Universal access to electricity: actions to avoid locking-in unsustainable technology choices

Traditional rural-electrification planning relies on centralised, fossil-fuelled electricity generation and grid extension. High interest rates on renewable energy-powered electricity-generation projects, coupled with low oil prices, favour traditional models and put renewable energy-powered technologies at a disadvantage. Nonetheless, over the past decades alternative approaches have emerged, based on renewable energy-powered, decentralised electricity-generation systems, notably mini-grids. This article makes the case for these alternative approaches. It does so by quantifying the magnitude to which regulating the price of diesel – through subsidies and taxes – affects two sets of parameters: the extent and cost of electrification programmes, and the greenhouse-gas emissions associated with the implementation of these programmes. The analysis, based on high-resolution geo-referenced modelling, covers 71 countries in Africa, South Asia and developing East Asia, representing 85 percent of the world’s un-electrified population. The results highlight that, compared to decentralised fossil-fuelled electricity generation, renewable energy-powered mini-grids perform better with regard to achieving two long-standing policy goals: increasing electricity-access rates and reducing greenhouse-gas emissions.

PUIG Daniel;  MONER GERONA Magda;  SZABO Sandor;  PINEDO PASCUA Irene; 

2021-12-17

IOP PUBLISHING LTD

JRC125985

1748-9326 (online),   

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/ac3ceb,    https://publications.jrc.ec.europa.eu/repository/handle/JRC125985,   

10.1088/1748-9326/ac3ceb (online),