Analysis of the Application of Solar Energy in the S.A.D.C. Region a Potential Solution for Energy Access in Remote Rural Areas
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Analysis of the application of solar energy in the S.A.D.C. region A potential solution for energy access in remote rural areas. -Master Final Thesis- Author: Carolina Mañoso Gimeno Tutor: Isabel Pont Castejón Hand-in date: 19th of April 2019 CEI INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Nº 4/2019, 2 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2019 COLECCIÓN TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL MÁSTER EN DIPLOMACIA Y FUNCIÓN PÚBLICA INTERNACIONAL LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS INTRODUCTION 1. EVOLUTION OF RENEWABLE ENERGIES IN THE POWER SECTOR AS A GLOBAL POLICY 1.1. Traditional primary energy sources ................................................................................... 3 1.2. Surges the need for an international energy political regime ............................................ 5 1.3. Transition towards the promotion of renewable energy .................................................... 8 1.3.1. Tangible elements of the energy system ................................................................. 9 1.3.2. The actors and their conduct .............................................................................. 10 1.3.3. Socio-technical regimes ...................................................................................... 11 1.4. Sustainable development as the new concept for renewables’ promotion ...................... 11 2. THE SADC, COMPETENCES AND FUNCTIONS IN THE ENERGY SECTOR 2.1. Historical and geographical context of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) ................................................................................................................................... 14 2.2. Constitutive treaty competences and level of integration ................................................ 16 2.3. Energy regulatory policies and institutional frameworks ................................................ 18 2.3.1 Southern African Power Pool .............................................................................. 18 2.3.2. SADC Protocol on Energy .................................................................................. 20 2.3.3. The Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan ........................................ 20 2.3.4. The Regional Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan (from now on referred to as REASAP) ............................................................................................................................ 21 2.3.5. The Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan (from now on referred to as RIDMP) 22 2.3.6. The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Action Plan (from now on referred to as REEESAP) ........................................................................................... 22 3. SOLAR OFF-GRID SOLUTIONS FOR SADC’S RURAL COMMUNITIES 3.1. Access to energy in SADC in rural areas ........................................................................ 24 3.2. Potential solutions for rural energy access ...................................................................... 26 3.2.1. Case study analysis ............................................................................................. 28 a) Malawi (energy/electricity access: urban 42%, rural 4%, total 11%) .......................... 28 b) Namibia (energy/electricity access: urban 77%, rural 29%, total 56%) ................... 31 c) South Africa (energy/electricity access: urban 93%, rural 68%, total 86%) ............ 33 3.3. Solar energy capacity ...................................................................................................... 35 CEI INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Nº 4/2019, 2 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2019 COLECCIÓN TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL MÁSTER EN DIPLOMACIA Y FUNCIÓN PÚBLICA INTERNACIONAL 3.4. Solar PV off-grid implementation ................................................................................... 37 3.4.1. Case study analysis ............................................................................................. 38 a) Malawi (energy/electricity access: urban 42%, rural 4%, total 11%) .......................... 38 b) Namibia (energy/electricity access: urban 77%, rural 29%, total 56%) ................... 40 c) South Africa (energy/electricity access: urban 93%, rural 68%, total 86%) ............ 41 3.5. Findings ........................................................................................................................... 43 4. FINAL CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDED ACTIONS 4.1. Lessons to be learned of the International Community ................................................... 46 4.1.1. The EU’s mechanism to achieve its common objectives ..................................... 46 4.2. Recommended initiatives ................................................................................................ 