Search

The developing world continues to face substantial obstacles to achieving affordable and dependable electricity access. This issue is especially pertinent for Nigeria, where diesel generators are widely relied upon in urban and rural regions because of an underdeveloped and unreliable national grid. The lack of grid reliability is worsened in Northeastern Nigeria, an area plagued by conflict, extreme poverty, and grid infrastructure deterioration. This study investigates the feasibility of implementing community-scale microgrids in rural areas without grid connection access. It focuses on assessing the technical, economic, and environmental aspects of utilizing these microgrids to deliver inexpensive and dependable electricity to underserved populations to increase energy access. A case study was conducted in Kabuiri, a village with an estimated population of 2,300 residents and an estimated load demand of 610 kWh per day. A hybrid microgrid system was designed and optimized to meet the community's load demand using HOMER software, sized to produce 610 kWh/day of electricity with a renewable penetration of 99%. The optimal solar PV/battery/generator system had a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of $ 0.093 per kWh, a net present cost (NPC) of $266,709, and an annual operating cost of $9,110. The system contributed 1,624 kg CO2 eq/year of global warming potential and 56.81 kg O3 eq/year of smog formation during operation. Sensitivity analysis showed that the system could effectively react to or adapt to substantial increases in diesel prices, requiring only marginal increases in photovoltaic capacity and reduced generator usage to maintain the most cost-efficient operation. Additionally, the system model can be adapted based on the population of the remote community without substantially impacting the LCOE, however, the NPC increases with increase in population size. This research will aid in increasing energy access in remote locations by providing insights to stakeholders and energy access project developers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Energy exclusion is prevalent throughout Africa, leading to a myriad of energy access projects, technologies, interventions and approaches being explored to address a phenomenon affecting over half the continent's predominantly rural population. This is exhibited in a recent EU-funded energy access project involving partners, researchers and communities working across many African countries employing various approaches. In this paper, we unfold the employment of two divergent approaches, requirements elicitation and community-based co-design, in an attempt to determine and advance green energy inclusion and innovative use in a low-income, off-grid rural Namibian community. Thereafter, we reflect on the use of each approach, highlighting the need for an elevated and provocative approach that enables innovative and unorthodox energy inclusion permitting energy access and productive use in rural African communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Remotely sensed nighttime light data have become vital for electrification mapping in data-scarce regions. However, uncertainty persists regarding the veracity of these electrification maps. This study investigates how characteristics of electrified areas influence their detectability using nighttime lights. Utilizing a dataset comprising the locations, installation date, and electricity purchase history of thousands of electric meters and transformers from utilities in Rwanda and Kenya, we present a systematic error assessment of electrification maps produced with nighttime lights. Descriptive analysis is employed to offer empirical evidence that the likelihood of successfully identifying an electrified nighttime light pixel increases as characteristics including the time since electrification, the number of meters within a pixel, and the total annual electricity purchase of meters in a pixel increase. The performance of models trained on various temporal aggregations of nighttime light data (annual, quarterly, monthly, and daily) was compared, and it was determined that aggregation at the monthly level yielded the best results. Additionally, we investigate the transferability of electrification models across locations. Our findings reveal that models trained on data from Rwanda demonstrate strong transferability to Kenya, and vice versa, as indicated by balanced accuracies differing by less than 5% when additional data from the test location are included in the training set. Also, models developed with data from the centralized grid in East Africa were found to be useful for detecting areas electrified with off-grid systems in West Africa. This research provides valuable insight into the characterization of sources of nighttime lights and their utility for mapping electrification. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

ABSTRACTThe use of electric cooking appliances, also referred to as eCooking devices, presents a practical and sustainable solution for achieving universal access to clean cooking facilities by 2030. A choice modelling analysis on the factors that influence the selection of an eCooker in Ghana has been conducted to facilitate market expansion for organisations seeking to offer clean cooking services. The study utilised Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), Fuzzy-TOPSIS, and Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) methodologies to assess and rank electric cookers based on crucial factors such as kWh consumption rate, cooking efficiency, affordability, time-saving features, ergonomics, space utilisation capabilities, compatibility with cookware types, ease of cleaning and maintenance procedures, accessibility, among others. The rate of consumption was identified as the most critical factor, emphasising the significance of energy efficiency in the decision-making process. The analysis showed that the induction stove was optimal, considering both Fuzzy-TOPSIS and DEA evaluations. Although the induction stove may consume a considerable amount of electricity, its efficiency, performance, and other attributes make it the preferred choice. This study presents a systematic approach to assessing and ranking electric cooking stoves in Ghana, offering valuable insights for both consumers and policymakers.

