Welcome to the 15th issue of the International Energy Initiative (IEI) newsletter.

 

The newsletter calls attention to the current and last three issues of the IEI journal Energy for Sustainable Development (ESD), which brings a special session on rural electrification.

Five years are what is left to halve the proportion of people living in poverty whether the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) are to be met. Although there is not a specific MDG goal on energy, it is recognizably pervasive to all 8 MDGs (read more).

 

Despite its importance, energy access to electricity and modern fuels is still lacking to 1.5 and 3 billion people worldwide respectively. The latter still rely on solid fuels for cooking, whose use accounts for almost 2 million deaths a year due to indoor air pollution according to the World Health Organization (WHO). The picture in the least developing countries (LDCs) and sub-Saharan countries is even worse compared to developing countries as a whole. Respectively, 79% and 74% of the population lack access to electricity compared to 28% of developing countries in general; and 91% and 83% lack access to modern fuels.

 

The report "The Energy Access Situation in Developing Countries", published by UNDP and WHO on November 2009, warns that progress on expanding access to modern energy services "has been painfully slow". The report itself predicts that due to the current levels of energy access the MDGs will not be met in almost all LDCs and sub-Saharan countries. Thus, this situation worsens even more the challenge to meet the MDGs in the short period of five years.

 

Nevertheless, recognizable efforts have been done so far. About half of developing countries have set targets for increasing electricity access, although it is not true for modern fuels. Massive efforts are being made to expand energy access but much more are needed on political and financial ground. The report prepared by the IEI's Latin American Regional Office presents the Brazilian experience in regulating the use of individual power systems from intermitent energy sources as an alternative to expand electricity access by power distribution utilities. And there are also several papers on energy access published in the IEI's Journal Energy for Sustainable Development. The report and these papers are presented in this newsletter.

Despite the prospects are dim, there are still room for important progress on expanding energy access to facilitate the pursuit of the MDGs. We call for it.

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The IEI's Journal Energy for Sustainable Developmentbrings the following papers:

1. Energy analysis of Jatropha plantation systems for biodiesel production in Thailand
2. The analysis of country-to-country CDM permit trading using the gravity model in international trade
3. Impacts of Electricity Access to Rural Enterprises in Bolivia, Tanzania and Vietnam
4. Disputed wind directions: Reinvigorating wind power development in Taiwan
5. Decomposition of energy consumption and energy intensity in Indian manufacturing industries
6. Hybrid systems for decentralized power generation in Bangladesh
7. Potential of distributed wood-based biopower systems serving basic electricity needs in rural Uganda

This issue in special can be temporarily downloaded for free. 

ESD is a peer-reviewed journal encompassing energy issues (technologies, goals, and policies) from around the world, but focusing on developing countries. 

Volume 13, Issue 4(December 2009):

1. Least cost principles and electricity planning for Karnataka
2. The cost-effectiveness of voluntary energy efficiency programs
3. Effect of inclination of the external reflector on the performance of a basin type solar still at various seasons
4. Emission characteristics of a converted diesel engine using ethanol as fuel
5. Instrumentation error analysis of a paraboloid concentrator type solar cooker
6. Bioenergy and food security: Indian context
7. Evaluation of various energy devices for domestic lighting in India: Technology, economics and CO2 emissions
8. A framework for technology assessment: Case of a Thai building material manufacturer
9. Rural milk preservation with the ISAAC solar icemaker

Volume 13, Issue 3(September 2009):

Rural Electrification:

1. Optimal design of a PV-diesel hybrid system for electrification of an isolated island-Sandwip in Bangladesh using genetic algorithm
2. Techno-economic analysis of autonomous hybrid photovoltaic-diesel-battery system
3. Solar powered pumps to supply water for rural or isolated zones: A case study
4. Building a wind turbine for rural home

Regular papers:

1. Air gasification characteristics of coir pith in a circulating fluidized bed gasifier
2. Cellulosic ethanol production in the United States: Conversion technologies, current production status, economics, and emerging developments
3. Barriers hindering the utilisation of geothermal resources in Saudi Arabia
4. Energy efficiency developments in the manufacturing industries of Germany and Colombia, 1998-2005
5. Influence of the power contribution of a grid-connected photovoltaic system and its operational particularities
6. Energy delivery and utilization for rural development: Lessons from Northern Ghana
7. Ecuador's Yasuni-ITT Initiative: Avoiding emissions by keeping petroleum underground

Volume 13, Issue 2(June 2009):

1. Indoor air quality impacts of an improved wood stove in Ghana and an ethanol stove in Ethiopia
2. Directing clean development mechanism towards developing countries' sustainable development priorities
3. Impact of extensive residential solar water heating on power system losses
4. Parametric study of an ethanol-water distillation column with direct vapour recompression heat pump
5. Socio-economic constraints to adoption and sustainability of biogas technology by farmers in Nakuru Districts, Kenya
6. Quantifying cross-sectoral impacts of investments in climate change mitigation in Ecuador
7. Status and outlook of geothermal energy in Jordan
8. Developing sustainable tourism, using a multicriteria analysis on renewable energy in Mediterranean Islands

The IEI's Regional Energy Initiative in India (IEI-Asia) is currently carrying out a demonstration project on energy conservation and efficient resource use for sustainable agriculture. 

