Decentralized electric systems are an old concept that is slowly becoming popular. Before grid systems were developed, all electric generation had occurred where the electricity was being used. This remained the case in many rural areas in the United States through World War II. In the early 20th century, 6-volt and 12-volt wind systems were popular for battery charging. This provided electric for radio receivers. In the 1970’s these systems became popular due to the oil embargo and the back to the land movement. Windmills and solar energy began to be researched as a viable alternative to the energy supply. The fall in oil prices in the 80’s and 90’s stalled much of the consumer use of renewable energy. Research continued and improvements in technology and policy now make decentralized electricity a viable option in developing countries. In developed areas with current grid systems, renewable energy can provide assistance to the current electrical generation system through co-generation.
Decentralized electric is simply defined as generating electric at the point of use. This is not limited to an individual user and may include a whole community. (Brown 2002) Decentralization can incorporate different types of electric generation into one combined system. This allows for the use of renewable technology with traditional fossil fuel generation in one system. In a developing country these can be village size systems. This is economical and reduces the cost of electrifying the country by eliminating a costly infrastructure that may be inefficient. On average 8 to 10% of electricity is lost through transmission lines. These small village size systems can be owned and operated by the village itself. In Africa, the average household living off the grid spends eight dollars a week in US currency on kerosene for lighting. This money can be spent on a small photovoltaic system to provide electric and communication. The systems can be leased to the villager to provide a system within his economic means. The center of the village can have a small grid system that is multi-fueled by natural gas generation, solar and/or wind. Fuel cells now provide an interesting component to this mix. The fossil fuel generation can be used during times of peak demand to supplement the electric supply. Those villagers living a distance from the town center can use stand-alone systems with the same lease agreement. These are low voltage systems, but are an improvement from burning oil for lighting. (Gururaja and Mubayi 1999)
Affordability for new technology is always a problem for developing countries. Leasing has been mentioned as an alternative for the consumer. This is one of the lessons learned from the mistakes in the 1970’s in the development of renewable energy. During that time period renewable systems were installed in developing countries for research and development. Many of these were abandoned due to oil prices, abuse of government subsidies, and lack of technological assistance. Many of these systems were simply installed and walked away from. As they broke down and became defunct, they were forgotten about. (Gururaja and Mubayi 1999)
There have been many suggestions from the renewable energy industry to correct these problems. These include:
· Manufacturing and building equipment in the country to avoid high shipping cost and produce employment
· Train local villagers to become technicians to maintain the equipment
· Have governments front load projects with a take over by private industry
· Avoid subsidies – lease equipment
· Increase local ownership
· Reduce or eliminate tariffs on renewable equipment
Globally, many of the developing countries and Europe are looking at renewable energy as an alternative. Part of this is to meet the protocol in the Kyoto Conference proceedings. In Europe, England, Spain, and Germany seem to have the strongest renewable energy programs. In the Netherlands, Denmark, and Finland co-generation supplies up to 30% of the countries electricity. (Minett 2002) All of these countries have utilized windmills into their energy supply.
In Egypt, there is a national strategy for converting their water pumps from diesel power to photovoltaic water pumping systems. (Ragy 1999) India has a full-fledge commission within their government structure for non-conventional energy development. Senegal, a West African nation is one of the leading developing nations with a strong renewable energy policy. Due to its favorable environment, Senegal was used extensively in the 70’s for experimentation. They have the largest cemetery of old solar equipment. (Gururaja and Mubayi 1999)
Globally there are many NGO’s promoting the use of renewable energy and decentralized electric. Sustainable Development organizations strongly support renewable energy. The World Alliance for Decentralized Energy (WADE) focuses on making the general populous free from large electric utility monopolies. They feel that the use of high efficiency, cost saving and decentralized energy production will develop a sustainable and economic world energy system. WADE provides support by:
· International representation to the World Bank, International Finance Corporation, International Energy Association, UN climate change negotiation, etc.
· Support to existing and emerging associations that promote decentralized energy – forum to connect specialist organizations
· Comprehensive information and research source – international networking
· Energy regulation resource
The Sustainable Development Initiative at Columbia University in 1999 co-sponsored a conference on Decentralized Energy Alternatives. This conference brought many of the stakeholders from the renewable industry together to discuss the future of decentralized electric. The renewable industry is concerned with decentralized energy as
well as incorporating renewables into large grid systems and has formed trade organizations, such as the American Wind Association. All of the organizations supporting sustainability also promote renewable energy and decentralized electric.
Most countries have incorporated renewable energy some how into their energy policy. In developed nations with grid systems, the policies provide for co-generation of electricity. In Europe the use of renewable energy has been has been strong with 10% of the electricity through co-generation. The United Kingdom has a non-fossil fuel obligation program that has been changed from an emphasis on nuclear power to renewable technology. Germany in 1991 initiated the electricity feed law, in which small electric supplies are guaranteed access to the grid and standardized pricing. One German utility is now using 16% wind power on an annual basis.
