The Himalaya Hindu Kush (HKH) is a region with a huge potential of renewable energy covering eight countries, namely, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal and Pakistan. However, an analysis by the International Centre of Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), released at the Asia-Pacific Clean Energy Week 2025 in Bangkok shows that only a small portion of these resources are in use.
Current Status
In the HKH, renewable energy only gives 6.1 percent of the primary energy supply. Hydropower is dominant with a potential of about 882 GW but less than half is utilized. Of this, trans-boundary rivers account to almost 635 GW. The potential of solar and wind resources alone is 3 TW, whereas the renewable energy goals of HKH countries total to 1.7 TW, which is under-ambitious relative to regional potential.
Bhutan and Nepal are exceptionally promising with almost all their electricity produced through hydro power. Other HKH countries, in contrast, are highly reliant on fossil fuels-98 percent in Bangladesh, 77 percent in India, 76 percent in Pakistan, 67 percent in China, and 51 percent in Myanmar. Traditional biomass remains common in rural settings where it adds to health and air quality problems.
Climate Risks
The climate threats are increasing in the energy sector. Hydropower projects are susceptible to variable water flow, severe weather and glacial lake exploding floods that jeopardize nearly two-thirds of current and proposed projects. This is one of the reasons why disaster risk reduction has to be incorporated into the energy planning.
Innovations and Challenges
The report calls on the need to go beyond large dams and incorporate sustainable options- solar, wind, water efficient farming, urban water storage, and high-tech irrigation systems. Nevertheless, the challenges such as large cost of capital, absence of privately invested funds, technical factors, and land availability still stifle the progress. There are also social and environmental issues regarding the effects of the ecosystem that should be addressed.
Regional Cooperation
Cross-border cooperation is needed to take advantage of this potential. Technology sharing, renewable energy trade and grid connectivity can be done through regional platforms such as SAARC Energy Centre and BIMSTEC. The HKH has the potential to change its energy mix with enhanced policies, financial aid, and community-based planning to increase resilience to climate and play a major role in global sustainability.