49 4.3. Concluding remarks ........................................................................................................ 51 BIBLIOGRAPHY ANNEX II CEI INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Nº 4/2019, 2 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2019 COLECCIÓN TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL MÁSTER EN DIPLOMACIA Y FUNCIÓN PÚBLICA INTERNACIONAL LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AC: Alternating Current CHP: Combined heat-and-power DC: Direct Current DIS: Directorate for Infrastructure and Services DME: Department of Minerals and Energy DRE (systems): Distributed Renewable Energy DREA: Distributed Renewables for Energy Access ECB: Electricity Control Board EE: Energy Efficiency FBE: Free Basic Electricity FLS: Frontline States GDP: Gross Domestic Product GHGs: Greenhouse Gases IAEA: International Atomic Energy Agency IC: International Community’s IEA: International Energy Agency INEP: Integrated National Electrification Programme IPPs: Independent Power Producers IRENA: International Renewable Energy Agency IRP: Integrated Resource Plan LCOE: Levelised Costs of Energy MAREP: Malawi’s Rural Electrification Programme MME: Ministry of Mines and Energy MS: Member States MW/h: Megawatt/Hour NEPAD: New Partnership for Africa’s Development O&M: Operational and Maintenance OECD: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development OGEMP: Off-Grid Energisation Master Plan OGEMP: Off-Grid Energisation Master Plan OPEC: Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries PAYG: Pay-As-You-Go PIDA: Programme for Infrastructure Development in Africa PV: Photovoltaic REASAP: Regional Energy Access Strategy and Action Plan REDMP: Rural Electricity Distribution Master Plan REEESAP: Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Action Plan REIPPPP: Renewable Energy IndependentPower Producer Procurement Programme REN21: Renewables of the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century RES: Renewable Energy Sources RIDMP: Regional Infrastructure Development Master Plan RIDSP: Regional Indicative Strategic Development Plan SABS: South African Bureau of Standards SACREEE: Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency CEI INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Nº 4/2019, 2 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2019 COLECCIÓN TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL MÁSTER EN DIPLOMACIA Y FUNCIÓN PÚBLICA INTERNACIONAL SADC : Southern African Development Community SADCC: Southern African Development Coordination Conference SAPP: Southern African Power Pool SD: Sustainable Development SDGs: Sustainable Development Goals SHS: Solar Home System SIPO: Strategic Indicative Plan for the Organ SMEs: Small and Medium-sized Enterprises SPS: Stand-alone Power Systems SPSs: Solar Pico Systems TWh: Terawatt-Hours UNECA: United Nations Economic Commission for Africa UNFCCC: United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change COP1: Conference of the Parties UNIDO: United Nations Industrial Development Organisation WHO: World Health Organisation CEI INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS Nº 4/2019, 2 DE SEPTIEMBRE DE 2019 COLECCIÓN TRABAJOS DE INVESTIGACIÓN DEL MÁSTER EN DIPLOMACIA Y FUNCIÓN PÚBLICA INTERNACIONAL INTRODUCTION The purpose of this paper is to understand and explain the current situation of renewable energy’s application in remote rural areas of the Southern African Development Community (from now on referred to as SADC) region. The aim is to demonstrate the advantages of using renewable energy sources, in this case the sun, in order to deal with the energy access challenge of remote rural communities. This thesis rationale for choosing the African continent is because it faces an enormous energy challenge. But also as important, is the fact that more than half of the global population growth between now and 2050 is expected to occur in Africa, as the continent has the highest rate of population growth1. Its growing population and economic development are creating an increasing demand for energy which in turn calls for an increase in energy supply and consequently a transformation of Africa’s economy. Therefore, energy is not only fundamental for Africa’s socio-economical development, but also because it will set the ways in which the whole continent manages a great amount of its energy demand which can have tremendous global environmental repercussions. Since the energy supply sector is the largest contributor to global greenhouse gases emissions, Africa’s energy access strategies will have great significance for our Climate Change generation. More specifically, in order to do a more accurate analysis this paper has chosen a geographical focal point, namely the SADC region. The choice of this region is because of the SADC institution’s regional focus on development and intergovernmental integration. Energy access constitutes a great policy challenge for SADC Member States, because average access in the region is still at 48%, and only 32% in rural areas2. Moreover, the most affected