The Economics of Renewable Energy Expansion in Rural Sub-Saharan Africa

Accelerating development in Sub-Saharan Africa will require massive expansion of access to electricity -- currently reaching only about one-third of households. This paper explores how essential economic development might be reconciled with the need to keep carbon emissions in check. The authors develop a geographically explicit framework and use spatial modeling and cost estimates from recent engineering studies to determine where stand-alone renewable energy generation is a cost effective alternative to centralized grid supply. The results suggest that decentralized renewable energy will likely play an important role in expanding rural energy access. But it will be the lowest cost option for a minority of households in Africa, even when likely cost reductions over the next 20 years are considered. Decentralized renewables are competitive mostly in remote and rural areas, while grid connected supply dominates denser areas where the majority of households reside. These findings underscore the need to de-carbonize the fuel mix for centralized power generation as it expands in Africa.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Deichmann, Uwe, Meisner, Craig, Murray, Siobhan, Wheeler, David
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2010-01
Subjects:	ABATEMENT COSTS, ACCESS TO ELECTRICITY, AGGREGATE DEMAND, AIR, ALTITUDE, ANNUAL WIND SPEED, APPROACH, BATTERIES, BIO-DIESEL, BIOMASS, BIOMASS FUELS, BULK SUPPLY, CALCULATION, CALCULATION PROCEDURE, CAPACITY FACTOR, CARBON, CARBON CREDITS, CARBON EMISSIONS, CARBON ENERGY, CARBON INTENSITY, CARBON MITIGATION, CARBON PRICING, CARBON TAX, CARBON TAXES, CLEAN DEVELOPMENT, CLEAN DEVELOPMENT MECHANISM, CLEAN ENERGY, CLEAN ENERGY SUPPLY, CLEAN TECHNOLOGY, CLEANER ENERGY, CLIMATE, CLIMATE CHANGE, CLIMATE CHANGE NEGOTIATIONS, CLIMATE POLICY, CO2, COMBUSTION, COMBUSTION TURBINE, COMPETITIVE POWER, CONNECTED HOUSEHOLDS, CONVENTIONAL DIESEL, CONVENTIONAL DIESEL FUEL, CONVERSION EFFICIENCY, CRUDE OIL, DEMAND FOR ELECTRICITY, DIESEL, DIESEL FUEL PRICES, DIESEL GENERATION, DIESEL GENERATOR, DIESEL GENERATORS, DIESEL OIL, DIESEL POWER, DISTRIBUTION GRID, DOMESTIC CARBON, DOMESTIC ENERGY, DRIVING, ECONOMIES OF SCALE, ELASTICITY, ELECTRIC POWER, ELECTRIC POWER PLANTS, ELECTRIC POWER SYSTEMS, ELECTRICAL POWER, ELECTRICITY CONSUMPTION, ELECTRICITY DEMAND, ELECTRICITY GENERATION, ELECTRICITY PRICES, ELECTRICITY PRODUCTION, ELECTRICITY SUPPLY, ELECTRIFICATION, EMISSIONS ALLOWANCES, EMISSIONS CONTROL, EMISSIONS REDUCTION, ENERGY ACCESS, ENERGY CONSUMPTION, ENERGY COSTS, ENERGY OUTPUT, ENERGY PLANNERS, ENERGY POLICY, ENERGY PRICES, ENERGY PRODUCTION, ENERGY PRODUCTION CAPACITY, ENERGY RESOURCE, ENERGY RESOURCES, ENERGY SECTOR, ENERGY SERVICES, ENERGY SOURCE, ENERGY SOURCES, ENERGY SUPPLIES, ENERGY USE, ENERGY UTILIZATION, FIXED COSTS, FOSSIL, FOSSIL ENERGY, FOSSIL FUEL, FOSSIL FUELS, FUEL, FUEL COST, FUEL COSTS, FUEL MIX, FUEL PRICES, FUEL SOURCE, FUEL TRANSPORT, FUEL TRANSPORT COSTS, GENERATION CAPACITY, GEOTHERMAL ENERGY, GEOTHERMAL POWER, GHG, GHGS, GLOBAL CARBON TAX, GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS, GLOBAL GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS, GLOBAL WARMING, GREENHOUSE, GRID CONNECTIONS, GRID DISTRIBUTION, GRID ELECTRIFICATION, GRID EXPANSION, GRID SERVICE, GRID SUPPLY, GRID SYSTEM, GRID TECHNOLOGIES, HEAT, HEAT RATE, HEATING, INFRASTRUCTURE COSTS, IPCC, LAKES, LAND USE, LARGE POWER PLANTS, LEVELS OF EMISSIONS, LOW-CARBON, NATIONAL GRID, NATURAL GAS, O&M, OIL PRICE, OIL PRICES, PHOTOVOLTAIC POWER, POPULATION DENSITIES, POPULATION GROWTH, PORT OF ENTRY, POWER, POWER AVAILABILITY, POWER CONSUMPTION, POWER CURVE, POWER DISTRIBUTION, POWER GENERATION, POWER GENERATION TECHNOLOGIES, POWER GENERATOR, POWER GRID, POWER GRIDS, POWER MARKETS, POWER PLANT, POWER PLANTS, POWER PRODUCERS, POWER PRODUCTION, POWER RATING, POWER SECTOR, POWER SOURCES, POWER STATIONS, POWER SUPPLY, POWER TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, PRICE OF DIESEL, PROVISION OF POWER, QUANTITY OF ELECTRICITY, RENEWABLE ELECTRICITY, RENEWABLE ENERGY, RENEWABLE ENERGY CAPACITY, RENEWABLE ENERGY GENERATION, RENEWABLE ENERGY POTENTIAL, RENEWABLE ENERGY RELATIVE, RENEWABLE ENERGY RESOURCES, RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES, RENEWABLE ENERGY SYSTEMS, RENEWABLE ENERGY TECHNOLOGIES, RENEWABLE POWER, RENEWABLE TECHNOLOGIES, ROADS, ROUTE, RURAL ELECTRIFICATION, RURAL ENERGY, RURAL ENERGY DEVELOPMENT, SAND, SILICON, SOLAR ENERGY, SOLAR ENERGY POTENTIAL, SOLAR ENERGY RESOURCES, SOLAR HOME SYSTEM, SOLAR INSOLATION, SOLAR POWER, SOLAR RADIATION, SOLAR RESOURCE, SOLAR SYSTEM, SOLAR SYSTEMS, SOLAR THERMAL, SUPPLY COSTS, TEMPERATURE, THERMAL POWER, TRANSMISSION GRID, TRANSMISSION LINE, TRANSMISSION LINES, TRANSMISSION SYSTEM, TRANSPORT, TRANSPORT DISTANCE, TRANSPORT PRICE, TRANSPORTATION, TRANSPORTATION COSTS, TURBULENCE, UTILITIES, VOLTAGE, WIND, WIND DATA, WIND ENERGY, WIND ENERGY POTENTIAL, WIND POTENTIAL, WIND POWER, WIND POWER GENERATION, WIND POWER POTENTIAL, WIND RESOURCE, WIND RESOURCE POTENTIAL, WIND RESOURCES, WIND SHEAR, WIND SPEED, WIND SPEEDS, WIND SYSTEM, WIND SYSTEMS, WIND TURBINE, WIND TURBINES,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2010/01/11704457/economics-renewable-energy-expansion-rural-sub-saharan-africa https://hdl.handle.net/10986/19902
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