Afghans switch to sun to keep cool in sizzling summer

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - Afghans in the capital of Kabul have switched in large numbers to the sun to keep cool in the sizzling summer with dozens of power transmission towers destroyed by unknown criminals in recent weeks.

The entirety of Kabul and much of the surrounding provinces have been in a constant blackout, as criminals continue to target power transmission towers bringing electricity from Central Asia to the war-ravaged country.

The subsequent power outages amid the sizzling summer and the coronavirus pandemic are seen as detrimental to livelihoods in the wake of a raging armed insurgency.

- Solar panels selling like hot cakes

The purchase of solar panels, batteries and inverters, however, is on an upward trajectory.

And the hub is at the main Kabul – Logar highway in the Qalacha neighborhood where an array of Chinese- and Indian-made solar panels, as well as batteries and relevant items, are lined up for retail and wholesale purchase.

“The business is good, prayers to Allah, but we are honestly saddened to see the terrorists and traitors blow up the power transmission towers and cause troubles in the lives of Afghans at these times of war and corona,” solar energy item importer Ahmad Gul Betanay told Anadolu Agency in the busy market.

As a relatively new advent, he said, not many know in detail the ways and means to switch to solar and very few could afford it.

“In any case, the government-provided electricity proves cheaper and convenient for those who cannot afford to invest a large amount of money in setting-up this [solar power] system at home,” said Betanay, who has been in the field for nearly a decade with most of his previous clients being farmers from rural Afghanistan who rely on the power of the sun to irrigate their fields.

A Chinese-made panel of up to 300 watts would cost around AFN 6,000 ($75) and a battery made in Turkey, Thailand or China to go with it would cost nearly AFN 10,000 ($125).

During the relative peace and development in the past two decades, thanks to rigorous international engagement, plenty of Afghanistan’s rural areas where the national grid has not yet reached, have access to solar power.

In cities, on the other hand, demand for electricity has surged with rapid urbanization.

Solar power traders at the Qalacha market told Anadolu Agency that with frequent interceptions in the power supply, more and more urban clients who previously relied on the national grid and diesel-power generators are now switching their power systems.

- Reliance on imported electricity, a vulnerability

“We have tailors, restaurant owners as well as hospitals and schools managers coming to us to switch their electricity system from the national grid to solar,” said Sediq Omar, an electric engineer at the market, who charges as much as AFN 2,000 ($ 25) per solar connection and a labor fee.

As one of the lowest electricity-consuming countries in the world, according to World Bank estimates, Afghanistan has about 100 kilowatt hours (kWh) per year per capita consumption, with only 35% of the population connected to the grid.

National power utility, Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS). estimates the country produces around 600 megawatts (MW) of electricity from several hydroelectric plants as well and uses fossil fuel and solar panels while more than 600 MW is imported from neighboring Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan.

The peak and unsuppressed demand is estimated at 2,500 MW.

DABS said last week it was losing at least $34,000 per hour because of the disconnected imported electricity due to the destruction of the electricity pylon in the northern areas of Kabul.

Power utility spokesman Mohammad Hashim told Anadolu Agency that DABS is seeking help from residents to identify and bring to justice the perpetrators behind the attacks.

"We annually pay $300 million for the imported electricity. Power outages cause various types of damages to DABS in addition to lost revenue," he said.

Afghanistan’s dependency on imported electricity has been seen by many as a grim vulnerability despite multiple studies citing the abundance of hydro, solar, wind and geothermal resources the country possesses.

It is estimated that with wind speeds exceeding 6.8 meters per second, up to 150GW of power can be produced while the country can also potentially produce 220,000 MW of solar power as it has 300 sunny days each year.