The power sectors in most African countries face an enduring problem of poor utility performance. Empirical findings show that the structural, governance, and regulatory reforms that previously created incentives for improved utility performance are increasingly threatened by political influence. Kenya Power's financial viability has deteriorated in recent years and the regulator has been undermined. One of my major conclusions is that when the relationship between the government and utility is well understood and the agent is properly incentivized, performance improvements are possible. However, when the principal undermines or muddies those incentives through conflicting political interventions, performance improvements can be reversed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

[Display omitted] • Energy access, oil price fluctuations, and energy use as new environmental factors. • Energy use contributes to climate change, land degradation, and air pollution. • An increase in energy use is associated with an increase in CO 2 emissions. • Sustainable societies rely on energy access and the quality of the environment. • Environmental quality in APEC countries is affected by oil price fluctuations. Energy security has moved to the forefront of international policy agendas and boosted efforts to deploy clean energy technologies. In the past few years, clean energy investment has accelerated at a faster rate than investment in fossil fuels, contributing to the emergence of peak oil demand. This study examines the impact of energy use, energy access, and oil price fluctuations on environmental quality in APEC countries between 1991 and 2020 using shadow economies and agricultural lands as moderating variables. The results of the Arellano-bond dynamic panel data estimation show that energy use, energy access, agricultural land, and a shady economy are positively related to CO 2 emissions, while oil price fluctuations are negatively associated with CO 2 emissions in APEC nations. There is a positive correlation between energy use and carbon dioxide emissions among APEC nations. As energy use increases, CO 2 emissions increase as well. APEC nations have a positive relationship between energy access and carbon dioxide emissions. Policymakers in APEC countries must understand the implications of rising energy consumption and CO 2 emissions. To mitigate negative environmental consequences, develop sustainable energy sources, and promote economic growth, energy efficiency measures can help to minimize energy consumption and reduce CO 2 emissions. APEC countries are encouraged to develop carbon pricing mechanisms to encourage companies to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through cap and trade systems or carbon taxes. The implementation of carbon pricing mechanisms encourages businesses to switch to cleaner, renewable energy sources as a result of putting a price on carbon emissions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This work investigated the thermo‐economics of gas‐to‐wire as a gas flaring mitigation option in a selected gas production facility, in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria, which flares 294 thousand standard cubic feet of natural gas, daily. The thermodynamics and economics aspects of the gas‐to‐wire plant were modeled, and implemented in the Engineering Equation Solver software. The thermodynamics was carried out to ascertain the technical feasibility of the proposed plant, while the economics analysis was done to ensure its cost competitiveness. The findings suggested that 19.2 MW of electricity could be generated from the flare gases. This could be achieved at a life cycle cost of 19.24 billion naira, and a unit cost of energy of 13.47 naira per kWh. Parametric simulation of interest rate, excess combustion air, exit temperature of flue gases, and expansion ratio of gas turbine were also done. Furthermore, the proposed power plant could meet the electricity needs of not less than 60,000 households in Delta State where the gas production facility is located at 550 kWh electricity per capita. The study has shown that gas‐to‐wire is one of the viable approaches to tackle gas flaring activities in Nigeria, to meet both the energy demand of its people and to preserve the environment. Thus, it is recommended that the Federal Government of Nigeria should give gas‐to‐wire a priority in its gas flaring utilization agenda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Access to electricity is bedrock of socioeconomic progress, particularly in rural areas where development disparities are often stark. This paper presents a comprehensive review of pre- and post-electrification dynamics in rural regions across diverse global contexts. Drawing upon a systematic analysis of existing literature, data, and case studies, this research investigates the multifaceted impacts of electrification on rural communities, spanning economic, social, and environmental dimensions. The article underscores the transformative potential of electrification, revealing a positive correlation between electricity access and various development indicators. Post-electrification, rural households typically experience improvements in income levels, agricultural productivity, and access to education and healthcare services. Electrification also facilitates the adoption of modern technologies, enhancing resilience to environmental challenges and market uncertainties. However, challenges such as unequal access, affordability issues, and environmental trade-offs persist, underscoring the need for comprehensive and sustainable electrification strategies. By addressing these challenges, electrification can emerge as a powerful tool for inclusive rural development, empowering communities and fostering economic growth. This review contributes to the existing literature by synthesizing empirical evidence and offering insights into the complex dynamics of electrification and rural development. It highlights the importance of integrating electrification initiatives with broader development agendas, emphasizing the significance of inclusive policymaking, technological innovation, and community participation in achieving sustainable rural electrification goals. Overall, this research provides a valuable resource for policymakers, practitioners, and researchers seeking to understand the nuanced impacts of electrification on rural communities and design effective strategies for promoting inclusive and sustainable development in rural areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peru is in the race to eliminate poverty, inequality and environmental pollution according to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030; however, the country faces significant challenges in the energy sector, with limited access to electricity and a heavy dependence on imported wood and fuels. This study explores the Peruvian energy context, focusing on an integrative model based on policies, emissions, challenges and opportunities to ensure the availability of resources and a sustainable framework for development through the evaluation of indicators and impacts within the energy sector. Our findings show that energy consumption in Peru depends on diesel, natural gas, and wood. Despite the country's efforts to advance renewable sources of energy and their potential, their contribution is approximately 5%. In this regard, sustainability policies towards 2030 have been adopted by promoting various initiatives, such as installing off-grid photovoltaic panels, BonoGas tickets or energy efficiency measures. However, the lack of political, economic, social and institutional support for emerging technologies slows down progress according to the proposed model.

