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Rural electrification of the Brazilian Amazon - Achievements and lessons

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  • Gómez, Maria F.
  • Silveira, Semida

Abstract

The Brazilian government has the ambition to provide complete electricity coverage for all citizens as a means to promote development and reduce inequalities. Full coverage implies the provision of electricity to 15 million people in the country by the end of 2010 through the program Luz para Todos (LPT - light for all) launched in 2003. So far, 11 million people have benefited, 2 million of which live in the Amazon. In this paper, we analyze the linkages between development and rural electrification through the Human Development Index (HDI) and within the context of the Amazon. We examine the suitability of the HDI as a planning and monitoring tool for improving energy access and development. We show that the recognition of electricity access as a driver for development has led to concrete goals for electrification, actual action and welfare improvement. Our study serves to highlight the role of LPT in the development of the Amazon region, and the specific features and achievements of the Brazilian policy for universal electrification. We conclude that some challenges related to the electrification of isolated areas still lie ahead. We finalize with a discussion on the relevance of the Brazilian experience to other developing countries.

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  • Gómez, Maria F. & Silveira, Semida, 2010. "Rural electrification of the Brazilian Amazon - Achievements and lessons," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 6251-6260, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:38:y:2010:i:10:p:6251-6260
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    1. Sánchez, A.S. & Torres, E.A. & Kalid, R.A., 2015. "Renewable energy generation for the rural electrification of isolated communities in the Amazon Region," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 49(C), pages 278-290.
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    4. Novice Patrick Bakehe, 2020. "L'accès à l’électricité: une solution pour réduire la déforestation en Afrique?," African Development Review, African Development Bank, vol. 32(3), pages 338-348, September.
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    7. Gómez, Maria F. & Silveira, Semida, 2015. "The last mile in the Brazilian Amazon – A potential pathway for universal electricity access," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 23-37.
    8. van Els, Rudi Henri & de Souza Vianna, João Nildo & Brasil, Antonio Cesar Pinho, 2012. "The Brazilian experience of rural electrification in the Amazon with decentralized generation – The need to change the paradigm from electrification to development," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 1450-1461.
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    11. Brijesh Mainali & Jyrki Luukkanen & Semida Silveira & Jari Kaivo-oja, 2018. "Evaluating Synergies and Trade-Offs among Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Explorative Analyses of Development Paths in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-25, March.
    12. Lino, F.A.M. & Ismail, K.A.R., 2011. "Energy and environmental potential of solid waste in Brazil," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(6), pages 3496-3502, June.
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    14. López-González, A. & Domenech, B. & Gómez-Hernández, D. & Ferrer-Martí, L., 2017. "Renewable microgrid projects for autonomous small-scale electrification in Andean countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 1255-1265.
    15. Sawle, Yashwant & Gupta, S.C. & Bohre, Aashish Kumar, 2018. "Socio-techno-economic design of hybrid renewable energy system using optimization techniques," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 119(C), pages 459-472.
    16. Almeshqab, Fatema & Ustun, Taha Selim, 2019. "Lessons learned from rural electrification initiatives in developing countries: Insights for technical, social, financial and public policy aspects," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 102(C), pages 35-53.
    17. Valer, L. Roberto & Manito, Alex. R.A. & Ribeiro, Tina B. Selles & Zilles, Roberto & Pinho, João T., 2017. "Issues in PV systems applied to rural electrification in Brazil," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 1033-1043.
    18. Ferrer-Martí, Laia & Garwood, Anna & Chiroque, José & Ramirez, Benito & Marcelo, Oliver & Garfí, Marianna & Velo, Enrique, 2012. "Evaluating and comparing three community small-scale wind electrification projects," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 16(7), pages 5379-5390.
    19. Khan, Faizan A. & Pal, Nitai & Saeed, Syed H., 2021. "Optimization and sizing of SPV/Wind hybrid renewable energy system: A techno-economic and social perspective," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 233(C).
    20. Javier Muro & Leo Zurita-Arthos & José Jara & Esteban Calderón & Richard Resl & Andreas Rienow & Valerie Graw, 2020. "Earth Observation for Settlement Mapping of Amazonian Indigenous Populations to Support SDG7," Resources, MDPI, vol. 9(8), pages 1-17, August.
    21. Caiado Couto, Lilia & Campos, Luiza C. & da Fonseca-Zang, Warde & Zang, Joachim & Bleischwitz, Raimund, 2021. "Water, waste, energy and food nexus in Brazil: Identifying a resource interlinkage research agenda through a systematic review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 138(C).
    22. Enrique Cabello-Vargas & Azucena Escobedo-Izquierdo & Arturo Morales-Acevedo, 2021. "Review on Rural Energy Access Policies," International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy, Econjournals, vol. 11(5), pages 157-171.
    23. Andrea Vaona & Natalia Magnani, 2014. "Access to electricity and socio-economic characteristics: panel data evidence from 31 countries," Working Papers 15/2014, University of Verona, Department of Economics.
    24. Villanueva-Rosario, Junior Alexis & Santos-García, Félix & Aybar-Mejía, Miguel Euclides & Mendoza-Araya, Patricio & Molina-García, Angel, 2022. "Coordinated ancillary services, market participation and communication of multi-microgrids: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 308(C).

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