Analysis on Integrated LPG Cook Stove and Induction Cooktop for Cooking Purposes in Bhutan

It has not been many years since a majority of Bhutanese were cooking with firewood as their fuel source. However, over the years the fuel mix has been changing and depicting increasing share of clean fuel such as electricity (hydropower generation) and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). Subsequently there is a massive opportunity to switch into modern, clean and efficient cooking technologies such as induction cooktops and reduce the overall fuel/wood consumption. Induction cooktop is a fairly new concept in the country, therefore, users are often sceptical about investing in them due to lack of awareness on the cost-benefit analysis. Various criteria are available for evaluation but often not all the information required is available to the customer to come to a final decision. An understanding of end users energy use pattern is important for energy management. Therefore, this paper will analyse the current energy use pattern for domestic rural and urban households for cooking, and present an optimized and energy efficient solution through adoption of an integrated cooking solution. This would result in an overall reduction of fuelwood consumption and thereby reduction in greenhouse gas emission, while at the micro level, individual end users can benefit from cleaner and energy efficient technology solution.