AKIPRESS.COM - Electricity shortage in 2017 may reach around 3 billion kWh in Kyrgyzstan, according to the country's small hydropower development concept until 2017.

The internal market of electricity users has considerably grown lately, while electricity generation capacity remains on the same level.

Despite planned launch of new electricity generation facilities, such as Kambar-Ata-1 and Kambar-Ata-2 HPPs, Upper Naryn Cascade hydropower plants, which capacity is estimated at 3,800 MW, the domestic electricity needs are growing annually.

Coal-, gas- and diesel fuel-fired power plants may encounter difficult economic, transport and environmental problems in future. Absence of energy alternatives may lead to such negative consequences as gradual depletion of traditional energy carriers, increase of costs of construction of power plants over tightened environmental requirements. This necessitates use of alternative, efficient ways of electricity supply. Use of hydropower resources of small rivers and reservoirs in the country is one of such ways, the document says.