Demand for Woodfuel and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) A Case Study of Khartoum in 2009 November 2009 This report is available online at: www.unep.org/sudan Disclaimer The material in this report does not necessarily represent the views of any of the organisations involved in the preparation and hosting of the workshop. It must be noted that some time has passed between the workshop and the dissemination of this report, during which some important changes have taken place, not least of which is the independence of South Sudan, a fact which greatly affects the national energy context. Critically, following the independence, the rate of deforestation in the Republic of Sudan has risen from 0.7% per year to 2.2% per year, making many of the discussions within this document all the more relevant. Whilst not directly affecting the production of LPG, which is largely derived from oil supplies north of the border with South Sudan, the wider context of the economics of the energy sector, and the economy as a whole, have changed. These changes are not reflected in this document. This being said, it is strongly asserted that this document still represents a useful contribution to the energy sector, particularly given its contribution to charting the breadth of perspectives on LPG in the Republic of Sudan. UNEP Sudan Prepared by Margie Buchanan-Smith, Dr Siddig Umbadda, Dr Abdul Jabbar Abdalla Fadul and Hussein Bagadi 1. Introduction ..............................................................................................................................................2 1.1 Background..............................................................................................................................................2 1.2 Methodology ............................................................................................................................................3 1.3 Report Structure......................................................................................................................................3 2. An overview of the use and availability of LPG in Khartoum............................................................4 2.1. Khartoum’s main energy consumers and their use of LPG..............................................................4 2.2 Availability of LPG...................................................................................................................................4 3. Fuelwood and LPG use by domestic households..............................................................................6 4. Bakeries ...................................................................................................................................................8 5. Brick kilns.................................................................................................................................................9 6. Restaurants and tea-makers...............................................................................................................10 7. Firewood and charcoal trade in Khartoum ........................................................................................11 7.1 Firewood.................................................................................................................................................11 7.2 Charcoal.................................................................................................................................................12 8. A preliminary analysis of relevant policy issues ...............................................................................13 9. Conclusions ...........................................................................................................................................14 References..........................................................................................................................................................15 Acronyms, abbreviations and definitions........................................................................................................15 Annex 1 List of stakeholders interviewed.......................................................................................................16 Demand for Woodfuel and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) – A Case Study of Khartoum in 2009 1 UNEP Sudan 1. Introduction 1.1 Background There has long been concern about the rate of deforestation in northern Sudan. According to a Post- Conflict Environmental Assessment conducted by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), complete deforestation had affected over 70% of north, east and central Sudan by 2006 (UNEP, 2007). Although the rate of removal of the remaining forest cover has slowed, the pressure on forest resources is still high, especially around urban areas. This is attributed to energy needs and to agricultural clearance. In terms of the former, the extraction of woodfuel in northern and central Sudan is unsustainable (definitions of woodfuel and fuelwood can be found in the respective section). Rising demand for fuelwood for brick-making is a particular concern, while the demand for charcoal in northern cities is negatively affecting forest cover in central, southern and western Sudan (ibid). As deforestation has accelerated, so too has the price of woodfuel on which taxes have also risen. This has encouraged many consumers to seek alternative and cheaper forms of energy. Liquid petroleum gas (LPG) is one of the most widely substituted alternatives to woodfuel. Until recently, LPG was entirely imported into Sudan, but since the country has become an oil supplier it is now also a producer of LPG. This is the second of a series of studies commissioned by UNEP, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Department for International Development (DFID), on behalf of the Environmental Technology Task Force (ENTEC), to explore the potential for scaling up the use of LPG and its availability within Sudan. ENTEC is managed by a committee of UN agencies, members of Darfuri civil society, NGOs and donors. It was borne out of the environmental analysis undertaken concurrently by the D-JAM and by Tearfund in Darfur in 2006. ENTEC’s central concern is to introduce and scale-up alternative construction and energy technologies in Darfur to reduce the current rate of deforestation and projected deforestation in the future when IDPs eventually return and reconstruction begins. The first ENTEC study, Destitution, Distortion and Deforestation was completed by UNEP in 2008. (UNEP, 2008, www.unep.org/sudan) This work on LPG extends the work of ENTEC to the national level. This particular study explores demand for LPG within Khartoum. As Sudan’s largest (and growing) urban conurbation, it is assumed that trends and patterns in energy consumption in Khartoum are likely to be similar to other urban areas in northern Sudan, such as El Obeid and Port Sudan. Because Khartoum is particularly well-serviced as Sudan’s capital, however, it may be ahead of other urban areas in terms of the extent to which LPG has been substituted for woodfuel. The specific aims of this case study of Khartoum are: (1) to explore the extent to which households and small enterprises in the Khartoum area are using woodfuel versus LPG (or other energy sources) to meet their energy needs, how this is changing, and the factors influencing their choices; (2) to begin to provide an overview of the woodfuel trade in the Khartoum area (e.g. how the trade is organized, the main sources of supply, the main consumers, prices, taxes etc), trading trends, and the potential displacement effects of greater use of LPG; and (3) to provide an initial assessment of the retail trade in LPG in the Khartoum area (e.g. how the retail distribution of LPG is organized, the main consumers, prices, taxes etc.), recent trends and contributory factors. Demand for Woodfuel and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) – A Case Study of Khartoum in 2009 2 UNEP Sudan Subsequent studies will explore the supply of LPG in Sudan and the potential for scale-up, and the experience of projects that have attempted to introduce LPG as an alternative source of energy for domestic cooking. The findings from all of this work will be drawn together into a synthesis report with recommendations for action – at both the policy and programming levels – in early 2011. 1.2 Methodology A team of four carried out this study in Khartoum. The approach drew upon the methodology used for a study in Darfur in 2008 which explored the demand for woodfuel during the conflict years and the implications for Darfur’s forest cover (UNEP, 2008), through the lens of trade. The methodology was adapted for the Khartoum case study through the following steps: (1) identification of the main energy consumers in Khartoum; (2) identification of other key stakeholders in the woodfuel and LPG trade in Khartoum, including wholesalers and retailers, government departments that determine policy and also monitor and tax the use of both energy sources, international and national non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and research associations that have been promoting the use of LPG; (3) semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with the main energy consumers; meetings and discussions with other key stakeholders (e.g. government officers, local and international NGOs); (4) collection of secondary data where possible; (5) preliminary analysis by the study team during the field work in Khartoum, supplemented by findings from subsequent fieldwork; and