The developing world continues to face substantial obstacles to achieving affordable and dependable electricity access. This issue is especially pertinent for Nigeria, where diesel generators are widely relied upon in urban and rural regions because of an underdeveloped and unreliable national grid. The lack of grid reliability is worsened in Northeastern Nigeria, an area plagued by conflict, extreme poverty, and grid infrastructure deterioration. This study investigates the feasibility of implementing community-scale microgrids in rural areas without grid connection access. It focuses on assessing the technical, economic, and environmental aspects of utilizing these microgrids to deliver inexpensive and dependable electricity to underserved populations to increase energy access. A case study was conducted in Kabuiri, a village with an estimated population of 2,300 residents and an estimated load demand of 610 kWh per day. A hybrid microgrid system was designed and optimized to meet the community’s load demand using HOMER software, sized to produce 610 kWh/day of electricity with a renewable penetration of 99%. The optimal solar PV/battery/generator system had a levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) of $ 0.093 per kWh, a net present cost (NPC) of $266,709, and an annual operating cost of $9,110. The system contributed 1,624 kg CO2 eq/year of global warming potential and 56.81 kg O3 eq/year of smog formation during operation. Sensitivity analysis showed that the system could effectively react to or adapt to substantial increases in diesel prices, requiring only marginal increases in photovoltaic capacity and reduced generator usage to maintain the most cost-efficient operation. Additionally, the system model can be adapted based on the population of the remote community without substantially impacting the LCOE, however, the NPC increases with increase in population size. This research will aid in increasing energy access in remote locations by providing insights to stakeholders and energy access project developers.

A rise in the need for the integration of renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, has been attributed to the search for sustainable energy solutions. To strengthen community grids and improve access to electricity, this article investigates the potential of combining solar and wind hybrid systems. This is viable approach to address energy-related issues, like grid dependability, energy accessibility, and greenhouse gas reduction. This research focuses on the examination of the environmental, technological, financial, and operational effects, and features of hybrid solar and wind systems for grid support. To further demonstrate the practical uses and advantages of such hybrid systems; case studies are presented. This study attempts to shed light on how solar and wind systems can affect grid resilience, increase electricity accessibility, and shape the direction for sustainable energy in the future. The obstacles preventing the broad use of a hybrid system for grid support were investigated, and the intricacies required in implementing such systems at a large scale are comprehensively presented. It was observed that developments of demand-side management, energy storage technology, and hybrid system optimization algorithms would improve the dependability, effectiveness, and cost of the hybrid system. In summary, the motivation of this study was to provide an effective tool for the interaction of hybrid solar and wind systems in the changing the energy landscape, in order to provide communities with dependable access to electricity, and fostering a more sustainable future. This work offers stakeholders insights into utilizing the hybrid system for electricity access and shift towards cleaner and renewable energy.