Its goal is to reduce groundwater extraction, and the need for electricity and chemical fertilizers, that benefit the environment and the state, and simultaneously to enable increased cropping, that benefits the farmers. IEI-Asia has just completed the second phase (implementation of efficient resource use).

The IEI's Regional Energy Initiative in Latin America (IEI-LA) concluded  in the end of 2009 two studies on photovoltaic solar energy in Brazil. One about stand-alone systems and the other on grid-connected systems entitled:

 

 

Commissioned by PROCOBRE, the studies resulted in two publicly available reports (in Portuguese) and in a webinar, through Leonardo Energy Brazil (in Portuguese), underLeonardo Energy, on which the results were presented. PROCOBRE is part of theInternacional Copper Association (ICA).

 

1) Evaluation of the stand-alone systems powered by intermittent energy sources in Brazil

 

Brazil has the goal to achieve universal access to electricity by the end of 2010 through the governmental program Light for All. The Brazilian Power Regulator (ANEEL) approved in 2004 the Resolution n. 84 which regulates the use of Individual Power Systems From Intermitent Energy Sources (SIGFI's) as an alternative to provide electricity access by electricity distribution utilities within their universal access goals.

After five years of its enactment, the present study has the objective of presenting an overview of SIGFI implementation by utilities in consonance to the Resolution nº 84/2004.

Download report (in Portuguese)

 

The increasing use of grid-connected PV systems has been one of the bets of several countries to seek for solutions to meet the growing energy services needs and at the same time satisfy criteria of economy, security of supply, public health and environmental sustainability.

In Brazil, the initiatives to promote the use of PV energy are still a few. Even though the country is endowed with a great solar energy potential, the initiatives to create and consolidate a market for the use of such technology and to develop the national industry for equipment and services are still incipient. The lack of legislation and regulation is one of the barriers pointed out.

 

The objective of this report is to assess the reasons to not have a specific legislation to promote the use of grid-connected PV systems in the country.

 

Download report (in Portuguese) 

 

 

The recording of the presentation is available here (in Portuguese).

 

 

The IEI's Regional Energy Initiative in Latin America (IEI-LA) co-promoted with the Interdisciplinary Center of Energy Planning (NIPE) this workshop which took place at University of Campinas (UNICAMP) on 3-4 December. The results, presentations and videos with short interviews are can be accessed here (in Portuguese).

This section provides news and information about relevant initiatives regarding the progress of sustainable energy efforts from the developing world. IEI is currently establishing a network of contact persons for dissemination of relevant sustainable energy news. This is a great opportunity to make projects from various parts of the world known. Please let us know if you are interested in being such a contact person. We will be happy to acknowledge names of all contributors in the newsletter.

SNV's Renewable Energy Knowledge Database now online
From Clair Marrey, HEDON Household Energy Network

The Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV), through its online Renewable Energy publications library, now hosts a wide-range of publications related to the renewable energy fields: domestic biogas, biofuels and improved water mills. The online library is not bound to SNV publications only. More. 

New Report published: "The Politics of Fossil-Fuel Subsidies"
From Clair Marrey, HEDON Household Energy Network

The Global Subsidies Initiative (GSI)of the IISD (International Institute for Sustainable Development)have published the report "The Politics of Fossil-Fuel Subsidies". The first in a series to be published, called "Untold Billions: Fossil-fuel subsidies, their impacts & the path to reform." More.

Free training course on Concentrated Solar Thermal Power
From Fernando Nuno, Leonardo Energy

Leonardo Energy is promoting the training course on Concentrated Solar Thermal Power in 5 lessons through webinars. The lecturer, Manuel Silva, is from the Seville University, which holds a long tradition on Concentrated Solar Thermal Power (CSTP) research. Its students have become key players at research centers and solar energy departments of companies. More.

South Africa: increased rebates for the solar water heating programme
From John Ledger, Sustainable Energy Society of Southern Africa (SESSA)

The EskomSolar Water Heating Programme have substantially increased its rebates in order to increase the consumer affordability and to meet the national target set for renewable energy. This programme, launched in early 2008, is driven by government which has set a target for renewable energy to contribute with 10,000 GWh of final energy consumption by 2013. Solar water heating could contribute with up to 23% of this target. To be part of the programme, the suppliers must offer a 5-year guarantee and their system must comply with standard safety, mechanical and thermal tests. More.

 

From Mike Enskat and Stephan Poth, GTZ

 

The International Energy Agency (IEA) and the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) launched a study on 'Sustainable Production of Second-Generation Biofuels: Potential and perspectives in major economies and developing countries' in Berlin. It concludes that second-generation biofuels could provide 5% of the global transport fuel demand in 2030, in a world that aims for significant CO2-emissions reductions. A large share of this potential is located in developing and emerging countries. More.