Best practices from International experiences for Eastern Africa countries regarding ancillary services markets

Abstract

Some of the Eastern Africa Power Pool countries like Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, and Uganda are heavily dependent on hydro resources. Further, the grid is becoming increasingly unstable because of the variability from renewable generation. If the baseload units such as hydro units (or geothermal units in case of Kenya) kept on standby to provide ancillary services like active/reactive reserves, the cost of energy would increase. To avoid this, grid engineers, operators, and regulators in Eastern Africa can implement the best practices from the rest of the world. This paper summarizes three critical lessons learned from North America and Australia that can be applied to the Eastern Africa grid. The list is not comprehensive. However, it is a starting point to spark the discussion and draw the attention of national/international funding organizations to explore this area.