How serious is indoor air pollution (IAP) as a threat to infants and children? This paper estimates the impact of cooking fuel choice – a predominant source of IAP – on under-five mortality in India, where reliance on biomass fuels such as firewood, animal dung, and agricultural waste is pervasive. Leveraging forest cover and agricultural land ownership for identification and nationally representative data, we find that solid fuel use for cooking significantly increases the child mortality rate - mainly driven by neonatal mortality in the first 28 days after birth. The mortality effect is higher for girls than boys and is magnified in relatively small households where there is limited scope for the division of labor between childcare and cooking responsibilities. Among polluting fuels, we find that biomass fuels drive the impact of polluting fuel use on child mortality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Providing sustainable, affordable, and reliable electricity through low-carbon energy development in the Nigerian energy sector is fundamental to ensuring energy security. Currently, efforts to harness the potential of renewable energy, to provide universal electricity access for all have not translated into significant economic development in Nigeria. Investment in green hydrogen could strengthen Nigeria's net-zero transition plan (NETP) and achieve sustainable energy access. The study explored the role of green hydrogen among five Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos), from three geopolitical zones in Nigeria—North West, North Central, and North East. A bottom-up optimization linear programming methodology based on an open energy modelling framework (OEMOF) was used as the modelling paradigm. Secondary data mined from the Nigeria Energy Commission, Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission, NECAL 2050 report and international reports, and 2020 was used as a reference year to benchmark the model. The basic characteristics of the generation of electricity from green hydrogen, fuel cells, electrolyzers, and hydrogen storage, among other existing generation plants, were modelled till 2060 using modelled daily data obtained from Toktarova et al. (Electrical Power and Energy Systems 111:160–181, 2019). Outcomes from benchmarking led to two planning scenarios; these investigated possible insights that explored green hydrogen in Nigeria. Results showed that an integrated distributed approach would enhance harnessing green hydrogen in Nigeria, that is, electricity distribution among the DisCos. The study also revealed the following (1) the levelized cost of electricity could drop by about 8%, so also the cost of the investment; (2) access to electricity showed an improvement compared to the base year; and (3) emissions were cut in the power sector. To attain sustainable NETP with green hydrogen, the study recommends that a distributed generation approach among DisCos would support the national net-zero transition plan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ensuring reliable and sustainable energy access in sub-Saharan Africa requires exploring alternatives to traditional biomass and fossil fuels, crucial for overcoming challenges related to limited electricity and clean cooking energy access. Within this background and to assess the factors affecting energy supply and energy consumption, the Logarithmic Mean Divisia Index (LMDI) was applied across 48 sub-Saharan countries and adapted to the regional context considering energy access indicators.Key results showed that economic activity significantly influences both supply and demand growth. However, this growth is restricted by outdated infrastructure, resulting in inefficiencies and increased conversion losses. Policymakers thus face a dual challenge of promoting economic growth while modernizing energy infrastructure to sustain development.Moreover, targeted policies are essential, particularly in energy-intensive in energy-intensive sectors like wholesale and retail, while advocating for a comprehensive approach in the residential sector. This approach involves socioeconomic considerations, energy access enhancement, and the promotion of energy-efficient and renewable technologies to meet rising demand amid population growth and evolving consumption patterns.Furthermore, the study underscores the importance of enhancing both energy access levels and energy efficiency in the residential sector. Unlike the industrial sector, energy intensity is crucial for improving efficiency without compromising the level of access. Enhancing energy efficiency can significantly reduce energy consumption in households, which is important given the high reliance on energy-intensive practices such as cooking with traditional biomass.

This paper presents a systematic review of microgrid interoperability focusing on energy access. Drawing upon 59 studies and reports, it delves into interoperability issues and technologies across various microgrid applications. This study aims to provide a synthesized overview of the current discourse on microgrid interoperability, particularly contextualized within the realm of energy access. This objective is accomplished through a process that involves clarifying terminologies, exploring potential interoperability issues in microgrids, identifying the technologies for interoperability, and examining promising pathways to achieve interoperability. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) method was used in this study. Through data extraction and content analysis, the review found that studies on interoperability in the energy field primarily focus on the smart grid topic, where information and communication technologies are regarded as key elements to facilitate interoperability. There is less emphasis on physical or electrical interoperability, with the literature primarily focusing on interoperability in the communication domain. Furthermore, interoperability in the energy access context is uncommon, as indicated by a lack of literature in remote, rural, or community settings. Adopting common industry standards is one of the strategies for ensuring interoperability, enabling microgrid systems to function effectively and reliably. This paper contributes to describing research insights, identifying gaps in knowledge, and proposing future research directions regarding microgrid interoperability.

