How can you promote energy access in developing countries?

We need to look at the root cause of the lack of accessibility to energy as it all points to social, economic and political marginality. The lack of access to energy is a product of development skewness that has shaped people's livelihoods, continental development as well as national. We need to reframe policy and practice to account for inclusive development as well as one that does account for the different needs of the population. Intricately there should be a framework that allows diversity that caters for equity and equality in employment, education, good health and ultimately good access to clean energy. This requires good governance Starting from the transnational level and percolating to regional, national and local levels.

Timely! Last week the International Energy Agency held their Annual Outlook, you can find a 1-hr video on the IEA LinkedIn page. The 350-page report helps with 'understanding the context' phase, with assessments of overarching to local challenges. As far as economics is concerned, this could be about the 'Project Economy' - Harvard Business Review, as much as it is supply & demand of energy resources. Successful management, factor & stakeholder coordination, & project execution, sounds simple but is not easy. So take time to understand the context. Research & evaluations completed when understanding the context has the ability to provide the fuel or at least some solid foundations for an eventual successful implementation of energy access.

Global energy and economic policies must prioritize the unique challenges faced by each individual country. Take, for instance, the case of developing nations where coal is often utilized as a source of energy, albeit being highly detrimental to the environment. Surprisingly, in certain developing countries, burning coal can be deemed more eco-friendly compared to the alternative of burning wood, which results in even greater pollution. Hence, it becomes imperative for economic energy policies to duly account for these diverse circumstances and adjust accordingly. This ensures a comprehensive approach that accommodates the specific needs and realities of each country.

Currently Malaysia is heading towards being an EV-friendly nation. This is being backed up by tax deductions in relation to EV purchase or rental. Nonetheless, the challenge remains with the setting up and maintenance of charge points. As EVs gain more popularity, the raw materials that were digged up from other less developed countries may be more detrimental to mother nature as compared to using petrol-based vehicles. As much as we want to reduce emissions, the initial extractions for materials making up the EV batteries may be prohibitive and have unintended consequences. Another challenge would be the eventual disposal of those batteries, which would pollute the earth more. What will the future hold in store for us? We'll wait and see.

Indoor air pollution caused by dirty cooking fuels is a significant contributor to premature deaths in developing countries, with an estimated 3.7 million fatalities annually. To address this issue, the promotion of clean cooking solutions, such as improved cookstoves and biogas, is essential. These solutions not only offer substantial long-term economic benefits, including health improvements and environmental preservation, but also align with broader sustainable development goals, such as poverty reduction and environmental conservation, which have positive economic implications at the local, national, and global levels. Investing in these solutions is a prudent and responsible choice.

Off grid solar- an Africa Perspective; it is such a large place that you can fit several other continents in it. It seems centralized generation model and transmission is limited by access to Capital; large capacity generation requires substantial capital and so does the transmission and distribution related to it. Public sector project management and procurement capabilities further delay the access to Energy. Off grid solar seems to be a viable solution because-technology is proven and exists, The natural solar potential or Natural Capital is substantial in Africa and the teams to build and commission these systems exist and have enough experience to accelerate Energy access.

Global Energy access is one major goal of the UN SDG. Currently there are around 650 million without access to modern electricity services. Providing access to these communities means we need ensure we to do things differently in a way that keep our planet in track of 1.5 oC. Coal has been the most successful fuel in alleviating energy poverty especially in China and India yet at a high environmental cost. shown by rising emissions of CO2. Renewable energy can be one source of providing clean electricity. In many countries, the cost of solar electricity can even be cheaper than the cost of coal or natural gas. Further, the development of energy efficient technologies means that we can provide energy access today with less emissions.

As an Equity Research Analyst, I advocate using the World Bank's multi-tier structure to drive development investments. The levels enable us to establish realistic goals, such as increasing basic residential solar systems to Tier 1 access while also long-term preparing for more stable grid connections at Tier 5. Attributes like as length, capability, and cost assist investors in selecting the most impactful settings and technologies. For example, in areas where outages are regular, focusing on enhancing supply duration through battery storage. The multi-tier perspective demonstrates how access may gradually increase, allowing investors to balance sustainability and profitability across tiers.

While a multi-tier approach can provide insights across different attributes. Being able to channelize the same into creating bespoke policy interventions, incentives by governments accelerate adoption. Energy access projects have a CSR element to them and hence catalyze private sector investment.

After the key local government relationships are established, energy access should be prioritized and specified in terms of what kind of energy (renewable, solar, wind, coal, etc.), the load required to sustain the current population & anticipated growth, as well as timing for actual implementation. This should be a structured multi-step approach.

