Sustainable Microgrids for Remote Communities: A Practical Framework for Analyzing and Designing

Abstract

Decentralized microgrid systems have provided electricity to off-grid communities, devoid of the necessary energy services, for a number of decades. However, in many instances, microgrid systems have failed in delivering sustainable electricity supply. This has resulted in communities, primarily residing in remote or islanded areas of developing countries, having lower social and economic resiliency compared to the urban areas with centralized grid connectivity. The lack of a detailed standard framework, for cross-sectional evaluation of the sustainability and reliability of microgrid systems, has been identified. This chapter then introduces a conceptual framework to improve the design of remote microgrid systems. The framework comprises of modules that incorporate essential features, such as stakeholder engagement, sustainability aspects, energy management, and improving energy efficiency, as well as overall system autonomy – when undertaking the analysis and design of microgrids. The process, to make the framework practical, was established through the Working Group on Sustainable Energy Systems for Developing Communities (SESDC) of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). The outcomes when applying the framework, and associated process, are demonstrated with a case study in India. The outcomes show the contribution of the practical framework in attaining sustainable development goal number seven (SDG7) – enabling clean electricity access for remote communities – and supporting the Sustainable Energy for All initiative of the United Nations, and the Smart Village initiative of the IEEE – to improve the resilience of these communities.