IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v14y2021i4p990-d499090.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

State-of-the-Art of Mini Grids for Rural Electrification in West Africa

Author

Listed:
  • Fernando Antonanzas-Torres

    (Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of La Rioja, 26004 Logroño, Spain)

  • Javier Antonanzas

    (Department of Mechanical Engineering, Colorado State University, 430 University Ave, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA)

  • Julio Blanco-Fernandez

    (Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of La Rioja, 26004 Logroño, Spain)

Abstract

The current electrification status in West African countries presents rural electrification rates below 40%, national grid losses above 39% with frequent disruptions, and electricity prices averaging $0.35/kWh, up to national values of $0.66/kWh. With this, off-grid systems have gained great attention during the last decade as energy solutions; especially solar home systems (SHS) and mini grids. Nowadays, 385 mini grids with a power of near 30 MW are operating in West Africa, with 95% based on PV. Since 2019, result-based tenders with international aid funding—more effective than previous competitive tenders—seek to install at least 317 new mini grids in Togo, 250 in Nigeria, 100 in Burkina Faso, and two in Mali. Besides, the market for mini-grid energy access start-ups grew from $19 million in 2013 to $339 million in 2018. Despite this recent development in West Africa, research and data for mini grids in this region is scarce, and it is mostly approached from the technological side, with a striking lack of information regarding the social impact. This work tries to describe the present status of research and current operating installations, as well as the main challenges for future development of off grid mini grids in West Africa, which pose as the missing link between SHS and grid extension.