A robust economy should have a diverse energy sources, as certain energy sources perform an economic activity better than others and vice versa. For example, for electricity generation, nuclear energy provides a stable base load while natural gas plants can be ramped up and down rapidly to meet demand (electricity consumption is the highest in the early evening and lowest at night). Hydrogen and hydrogen derived fuels are better suited for heavy-duty transportation, aviation, and maritime than for light-duty transportation. Geography and topology also play an important role. Geothermal is a main energy source for Kenya and El Salvador due to the high volcanic activities, but it may not work in other developing countries.

Energy Access is a major contributory factor that helps a developing nation and help to bring about the desired level of harnessing the energy available within their immediate environment. There are several means from around by which energy could be access ranging from waste to investment in diverse natural resources endowments. Nations have to look inward by using its available human capacity to research into the various available options.

Once clear guidelines on the types of energy, amount of energy, and timeline to get the generation asset online are established, that is when the local government as well as stakeholders begin to strategize and bring in as much outside expertise as well as subsidized capital as possible. Establishing reliable energy solutions requires the governments, developers, and investors to consistently communicate to ensure the vision is aligned and progress is actually happening. Too much bureaucracy or not enough structure ultimately hurts the local community that is in dire need of electricity to growth as a city and provide stability in a certain area.

The initial step in promoting energy access in any country is to assess its potential energies comprehensively. Then, the implementation of ideas like 'Understanding the context' and 'Leveraging multiple sources...' that were previously mentioned should follow.

Stakeholders impact projects, performance, and outcome. Projects are influenced by internal and external factors. Sometimes, projects on promoting and expanding energy access fail because of inadequate stakeholder engagement. For example, stakeholders such as local businesses and communities may have a better understanding of unique issues such as the legal environment and local politics than the project team. Stakeholder engagement could mitigate or eliminate these headaches. Stakeholder engagement also creates buy-in, creating a sense of ownership in the project. When local communities and leaders are actively involved in planning and decision-making, they are more likely to support and participate in the initiatives.

One of the paramount challenges that developing nations encounter in their quest for energy access is the infrastructure hurdle. Addressing these obstacles entails resolving issues such as grid connectivity and the development of both inter and intra-state transmission lines. Achieving progress in this domain necessitates robust policy initiatives at the governmental level, which in turn can stimulate investment in the sector. This not only fosters capacity expansion in power plants, aligning them with projected power demand, but also attracts vital investments.

There's definitely a great challenge when it comes to the development of sound infrastructure in developing countries. ... One way of tackling this is for private international firms to invest in the country i.e. via FDI, and work with those local governments which are reliable and show interest of improving local living conditions.

Energy access issue cannot become a gender neutral issue. Men and women use energy in different ways - yes, we can argue if that's right or wrong based on social stereotypes. Awareness regarding energy usage, energy conservation methods and many other things are perceived differently by men and women. Therefore, one must not be blind to it. Another aspect that needs to be addressed is the affordability as well as sustainability. If the energy is unaffordable, access doesn't make sense. Also, if the energy is polluting in nature, then there are implied health costs as well as damage to environment which in a way impacts the access aspect.

Privatization of the energy industry, proper regulations will bring about efficiency which will increase availability and in return access to energy will also increase.

Developing countries may be especially vulnerable to geopolitical risks, which may affect energy access and security. For example, Pakistan and Bangladesh suffered a natural gas shortage in 2022 due to cancelled LNG contracts. LNG prices were rising and suppliers flipped to provide LNG to European countries who were willing to pay higher prices. Pakistan may had also been hesitant to purchase natural gas from Iran and Russia due to fear of international sanctions. USA and Europe's self-imposed sanctions against Russia on energy meant other countries (often developing countries that couldn't afford the high gas prices) became the unintended and unwilling victims in the Western powers' geopolitical game.

Looking at the comments already made here and having worked with both large incumbirme and small innovators in the nerdy space, my experience is that the the best way for developing countries to decarbonise is figuring out and supporting the right decarbonisation technologies at the right time. Grid infrastructure, needed to support the rollout of EVs and heat pumps, is expensive and requires a lot of coordination and transparency. Hydrogen is promising but also requires a lot of infrastructure investment and may be only suitable for hard to decarbonise sectors. Biofuels, especially drop-in biofuels, can more readily be integrated into existing fuel infrastructure and can form a bridge to reduce emissions this decade.

Technology Transfer: Facilitate the transfer of energy technology and know-how to developing countries. This can be achieved through partnerships, knowledge sharing, and technology dissemination.