy Development Commission.
In rural areas, photovoltaics are used for charging batteries and pumping water. 70% of the Myanmar population of live in rural areas. Myanmar's opened its first solar power plant in Minbu, Magway Division, in November 2018. It can produce as much as 170MW of electricity.
Myanmar has high solar irradiation levels in many areas, but no large-scale solar systems have been installed due to the largely mountainous terrain, protected areas, and limited grid system, which weaken the energy potential from this source.
We introduced the completion of our first solar power project on December 5 2021; the sustainable 30MW solar project in the central part of Myanmar, near Thapyaywa village, in the Tharsi Township Meikhtila District- Mandalay Region.
It’s the second solar power project completed in Myanmar, generating more than 200,000 kilowatt-hours electricity per day and 70.599 million kilowatt-hours per year. The generated electricity will be fed to the national grid via the 33KV transmission line to Thapyaywa Main Station.
“Low energy access rates, high solar irradiance for most of the year, supply lagging behind the demand, [and the] high cost of electricity generation,” are key factors that make Myanmar an attractive destination for solar energy investment and deployment, Richard Harrison, Smart Power Myanmar CEO, told Solar Magazine.
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