National Approaches to Electrification (NEA) Toolkit Now Available on Energypedia

This toolkit aims to support the analysis of the NAE and assist in identifying options for improving the NAE design in the target country. You can browse through different case studies or read the relevant chapter on the tool dashboard.
It is developed jointly by the Practical Action, GIZ, and the EUEI PDF and is available on www.energypedia.info.
Link to the toolkit

s-@ccess: International Conference on Solar Technologies & Hybrid Mini Grids to Improve Energy Access

This conference aims to facilitate exchange between the practitioners from the industry and academia as well as development institutions working in the field of decentralized energy so that they can learn from each other and network. Browse through the program and save your spot for s-@ccess at the Unversitat de les Illes Balears in Palma, Spain on October 17-19, 2018!
Energypedia is one of the supporting organizations for the conference.

Article of the Month

Greening the Indian Dairy Value Chain: This article by Stefan Eibisch focuses on the Indian dairy sector and explores the potential for energy saving at the level of processing plants, as well as chilling during procurement and at retail outlets.

Wiki Tip of the Month: Download your Favourite Article

To download your favourite article from energypedia, go to the relevant article and click on the print icon on the left navigation bar. A drop-down menu will appear. Click on "Download as PDF" to download the article. Read more...
LInk to the help portal on energypedia

The Gesellschaft für Nachhaltige Entwicklung (GNE) is a non-profit further education institute based in Witzenhausen.

The GNE specializes in climate protection, resource management, renewable energies as well as in development cooperation and humanitarian aid. Our further education programs are addressed to the graduates of applied sciences and higher education, in particular, natural sciences, social sciences, humanities and economics, engineers and persons with comparable qualifications.
In cooperation with the University of Kassel, we are offering the following programs: Koordinator/in für Klimaschutz & Ressourcenmanagement (KUR), Koordinator/in für Erneuerbare Energie & Energiemanagement (KEE) and Coordinator in International Climate Protection & Adaptation (CPA).
Duration: 03 Sep - 29 Mar 2019

Off-grid Power Projects for Education Institutions in Nigeria

As part of the “Energising Education” program, the Nigerian Government is seeking to develop off-grid power plants for providing energy access to 37 federal universities and 7 university teaching hospitals across the country. In the first phase, the government has already signed an agreement to help 9 federal universities and teaching hospitals to get off the national grid. These education institutions will generate power from hybrid power plants that use renewable energy sources and have energy storage and diesel generation for backup. Read more...

Global Refugee Energy – Data Visualization Platform Launched

This platform maps the energy access situation for lighting and cooking among refugees and displaced people across the globe. It shows in detail how the energy resources vary between camp and non-camp settings and includes a detailed energy breakdown for individual countries. The platform also highlights the areas where data is missing and invites humanitarian as well as energy and environment communities to contribute data to the platform. Read more...

Promoting Solar Irrigation in Malawi

To tackle droughts, Malawi farmers in Zomba district are using solar powered pumps to pull underground water and store it in newly constructed water storage dams.
The Malawi Government has been supporting this change and aims to help 5,800 households to become resilient to climate change. The Government also received USD 4.5 million from the Global Environment Facility to implement this switch to solar-powered pumps. Read more...

Fuel Economy Standard Evaluation Tool (FESET) Launched

This Excel-based tool helps to calculate the fuel demand and mitigation effects of the fuel economy standards. For example, as compared to 2012, the 2016 fuel economy standards of the Mexico passenger vehicle fleet is expected to reduce the CO2 emissions from 62 Mt/year to 56 Mt/year. This is calculated using real adjustments within the tool.
This tool is developed by the International Council for Clean Transportation (ICCT). Read more...

Final Rules on Microgrid Development in Puerto Rico Issued

The Puerto Rico Energy Commission (PREC) has issued the final rules on microgrid development in Puerto Rico. The rules classify microgrid into three categories: personal microgrids, cooperative microgrids, and third-party microgrids. It also states that a renewable microgrid must use at least 75 percent of renewable sources. Until new interconnection rules are defined, the microgrids can only function in islanded modes and will not be connected to the larger grid. Read more...

Solar-hybrid Mini-grids Rolled Out in Tanzania

The Tanzania Rural Electricity Supplier (JUMEME) will implement the first phase of the “Micropower economy roll-out project” in 10 islands in Lake Victoria. As part of the project, 11 solar-hybrid mini-grids will be installed to electrify 20 villages by the end of 2018. The project will also use a Pay-as-you-go model. It is financed by the European Union and other partners. Read more...

Towards the Achievement of SDG 7 in Sub-Saharan Africa

Rural electrification using renewables can not only improve access to energy but also reduce unemployment, promote industrialization, facilitate gender equality as well as reduce climate change vulnerability in Sub-Saharan Africa. These are some of the findings of this research paper written by Dumisani Chirambo. Read more...

Stand-Alone Solar Businesses in Zambia: A Guide for Venture Developers and Investors

This guide describes the off-grid solar market in Zambia and reviews the existing rules and regulations for investing in the sector. It then concludes that there is a huge off-grid solar market in Zambia but new investors should consider factors such as low population densities, an underdeveloped mobile money ecosystem, and a rapidly changing competitive landscape, before investing. The Africa EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme released this publication. Read more...

Energy, Migration and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development

This paper looks into the direct and indirect relationship between migration and energy access in places of origin and destination. It stresses on a) the impact of migration on achieving SDG 7 and b) how access to energy influences migration decisions and journey. Read more...
Overseas Development Institute (ODI) published this briefing paper.

Powering Opportunity: The Economic Impact of Off-Grid Solar

This report from GOGLA provides insights into the economic benefits of the off-grid solar solutions, after analyzing over 2,300 new solar users in Kenya, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. 60% of the interviewed users took up more economic activity within 3 months of purchasing the solar home system (SHS). For a third of the consumers, SHS helped to increase the monthly income by USD 35 a month. 90% of the households reported improved health and feeling safer after replacing the kerosene lamps with SHS. Read more...

Getting on Target: Accelerating Energy Access through Fossil Fuel Subsidy Reform

This report looks into the financial implication of fossil fuel subsidies and how reforming the subsidies could help to achieve energy access goals. The world spends annually USD 425 billion on fossil fuel subsidy, which could finance access to energy (both electricity and clean cooking) over 7.5 times over. Read more...
Global Subsidies Initiative released this paper.

Wood Energy in the ECE Region

This publication discusses the different types of wood energy fuels, policy instruments that support and hinder its use and ways to sustainably source wood. Wood energy provides nearly 25% of total energy supply in several developed countries. Read more...
The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) released this publication.

Highlights