In 1997, the European commission developed a strategy to double the amount of co-generation in the market place. This strategy is to remove barriers to the development of co-generation and provide 18% of Europe’s electricity by 2010. Existing European Union legislation includes directives for industrial installations, renewable directives, and electricity directives. There is also new legislation being introduced that will directly apply to decentralized electric and includes providing access to the grid, two way metering, and support for residential installation. (Minett 2002)
Many of the developing countries have been also incorporating renewable technology into their energy policies. In Egypt the New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA) was established to become a focal point in the development of renewable technologies in remote areas of the country. These uses are primarily for refrigeration for vaccines, household lighting (avoiding the hazard of traditional lighting), creation of jobs, and reliable supply of energy. (Ragy 1999) India has dropped all tariffs on wind and solar equipment. Brazil has been utilizing Roger Taylor’s hybrid designs to provide electric in remote areas. WADE has been supporting many other projects in rural areas of developing countries.
Senegal has a renewable energy policy that is a good example for developing nations to use as an example. This country has a climate and population dispersal that makes decentralized electricity a viable option. Senegal’s urban population of 40% consumes 95% of the commercial energy, which is dependent on foreign importation. Reliable commercial energy resources of natural gas and oil are weak. Electricity is produced from imported oil. With 60% of the population in rural areas, Senegal consumes 7 to 8 million cubic meter of wood from forested areas. The country receives high direct radiation that surpasses 65% of total insolation. Wind resources are along the coastline of 700 Km with wind speeds of 2 to 6 m/s. There is great potential for the use of renewable technology in Senegal. (Sall 1999)
According to Senegal’s current renewable energy policy the population should be involved in the implementation, financing, and management of solar projects. Senegal has achieved this by:
· Asking the population for minimum contributions towards financing projects
· Creating a management fund for replacement of defective parts, maintenance, and repairs
· The fund is replenished by financial partners, the administration, and the population – gives people a stake in the operations of equipment
· Supplier of solar equipment is identified as a partner with specific assignments
· At time of installation and during use – the supplier is required to provide training for members of the community
The latest energy bill that
was proposed in the US does not include incentives for wind power or renewable
fuels. This energy bill promotes more oil drilling, automobile efficiency
standards and conservation measures. The proposals for renewable energy
incentives have yet to be reviewed by Congress and hopefully will be included in
the new bill. (Baltimore 2002)
The Million Solar Roof Initiative (MSRI) was announced in June 1997 by Pres. Clinton and is an effort to install solar energy systems on one million building in the US by 2010. The MSRI does not provide funding, but does bring the capabilities of the Federal government with national businesses and organizations to promote building a market for solar energy applications. (MSR 2000) At the time of it’s inception there were tax incentives and rebates. These may be lost through future energy policies.
Demand Side Management (DSM) is a critical link in the success of a decentralized electric system. Advances in battery storage systems have improved the use of stand-alone systems. Electric meters that reverse direction when a system is charging makes co-generation a viable option. New technology has made appliances more efficient, especially with inverters and lighting. (Bietry, et.al. 1997)
One of the latest innovations is by Nextek Power Systems. They developed a control box for distributing electricity where it is needed. If the batteries are fully charged and the system is charging, when there is a demand on the system the charge bypasses the batteries and goes directly to the load. If the batteries are low, the electric goes to the battery bank and the demand is drawn from the batteries. The device can also be used with co-generated systems. This advancement saves on battery life, stored electricity, and provides less use of batteries.
Roger Taylor, from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, has developed the Homer Computer Model to design hybrid village systems. Some of these only utilize renewable energy. His models match demand with the size of the system. It also provides the distances to judge when stand-alone systems would be more efficient due to transmission line inefficiencies. This is helpful in planning for future expansion of the system. (Gururaja and Mubayi 1999)
Conservation and DSM is important for the successes of a decentralized electric system. Personal experience had taught me to conserve and turn out the lights when living off a 12-volt battery system. Those involved with stand-alone and small village size systems will have to be educated in electric conservation. This conservation education can be incorporated into the training programs for local technicians.
Chris Flavan, Worldwatch Institute, feels that small electric systems are more efficient and cost affective. Efficiency and conservation of energy provides economic opportunity. With less fuel burned, there can be a reduction in carbon dioxide, air pollution and acid rain. (Flavan and Durning 1988)
Decentralized electric systems are an alternative to large dam projects that are funded by the World Bank. These projects create debt, environmental damage, and displace local populations. Expensive infrastructure is needed to distribute the electricity from larger generating systems.
Decentralization of electric provides a new economy. Employment availability will be greater once renewable energy becomes mainstream in the economy. There is great potential for growth in renewable industry. Promotion of renewable technology through decentralization will expedite the use of cleaner forms of energy production.
©Michael
Wilson, The Ramapo Public Policy Group, November 9, 2002
Last Update: November 9, 2002