Electrification seeds – A flexible approach for decentralized electricity supply in developing countries

Abstract

There are currently more than 500 million people without access to electricity on the African continent alone. With an expected strong population growth and the global goals for reducing carbon emissions, the challenge of providing electricity for all is tremendous. We present an approach that tackles electrification bottom-up in a decentral approach from so-called electrification seeds: Business owners or public institutions that invest in an electricity system to ensure reliable electricity supply for themselves may serve as a seed by also selling electricity in their surroundings via mini- or microgrids. This approach will allow for cheaper solutions due to economies of scale. While private households can also be addressed by simple solutions e.g. solar home systems, the power of the “electrification seed” approach is that it can also provide enough secure power for small and medium enterprises (SME) and thus drive economic development. It is important to address the individual environment of the respective electrification seed, since there is no standard solution. To do so, the method includes an entire toolchain from estimating demands and structures with satellite data and Geographic Information System (GIS) software over employing an energy system model for finding the optimal technological design. As a last step, the viability of the electrification seed concept is verified with an exemplary business plan. The results show positive business cases for the electrification seed and a reduction of electricity costs for end-customers by 11.3 %. Altogether, this gives a very optimistic outlook of the suggested approach to support the great challenge of sustainable electrification for economic growth in developing countries.