Solar home systems for rural electrification are often designed with a limited energy supply, which presents a drawback for the technology. Furthermore, uncontrolled livestock faeces in rural communities constitute environmental sanitation and health risks. Livestock excrement can be used through a biogas digester to supplement solar energy to provide adequate and sustainable electricity access to underserved rural communities while achieving waste management. Therefore, this study presents a hybrid solar–biogas system for a more dynamic energy supply and waste management for post-Covid recovery plans in rural communities. A parametric research approach that involves the use of the Integrated Environment Solution Virtual Environment software application and mathematical models to design the desired household load and the hybrid system sizing is used in the study. The findings show that the daily household energy consumption was 6.6 kWh, equivalent to 206.40 kWh/month. A 1.2-kWp and 1.2-m3 hybrid solar–biogas system was found to adequately power the house. Financially, the total initial investment cost of the system was $5777.20 with a net present value of $6566.78, net profit of $4443.6, a payback period of 14 years and 8 months, and a levelized cost of energy of $0.21/kWh; these include a 60% initial investment and maintenance costs subsidy. Energy performance contracting and energy-as-a-service were recommended to effectively run and operate the system. The study successfully revealed the design, specifications and upscaling mechanism of the proposed hybrid solar–biogas system. More research is required to unveil the efficacy of the system, the performance gap and the perception of the technology by the beneficiaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Floating solar renewable energy is of enormous potential in Indonesia. This paper presents a comprehensive study of the design of Floating Photovoltaic (FPV) systems with Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) for three islands in Indonesia. These islands represent three typical scenarios in Indonesia (a) using a national grid powered by fossil fuel generators, (b) using a local grid powered by diesel generators, and (c) no grid at all. In-person surveys were conducted at these islands to collect data, and then FPV and BESS were designed to meet the demands of each island. Subsequently, the systems' energy simulations were conducted using the System Advisor Model, demonstrating daily energy demand and supply in hour variation. Based on the results, a series of sustainability analyses were created from the aspects of economics, society, and the environment. The economic analysis demonstrated cost savings by using FPV to replace contemporary energy methods. The social analysis provides valuable insights into the local community, forming a demographic profile and obtaining perceptions and opinions regarding the new energy approach. The environmental analysis quantifies the potential CO2 emissions. Overall, the work provides valuable insights into the roadmap for implementing floating solar technologies in Indonesia which can also inform global ocean-based solar energy developments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, the main initial-boundary (mixed) problems for a nonlinear system of equations of one-dimensional gas ionization in the case of constant velocities of gas atoms and ions arising as a result of ionization are presented. The concentrations of atoms and ions are unknowns in this system. A general formula for a sufficiently smooth solution of the , of this system, where is time and is a spatial coordinate, is found. In the case of a mixed problem for a finite interval, the analytic solution is constructed by means of recurrence formulas, each of which is defined in a triangle belonging to some triangulation of the region of definition of the unknown functions specified in the paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a descriptive study focusing on the productive energy use of women-owned micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises that operate in Africa's food and textile sectors. Through a multidisciplinary approach, combining primary and secondary data collection methods, and integrating quantitative and qualitative tools, this study examines the relationship between the gender-based ownership structure of enterprises (i.e., sole female, female-female, and female-male) and energy consumption patterns, including demand levels, carrier use, access type (on-grid or off-grid), and expenditure. Despite limitations in scope and sample size, the findings shed light on gender-specific productive use practices.Findings show that female-owned businesses primarily rely on single or dual energy carriers, contrasting with female-male enterprises, which typically employ two or more energy carriers. Fuel usage varies among ownership structures, with diesel, biomass, and liquified petroleum gas being notable choices. Increasing diversity in ownership correlates with heightened awareness of energy metrics and monthly demand for electric and mechanical power, with some of the latter correlation also observed for thermal energy. Moreover, as ownership diversity increases, energy expenditure per kilogramme of production output decreases. Some sole female-owned enterprises surpass 100 USD/kg/month, female-female partnerships may reach 100 USD/kg/month, whereas female-male co-owned enterprises remain below 10 USD/kg/month.Beyond contributing to understanding gendered productive energy practices, this research also emphasises the importance of gender mainstreaming in productive use and energy access interventions. It highlights the need for renewable energy solutions, capacity-building programmes, and further research to address efficiency and accessibility challenges faced by women entrepreneurs.

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is experiencing rapid economic growth and rising demand for energy, accompanied by significant low energy access and sustainability challenges. Globally, to address similar issues and unlock a region's energy potential, regional integrated energy systems have gained traction, and initiatives such as establishing power pools for regional electricity markets, cross-border power exchanges, and integrating renewable energy resources are being promoted. This paper describes the status of regional integrated energy systems in Sub-Saharan Africa. We analyze the energy growth achieved through effective strategies and policies that support regional integrated energy systems in developed and developing regions (the United Kingdom and China). Our findings show that challenges, including limited access to financing, regulatory barriers, lack of effective energy planning model, inadequate supporting policies, and fragmented institutional frameworks, hinder the region's widespread deployment of regional integrated energy systems. Taking lessons from the case studies, addressing SSA's energy challenges requires concerted efforts from governments, international organizations, and the private sector to create enabling policy environments, mobilize investments, and build technical capacity and supporting infrastructures. Regional integrated energy systems can enhance energy security by diversifying energy sources, fostering economic development, and stimulating cross-border energy trade. In the United Kingdom, the implementation of integrated energy systems has contributed to a 25% reduction in carbon emissions and a 15% increase in energy efficiency over the past decade. Similarly, in China, the integration of renewable energy sources into regional energy systems has led to a 30% increase in renewable energy capacity and a 20% decrease in coal consumption since 2010. China owns 32% of global renewable energy market, alongside an installed capacity of about 1.26 TW in the first quarter of 2023. Our findings from the power pools indicate that three out of the four pools possess significant hydro energy resources. Specifically, within the CAPP region, 7 out of 10 countries heavily rely on hydro energy, while in EAPP, 6 out of 11 countries exhibit a similar dependency. Moreover, within SAPP, 9 out of 12 countries and within WAPP, 5 out of 14 countries rely significantly on hydro energy.

Remotely sensed nighttime light data have become vital for electrification mapping in data-scarce regions. However, uncertainty persists regarding the veracity of these electrification maps. This study investigates how characteristics of electrified areas influence their detectability using nighttime lights. Utilizing a dataset comprising the locations, installation date, and electricity purchase history of thousands of electric meters and transformers from utilities in Rwanda and Kenya, we present a systematic error assessment of electrification maps produced with nighttime lights. Descriptive analysis is employed to offer empirical evidence that the likelihood of successfully identifying an electrified nighttime light pixel increases as characteristics including the time since electrification, the number of meters within a pixel, and the total annual electricity purchase of meters in a pixel increase. The performance of models trained on various temporal aggregations of nighttime light data (annual, quarterly, monthly, and daily) was compared, and it was determined that aggregation at the monthly level yielded the best results. Additionally, we investigate the transferability of electrification models across locations. Our findings reveal that models trained on data from Rwanda demonstrate strong transferability to Kenya, and vice versa, as indicated by balanced accuracies differing by less than 5% when additional data from the test location are included in the training set. Also, models developed with data from the centralized grid in East Africa were found to be useful for detecting areas electrified with off-grid systems in West Africa. This research provides valuable insight into the characterization of sources of nighttime lights and their utility for mapping electrification.

