 | This article needs to be updated. (August 2014) |
 | |
| Data | |
|---|---|
| Electricity coverage (2006) | 55% (total), 40% (rural), 90% (urban); (LAC total average in 2005: 92%) |
| Installed capacity (2006) | 751 MW |
| Share of fossil energy | 75% |
| Share of renewable energy | 25% (hydro & geothermal) |
| GHG emissions from electricity generation (2003) | 1.52 MtCO2 |
| Average electricity use (2006) | 366 kWh per capita |
| Distribution losses (2006) | 28.8%; (LAC average in 2005: 13.6%) |
| Consumption by sector (% of total) | |
| Residential | 34% |
| Industrial | 20% |
| Commercial | 31% |
| Tariffs and financing | |
| Average residential tariff (US$/kW·h, 2006) | 0.137; (LAC average in 2005: 0.115) |
| Average industrial tariff (US$/kW·h, 2006) | 0.101; (LAC average in 2005: 0.107) |
| Average commercial tariff (US$/kW·h, 2006) | 0.137 |
| Services | |
| Sector unbundling | Yes |
| Share of private sector in generation | 70% |
| Competitive supply to large users | No |
| Competitive supply to residential users | No |
| Institutions | |
| No. of service providers | 10 (generation), 1 (transmission), 1 main (distribution) |
| Responsibility for regulation | INE-Nicaraguan Energy Institute |
| Responsibility for policy-setting | MEM-Ministry of Energy and Mines |
| Responsibility for the environment | Environment and Natural Resources Ministry (MARENA) |
| Electricity sector law | Yes (1998, modified in 1997) |
| Renewable energy law | Yes (2005) |
| CDM transactions related to the electricity sector | 2 registered CDM project; 336,723 t CO2e annual emissions reductions |
Nicaragua is the country in Central America with the lowest electricity generation,[1] as well as the lowest percentage of population with access to electricity. The unbundling and privatization process of the 1990s did not achieve the expected objectives, resulting in very little generation capacity added to the system. This, together with its high dependence on oil for electricity generation (the highest in the region), led to an energy crisis in 2006 from which the country has not fully recovered yet.
The recent figures are available at: https://web.archive.org/web/20130726102527/http://ine.gob.ni/DGE/serieHistorica.html
The Nicaraguan electricity system comprises the National Interconnected System (SIN), which covers more than 90% of the territory where the population of the country lives (the entire Pacific, Central and North zone of the country). The remaining regions are covered by small isolated generation systems.[2] The Central American Electrical Interconnection System (SIEPAC) project will integrate the electricity network of the country with the rest of the Central American countries, which is expected to improve reliability of supply and reduce costs.
- ^ CEPAL 2007
- ^ Monte Rosa Bagasse Cogeneration Project PDD