PHNOM PENH (BERNAMA) – Cambodia is on track to cut carbon emissions by 42 per cent by 2030 after it announced that it will add wind energy into its national grid by 2026 and vowed not to pursue coal-fired power plants in the future.
The policy announcement aligns with its national energy transition policy to transform the country into a green energy nation and achieve carbon neutrality by 2050.
“There is a need for Cambodia to continue to use coal-fired power but not to allow new projects,” Minister of Mines and Energy, Keo Rattanak, said at a lecture titled “Cambodia’s Energy Policy” at the Royal University of Phnom Penh, reported Agency Kampuchea Presse.
Keo said clean energies like solar and wind will bolster the diversification of the country’s energy portfolio and will also enhance the nation’s energy security, reported local media.
According to the Electricity Authority of Cambodia, renewable energy such as hydro, solar and biomass power make up 48.48 per cent of the energy mix and are directly connected to the national grid while non-renewable energy – coal and fuel oil – makes up the balance at 51.52 per cent.
“To avoid a lack of energy resources and to ensure expansion, especially clean energy (wind power), we have a plan to integrate wind power into the national grid by 2026, with affordable, stable and equitable supply,” reported online newspaper Kiripost, quoting the minister.
Despite its fast-developing economy and rising demand for electricity fuelled by rapid urbanisation, Cambodia’s energy policymakers have taken a pragmatic approach not to rely on fossil fuels that are not environmentally friendly.
And, with erratic weather conditions, hydropower dams are exposed to risks when water level drops in rivers during peak summer. There are three coal-fired power plants in the country.
Prime Minister Hun Manet took a bold step last year to cancel a USD1.5 billion 700-megawatt coal-fired power plant in Koh Kong province in the southwest of Cambodia.