2.9 billion people lack access to clean cooking fuels and technologies. This review analyzes the literature on affordability as a barrier to adoption and consistent use of clean cooking stoves and fuels. We find diverse frameworks, definitions and metrics in use, and frequent discussions on stove price, fuel costs, microfinance, and smaller procurement quantities. We recommend that financing strategies to mitigate unaffordability be based on how low-income households actually earn, spend, and save their money, and that affordability frameworks be expanded to account for gender divides, rural/urban divides, and stove stacking behavior. Our review thus aims to reflect the nuances of a low-income household's ability to pay for clean fuels. Affordability must make sense within the lived experiences of the poor if clean cooking is to achieve universal access.

Liberia, a developing nation, faces significant challenges in its energy sector, with limited access to electricity and heavy reliance on traditional biomass and imported fossil fuels. This review explores Liberia's energy landscape, policies, challenges, and opportunities, aiming to identify ways to improve energy access and foster sustainable development. Our methodology employed a systematic search strategy, examining relevant literature from various sources, encompassing research articles, reports, and studies related to Liberia's energy landscape from 2010 onward. Our findings indicate that Liberia's energy mix is historically dominated by traditional biomass fuels such as firewood and charcoal, accounting for more than 80 % of the country's total energy consumption. Petroleum products, including gasoline and diesel, contribute to about 10 % of energy consumption, while hydroelectric power makes up just over 6 %. The remaining energy comes from various sources, including solar energy. This heavy reliance on traditional biomass and limited access to affordable energy has significant social and economic implications. Efforts have been made in recent years to improve Liberia's energy situation. Yet, significant challenges, including financial constraints, inadequate infrastructure, affordability issues, and an outdated energy policy, continue to hinder progress. However, the review identifies opportunities for improving energy access, including abundant renewable energy resources, international support, public-private partnerships, off-grid solutions, and energy efficiency measures. Additionally, regular reviews and updates of policies, informed by accurate data and forward-looking strategies, are also essential to ensure that the energy sector remains aligned with changing circumstances and technological advancements.

This Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 7) analysis addresses critical challenges through three questions, backed by literature and evidence. Environmental, social, and governance concerns were discussed. A notable SDG target shortfall was observed from International Renewable Energy Agency, International Energy Agency, and United Nation's publications. Urgent actions include refining greenhouse gas emission equivalent estimations and establishing unified life cycle assessment standards. While prioritizing renewables, minimizing dependence on non-renewables for a lower carbon footprint is vital. Balancing energy production with per capita consumption reduction, especially with a growing population, is key to achieving net-zero emissions. This solution demands a thoughtful evaluation of challenges tied to specific renewable technologies and their socio-economic impact. Balancing economic growth, crisis response, and resource management is crucial for acheiving SDG 7 targets. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provision of affordable housing and energy access is an urgent challenge in India and South Africa. This study adopts a participatory filmmaking approach to understand women's agency in low-income domestic housing in Mumbai and Cape Town. Through their films, the women shared insights of how the transitional housing environment has impacted their everyday routines and how they are utilising the access to energy. By employing creative, participatory filmmaking practice within the female community, the research explored an alternative approach to understand energy demand. The cycles of participatory filmmaking were followed by workshops, interviews, and acknowledgement of participation. The films revealed that access to formal housing and electricity grid have led to improvements in the women's welfare and wellbeing, showing the importance of privacy and the development of personal leisure activities. Yet echoing Murray Li, there is nothing 'inevitable' about women's energy transitions and energy access does not necessarily reduce the women's time spent on household chores: in Mumbai, women still cook 3-4 times per day, every cooking moment taking 1-2 hours, amounting to women putting in 56 hours of (unpaid) work per week. The study advocates the use of film as a method in energy studies: the films were able to capture the lived experience in these low-income groups, heterogeneity of the material arrangements, the pride and skills in cooking. The films enabled the participants to see their 'invisible', unpaid work and to express their aspirations giving us a glimpse of what 'empowerment' from the women's perspective would look like. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electricity users in sub‐Saharan Africa face persistent unreliable and unaffordable access. However, users' perspectives and experiences have largely been absent from policy literature. Content analysis of energy access policy literature reveals two long‐held assumptions: (1) any connection is better than no connection; (2) residents who object to this poor access have an entitlement problem. This paper critically interrogates these assumptions by using ethnographic data gathered during fieldwork in Unguja, Tanzania. It finds that long‐held policy justifications are easily contravened by real‐life experiences of sub‐par service and counters conventional narratives that blame users for the failure of electricity systems in their communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Renewable energy has the potential to power the global economy and effective business models will significantly aid this goal, being among the most critical factors in spurring expansion in the energy industry. This paper reviews articles that discuss business models in the renewable energy sector. Longterm economic, social, and ecological stability is concerned. Previous studies have neglected the environmental sustainability of renewable energy business models, focusing on their technical, social, and economic aspects, primarily for energy access. The business models for solar home and pico systems relied heavily on lowering costs through creative payment plans for customers to be commercially viable. The demand for mini-grids requires end users to launch businesses that can leverage electrification initiatives to be commercially viable. The success of a mini-grid depends on the average consumption and revenue per user. Affordability, unmet energy needs, low electricity demand, lack of financing, unfamiliar business models, and immature markets have impeded energy access in Indonesia. Our analysis revealed that future studies in this field must include environmental sustainability to provide a complete picture for decision-makers. Renewable energy needs in Indonesia can be achieved through the sustainability domain, policy makers can consult this evidence set. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The push for decarbonization is dampening resource prospects in nations with undeveloped oil and gas. It is critical to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the petroleum sector, but there are equity issues related to requiring a shift away from oil and gas before development gains are made, especially in countries that have contributed very little to historical emissions. We review the prospects for five emerging producers to produce oil and gas at the lowest emissions intensity while achieving their economic and environmental goals. We find they lack the required capacity for stringent emissions management and to manage transition risks. The low-carbon pathway presents its own challenges with plans that lack national specificity and offer no substitute to the fiscal potential of the petroleum sector, and a lack of supportive technical assistance and finance. A just transition (JT) approach in these countries will not be about reskilling as they move away from a petroleum dependent economy, but instead about engaging with citizens to break the mould of petroleum-led development expectations and defining the new pathway for development. These countries will require support for transition planning that ensures that any oil and gas production minimizes GHG emissions, and limits the risk of economic lock-in, to invest in broad-based benefits and in a credible shift to a low-carbon economy. Inadequate international support risks leaving some countries behind, or to essential changes being contested in the transition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The limitation of conventional energy sources, on the one hand, and environmental concerns, on the other, have led countries increasingly to promote renewable energy technologies. Energy policy instruments play a crucial role in implementing innovation and reducing costs in renewable energy production. Countries deploy various policies to promote renewable energy technologies, such as capital subsidies, feed-in tariffs, tradable certificates, and renewable portfolio standards. However, some policies are more effective than others. Analyzing the renewable energy potential of advanced countries and combining these with indigenous factors is leading developing countries to create renewable energy technologies in their energy supply structures. This paper analyses the effect of different policy instruments in the renewable energy sectors in the Geographical Axis. Measures are analyzed and policy recommendations which, when considered, contribute to achieving renewable energy, thereby reducing emissions, mitigating climate change, and providing a clean environment and clean energy for all and future generations. It also investigated the opportunities associated with renewable energy sources, such as energy security.