Suggested Citation

  • Fernando Antonanzas-Torres & Javier Antonanzas & Julio Blanco-Fernandez, 2021. "State-of-the-Art of Mini Grids for Rural Electrification in West Africa," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(4), pages 1-21, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:4:p:990-:d:499090
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/4/990/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/14/4/990/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Moner-Girona, M. & Solano-Peralta, M. & Lazopoulou, M. & Ackom, E.K. & Vallve, X. & Szabó, S., 2018. "Electrification of Sub-Saharan Africa through PV/hybrid mini-grids: Reducing the gap between current business models and on-site experience," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 91(C), pages 1148-1161.
    2. Thiam, Djiby-Racine, 2010. "Renewable decentralized in developing countries: Appraisal from microgrids project in Senegal," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 35(8), pages 1615-1623.
    3. Odou, Oluwarotimi Delano Thierry & Bhandari, Ramchandra & Adamou, Rabani, 2020. "Hybrid off-grid renewable power system for sustainable rural electrification in Benin," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 1266-1279.
    4. Plain, N. & Hingray, B. & Mathy, S., 2019. "Accounting for low solar resource days to size 100% solar microgrids power systems in Africa," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 131(C), pages 448-458.
    5. Wang, Richard & Lam, Chor-Man & Hsu, Shu-Chien & Chen, Jieh-Haur, 2019. "Life cycle assessment and energy payback time of a standalone hybrid renewable energy commercial microgrid: A case study of Town Island in Hong Kong," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 250(C), pages 760-775.
    6. Bouzarovski, Stefan & Simcock, Neil, 2017. "Spatializing energy justice," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 640-648.
    7. Adesanya, Adewale A. & Pearce, Joshua M., 2019. "Economic viability of captive off-grid solar photovoltaic and diesel hybrid energy systems for the Nigerian private sector," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-1.
    8. Roy, Joyashree, 2000. "The rebound effect: some empirical evidence from India," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(6-7), pages 433-438, June.
    9. Glemarec, Yannick, 2012. "Financing off-grid sustainable energy access for the poor," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(S1), pages 87-93.
    10. Obeng-Darko, Nana Asare, 2019. "Why Ghana will not achieve its renewable energy target for electricity. Policy, legal and regulatory implications," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 128(C), pages 75-83.
    11. Alfaro, Jose & Miller, Shelie, 2014. "Satisfying the rural residential demand in Liberia with decentralized renewable energy schemes," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 30(C), pages 903-911.
    12. Trotter, Philipp A. & Maconachie, Roy & McManus, Marcelle C., 2018. "Solar energy's potential to mitigate political risks: The case of an optimised Africa-wide network," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 117(C), pages 108-126.
    13. Akella, A.K. & Saini, R.P. & Sharma, M.P., 2009. "Social, economical and environmental impacts of renewable energy systems," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 34(2), pages 390-396.
    14. Thomas Huld & Magda Moner-Girona & Akos Kriston, 2017. "Geospatial Analysis of Photovoltaic Mini-Grid System Performance," Energies, MDPI, vol. 10(2), pages 1-21, February.
    15. Ellegård, Anders & Arvidson, Anders & Nordström, Mattias & Kalumiana, Oscar S & Mwanza, Clotilda, 2004. "Rural people pay for solar: experiences from the Zambia PV-ESCO project," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 29(8), pages 1251-1263.
    16. Mathilde Brix Pedersen, 2016. "Deconstructing the concept of renewable energy-based mini-grids for rural electrification in East Africa," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 5(5), pages 570-587, September.
    17. Trimble,Christopher Philip & Kojima,Masami & Perez Arroyo,Ines & Mohammadzadeh,Farah, 2016. "Financial viability of electricity sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa : quasi-fiscal deficits and hidden costs," Policy Research Working Paper Series 7788, The World Bank.
    18. Adenle, Ademola A., 2020. "Assessment of solar energy technologies in Africa-opportunities and challenges in meeting the 2030 agenda and sustainable development goals," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    19. Pueyo, Ana, 2018. "What constrains renewable energy investment in Sub-Saharan Africa? A comparison of Kenya and Ghana," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 85-100.
    20. Adeoye, Omotola & Spataru, Catalina, 2020. "Quantifying the integration of renewable energy sources in West Africa's interconnected electricity network," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 120(C).
    21. Diouf, Boucar & Pode, Ramchandra & Osei, Rita, 2013. "Initiative for 100% rural electrification in developing countries: Case study of Senegal," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 926-930.
    22. Adusah-Poku, Frank & Takeuchi, Kenji, 2019. "Energy poverty in Ghana: Any progress so far?," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 853-864.
    23. Magda Moner‐Girona & Daniel Puig & Yacob Mulugetta & Ioannis Kougias & Jafaru AbdulRahman & Sándor Szabó, 2018. "Next generation interactive tool as a backbone for universal access to electricity," Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Energy and Environment, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 7(6), November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Castillo-Calzadilla, T. & Cuesta, M.A. & Olivares-Rodriguez, C. & Macarulla, A.M. & Legarda, J. & Borges, C.E., 2022. "Is it feasible a massive deployment of low voltage direct current microgrids renewable-based? A technical and social sight," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 161(C).
    2. Khalid Hanbashi & Zafar Iqbal & Dimitri Mignard & Colin Pritchard & Sasa Z. Djokic, 2023. "Modelling and Validation of Typical PV Mini-Grids in Kenya: Experience from RESILIENT Project," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(7), pages 1-35, April.
    3. Fernando Antonanzas-Torres & Javier Antonanzas & Julio Blanco-Fernandez, 2021. "Environmental Impact of Solar Home Systems in Sub-Saharan Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(17), pages 1-19, August.
    4. Andrés González-García & Pedro Ciller & Stephen Lee & Rafael Palacios & Fernando de Cuadra García & José Ignacio Pérez-Arriaga, 2022. "A Rising Role for Decentralized Solar Minigrids in Integrated Rural Electrification Planning? Large-Scale, Least-Cost, and Customer-Wise Design of Grid and Off-Grid Supply Systems in Uganda," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(13), pages 1-31, June.
    5. Ludwik Wicki & Robert Pietrzykowski & Dariusz Kusz, 2022. "Factors Determining the Development of Prosumer Photovoltaic Installations in Poland," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-19, August.
    6. Fernando Antonanzas-Torres & Ruben Urraca & Camilo Andres Cortes Guerrero & Julio Blanco-Fernandez, 2021. "Solar E-Cooking with Low-Power Solar Home Systems for Sub-Saharan Africa," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-19, November.
    7. Demirci, Alpaslan & Öztürk, Zafer & Tercan, Said Mirza, 2023. "Decision-making between hybrid renewable energy configurations and grid extension in rural areas for different climate zones," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 262(PA).
    8. Esteban A. Soto & Andrea Hernandez-Guzman & Alexander Vizcarrondo-Ortega & Amaya McNealey & Lisa B. Bosman, 2022. "Solar Energy Implementation for Health-Care Facilities in Developing and Underdeveloped Countries: Overview, Opportunities, and Challenges," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(22), pages 1-17, November.
    9. Artem Korzhenevych & Charles Kofi Owusu, 2021. "Renewable Minigrid Electrification in Off-Grid Rural Ghana: Exploring Households Willingness to Pay," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(21), pages 1-17, October.
    10. Isaacs, Stewart & Kalashnikova, Olga & Garay, Michael J. & van Donkelaar, Aaron & Hammer, Melanie S. & Lee, Huikyo & Wood, Danielle, 2023. "Dust soiling effects on decentralized solar in West Africa," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 340(C).

