Access to Energy matters

Modern energy services are crucial to human well-being and to a country’s economic development. Access to modern energy is essential for the provision of clean water, sanitation and healthcare and for the provision of reliable and efficient lighting, heating, cooking, mechanical power, transport and telecommunications services. As per UN report on why access to Energy matters, it outlined well-established energy system supports all sectors: from businesses, medicine and education to agriculture, infrastructure, communications and high-technology.

Access to electricity in poorer countries has begun to accelerate, energy efficiency continues to improve, and renewable energy is making impressive gains. Nevertheless, more focused attention is needed to improve access to clean and safe cooking fuels and technologies for 2.8 billion people. Why should I care about this goal? For many decades, fossil fuels such as coal, oil or gas have been major sources of electricity production, but burning carbon fuels 789 million people around the world lack access to electricity, Fossils produces large amounts of greenhouse gases which cause climate change and have harmful impacts on people’s well-being and the environment. This affects everyone, not just a few. Moreover, global electricity use is rising rapidly. In a nutshell, without a stable electricity supply, countries will not be able to power their economies.

As per the report from IEA, There is no single internationally-accepted and internationally-adopted definition of modern energy access.?Yet significant commonality exists across definitions, including:?

• Household access to a minimum level of electricity.
• Household access to safer and more sustainable (i.e. minimum harmful effects on health and the environment as possible) cooking and heating fuels and stoves.
• Access to modern energy that enables productive economic activity, e.g. mechanical power for agriculture, textile and other industries.
• Access to modern energy for public services, e.g. electricity for health facilities, schools and street lighting.

All of these elements are crucial to economic and social development, as are a number of related issues that are sometimes referred to collectively as “quality of supply”, such as technical availability, adequacy, reliability, convenience, safety and affordability.

Defining the role of Mini Grids

Mini-grids are an option in areas not served by main grids. They are localised power networks, usually without infrastructure to transmit electricity beyond their service area. Generally, mini-grids provide electricity at a higher levelized cost than a main T&D network system. Mini-grids tend to rely on modular generation technologies like solar PV, wind turbines, small-scale hydropower and diesel generators. Like any grid, mini-grids need a stable flow of power to function properly and they often use either a small diesel generator or (increasingly) battery systems for back-up. Mini-grids require a certain demand threshold to justify the initial investment in the network, and therefore benefit from sizeable anchor loads such as public services or industrial and commercial facilities. Mini-grids can be scaled up in line with rising demand, and eventually be connected to a main T&D network, though mini-grid developers may choose not to invest in more expensive equipment that is required to meet the main T&D system standards if connection to the main grid is not foreseen. Mini-grids that are not compatible with main T&D networks can become stranded assets if the main grid is extended to the area.

In addition, electricity access can be provided through stand-alone systems. These are systems that are not connected to a grid and typically power single households. Today this market is dominated by diesel generators and solar PV systems (solar home systems). Off-grid systems may be the most cost-effective option (from a system cost perspective) in sparsely populated and remote areas. Both solar PV systems and batteries can be built at any scale to match the end-use service provided, which has led to innovative products coupling stand-alone generation with appliances. These products can often be scaled up as power demand grows, and can power a range of needs, from lighting and mobile phone charging to televisions and refrigerators. The upfront cost of stand-alone systems can be a critical barrier, making the availability of financing an important factor in their deployment. The levelized costs of electricity from stand-alone systems currently is the highest of the available pathways to electricity access, but rapidly falling costs for solar PV and batteries are making them increasingly attractive. The term decentralised systems is used in this report when discussing both off-grid systems and mini-grids. In order to provide an outlook for electricity access in the next decades, a model which projects country-level electrification levels to 2040 was developed. The projections are based on a country-by-country analysis of recent progress in electrification, policy commitments and investment. Citation Source: IEA, Report

This articles presents a kaleidoscopic overview of why Energy access matters and how it impacts lives and livelihoods. The article is based on secondary data and its basis of explanation stands from secondary data references and reports. It is not an original compilation of facts by us.