Access to electricity is a prerequisite for development, included in both the Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Union's Agenda 2063. Still, universal access to electricity is elusive to large parts of the global population. In Somalia, approximately one-third of the population has access to electricity. The country is unique among non-island countries as it has no centralized grid network. This paper applies a geospatial electrification model to examine paths towards universal access to electricity in Somalia under different timelines and with regard to different levels of myopia in the modeling process. This extends the previous scientific literature on geospatial electrification modeling by studying the effect of myopia for the first time and simultaneously presenting the first geospatial electrification analysis focused on Somalia. Using the Open Source Spatial Electrification Tool (OnSSET), the least-cost electrification options towards 2030 and 2040, respectively, are compared. We find that under the shorter timeline, a deployment of mini-grids and stand-alone PV technologies alone provides the least-cost option under all but one scenario. However, under the longer timeline, the construction of a national transmission backbone would lower overall costs if there is high demand growth and/or low cost of centralized grid electricity generation. We also compare different levels of myopia in the modeling process. Here, OnSSET is first run directly until 2040, then in five-year time-steps and annual time-steps. We find that running the model directly until 2040 leads to the lowest costs overall. Running the model myopically leads to a sub-optimal, more costly technology mix, with a lock-in effect towards stand-alone systems. On the other hand, the myopic approach does provide additional insights into the development of the system over time. We find that longer-term planning favors the centralized grid network, whereas short-sighted myopic planning can lead to higher costs in the long term and a technology mix with a higher share of stand-alone PV. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The objective of this study is to examine how digital finance influences renewable energy performance in China. Empirical data from China between 2007 and 2019 is used to evaluate the relationship among these variables. The study uses two techniques, quantile regression (QR) and generalized methods of moments (GMM), to draw empirical conclusions. The results reveal that digital finance significantly influences the renewable energy performance, ecological growth, and financial performance of cities in China. Specifically, digital finance accounts for 45.92% of the variation in renewable energy indicators, 27.60% in ecological growth, and 24.39% in the improved financial performance of renewable energy at the city level. The study also observes that the city-level score for digital finance, renewable energy, and other indicators is heterogeneous in movement. Factors contributing to this heterogeneity include high population (16.05%), access to digital banking (23.11%), province-level renewable energy performance (39.62%), household financial stability (22.04%), and household renewable energy literacy (8.47%). Based on these findings, the study recommends practical implications for key stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As the world's population continues to grow and the demand for energy increases, there is an urgent need for sustainable and efficient energy systems. Renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar power, have the potential to play a significant role in meeting this demand, but their intermittency can make integration into existing energy systems a challenge. Moreover, the development of sustainable energy systems has become even more critical in recent years, due to a confluence of events, including the decline in fuel prices, geopolitical conflicts, and the recent COVID-19 pandemic. The decrease in fuel prices has led to a decline in investment in renewable energy and has slowed the transition to sustainable energy systems. Additionally, geopolitical conflicts and pandemics have highlighted the need for resilient and self-sufficient energy systems that can operate independently of external factors. Also, energy storage technologies play a critical role in achieving this goal by providing reliable backup power and enabling microgrids to operate independently of the larger power grid. As such, developing efficient and effective energy storage technologies is essential for creating sustainable energy systems that can meet the demands of modern society while mitigating the impact of external factors. In this regard, this work provides an overview of microgrids' latest energy storage technologies, including their applications, types, integration strategies, optimization algorithms, software, and uncertainty analysis. Energy storage technologies have a wide range of applications in microgrids, including providing backup power and balancing the supply and demand of energy. Different energy storage techniques have been discussed, including batteries, flywheels, supercapacitors, pumped hydro energy storage, and others. Moreover, integration strategies of energy storage in microgrids, models, assessment indices, and optimization algorithms used in the design of energy storage systems are presented in detail. The capabilities of software used in energy storage sizing are explored. Further, uncertainty analysis in modeling energy storage devices is presented and discussed. This state-of-the-art technology has been prepared to demonstrate the effectiveness of energy storage technologies in microgrids, providing valuable insights for future developments in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Non-Interconnected Zones (NIZ) are a challenge for countries in terms of providing energy service coverage that is both economically and environmentally sustainable. Although some microgrid planning strategies allow for scaled-down energy solutions for these areas, a solely electrical approach does not facilitate the integration of a range of energy vectors. Considering the above, this study presents a multiobjective approach to optimally scale multi-energy systems (MES) in NIZ in Colombia to minimize both costs and pollutant emissions. The methodology is based on the MOPSO algorithm, which provides a set of optimized solutions that can be selected according to multiple criteria. The capabilities of the methodology are tested through a comparative study of microgrid planning in the Bahía Málaga area on Colombia's Pacific coast. The results present solutions with lower costs and lower environmental impact, benefits that can be applied in other NIZ worldwide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rural areas in various locations are facing electricity shortages and are compelled to heavily rely on non-renewable and ecologically harmful fossil fuels as their primary source of energy. To address this issue, microgrids were proposed as a solution to provide energy to these areas. An IEEE working group, the SESDC Working Group, was established to investigate the feasibility of implementing isolated microgrids as solutions in these communities. However, it has been identified that a proper software tool for microgrid planning is needed to accurately analyze the optimal microgrid configuration. Thus, a user-friendly and secure web-based system for microgrid planning was proposed. This tool was developed using the Django web development framework and Python programming language. It was then validated with users to ensure that the data entered is calculated correctly and produced the expected results.

Energy access is a key need for socio-economic growth. Proven to be a key enabler of development and progress, access to electricity has been prioritized by governments using grid extension actions and off-grid solutions, namely microgrids and home systems technologies, fed by renewable sources. However, achieving universal access to energy remains a huge challenge given the lack of resources and the large population currently unserved. The lack of adequate socio-economic data at granular scale and of a good understanding of demand uptake led by economic growth is a barrier for efficient energy planning. Access to conjoint demand and socio-economic data at local level is crucial, yet hard to obtain: often such data are unavailable or very difficult to collect, and current data platforms often lack the ability to conjointly store variegated socio-economic and time series data. For these reasons, in this paper, we present a comprehensive methodology that, based on an extensive literature review, draws guidelines for developing data-sharing platforms in energy access, develops a proposed architecture to support the data collection of conjoint socio-economic and time-series data, and proposes a prototype of the final application. The methodology leverages on a novel extensive literature review to identify the major determinants of demand uptake and the corresponding consuming entities: villages, households, and appliances. The proposed architecture is able to capture numeric, categorical, and time series information for all consuming entities, based on state-of-the-art NoSQL databases. Finally, a prototype implementation with a web-based interface developed with Angular and Spring is proposed and discussed.