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Brunet, Carole & Savadogo, Oumarou & Baptiste, Pierre & Bouchard, Michel A., 2018. "Shedding some light on photovoltaic solar energy in Africa – A literature review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 96(C), pages 325-342.
    2. Asante, Dennis & Ampah, Jeffrey Dankwa & Afrane, Sandylove & Adjei-Darko, Peter & Asante, Bismark & Fosu, Edward & Dankwah, Dennis Ampah & Amoh, Prince Oppong, 2022. "Prioritizing strategies to eliminate barriers to renewable energy adoption and development in Ghana: A CRITIC-fuzzy TOPSIS approach," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 195(C), pages 47-65.
    3. Mandelli, Stefano & Barbieri, Jacopo & Mereu, Riccardo & Colombo, Emanuela, 2016. "Off-grid systems for rural electrification in developing countries: Definitions, classification and a comprehensive literature review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 1621-1646.
    4. Giacomo Falchetta & Nicolò Stevanato & Magda Moner-Girona & Davide Mazzoni & Emanuela Colombo & Manfred Hafner, 2020. "M-LED: Multi-sectoral Latent Electricity Demand Assessment for Energy Access Planning," Working Papers 2020.09, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    5. Ahlborg, Helene & Hammar, Linus, 2014. "Drivers and barriers to rural electrification in Tanzania and Mozambique – Grid-extension, off-grid, and renewable energy technologies," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 117-124.
    6. Duccio Baldi & Magda Moner-Girona & Elena Fumagalli & Fernando Fahl, 2022. "Planning sustainable electricity solutions for refugee settlements in sub-Saharan Africa," Nature Energy, Nature, vol. 7(4), pages 369-379, April.
    7. Maria Unuigbe & Sambo Lyson Zulu & David Johnston, 2022. "Exploring Factors Influencing Renewable Energy Diffusion in Commercial Buildings in Nigeria: A Grounded Theory Approach," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(15), pages 1-32, August.
    8. Francis Kemausuor & Muyiwa S. Adaramola & John Morken, 2018. "A Review of Commercial Biogas Systems and Lessons for Africa," Energies, MDPI, vol. 11(11), pages 1-21, November.
    9. Falchetta, Giacomo & Stevanato, Nicolò & Moner-Girona, Magda & Mazzoni, Davide & Colombo, Emanuela & Hafner, Manfred, 2020. "M-LED: Multi-sectoral Latent Electricity Demand Assessment for Energy Access Planning," FEP: Future Energy Program 305213, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM) > FEP: Future Energy Program.
    10. Yiming Xiao & Han Wu & Guohua Wang & Hong Mei, 2021. "Mapping the Worldwide Trends on Energy Poverty Research: A Bibliometric Analysis (1999–2019)," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(4), pages 1-22, February.
    11. Pedro Ciller & Sara Lumbreras & Andrés González-García, 2021. "Network Cost Estimation for Mini-Grids in Large-Scale Rural Electrification Planning," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-21, November.
    12. Come Zebra, Emília Inês & van der Windt, Henny J. & Nhumaio, Geraldo & Faaij, André P.C., 2021. "A review of hybrid renewable energy systems in mini-grids for off-grid electrification in developing countries," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    13. Lorafe Lozano & Evelyn Taboada, 2021. "Applying User-Perceived Value to Determine Motivators of Electricity Use in a Solar Photovoltaic Implementation in a Philippine Island," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-19, July.
    14. Hanieh Seyedhashemi & Benoît Hingray & Christophe Lavaysse & Théo Chamarande, 2021. "The Impact of Low-Resource Periods on the Reliability of Wind Power Systems for Rural Electrification in Africa," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-18, May.
    15. Scott, Inara, 2017. "A business model for success: Enterprises serving the base of the pyramid with off-grid solar lighting," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 70(C), pages 50-55.
    16. Bhattacharyya, S.C. & Palit, D., 2021. "A critical review of literature on the nexus between central grid and off-grid solutions for expanding access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    17. Mugisha, Joshua & Ratemo, Mike Arasa & Bunani Keza, Bienvenu Christian & Kahveci, Hayriye, 2021. "Assessing the opportunities and challenges facing the development of off-grid solar systems in Eastern Africa: The cases of Kenya, Ethiopia, and Rwanda," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C).
    18. Agyekum, Ephraim Bonah & Amjad, Fahd & Mohsin, Muhammad & Ansah, Michael Nii Sanka, 2021. "A bird's eye view of Ghana's renewable energy sector environment: A Multi-Criteria Decision-Making approach," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 70(C).
    19. Trotter, Philipp A. & McManus, Marcelle C. & Maconachie, Roy, 2017. "Electricity planning and implementation in sub-Saharan Africa: A systematic review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 74(C), pages 1189-1209.
    20. T. Chamarande & S. Mathy & B. Hingray, 2022. "The least cost design of 100% solar power microgrids in Africa: sensitivity to meteorological and economic drivers and possibility for simple pre-sizing rules," Post-Print hal-03740059, HAL.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:14:y:2021:i:4:p:990-:d:499090. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.