Energy transition x energy inclusion: A community energy concept for developing countries

The concept of community energy has gained acceptance and popularity within academic and scientific communities, in addition to public debate forums. Community energy drives socio-economic transformations, as it places the citizen and the community as the main actors in the entire energy value chain, based on the principle of local and autonomous generation of energy by and for the community. In this article, we analyze the socio-economic impact of community energy as a strategy for energy inclusion and participation in the industrial, socio-economic and human development of communities in developing countries, especially those in sub-Saharan Africa. The community energy model discussed is based on the symbiotic interaction between social strata within local communities, the so-called community energy symbiosis. In addition, it was concluded that the concept of community energy is generally advantageous, but should be implemented by adapting it to each context, as regulation and government support vary significantly, especially in developing nations

Social innovation for community energy in developing countries – new models and a Mozambican case study

In recent decades, the transition from fossil fuels to the use of renewable energy sources has profoundly changed the world's energy landscape. This in turn has given rise to the concept of energy transition based on the principle of the "three-D’s", Decarbonization, Decentralization and Digitalization. The emergence of the concept of community energy suggests a "fourth-D", denoting democratization as a pillar underlying the concept of community energy. This concept is where energy is produced by and for the community, placing the citizen and community at the center as key actors in the entire energy value chain (generation, distribution, consumption, and associated services). This work aims to discuss the social innovation model suitable for the implementation of energy democratization, which leads to the successful penetration of the concept of community energy in developing countries, especially Mozambique, which is a use case study explored in this paper. We explain how this social innovation model can promote socio-economic empowerment, sustainable industrial and human development, and energy inclusion that contributes to environmental balance and social stability in rural communities in Mozambique. The global energy landscape is not uniform in terms of access to energy sources and this debate in developing countries is still relevant and significant, as a considerable number of citizens do not have accessibility to electricity and are still seeking access to it for the first time (energy inclusion). But beyond the social innovation through energy inclusion, we also discuss new innovative modular ways of implementing Distributed Energy Resource (DER) based on typical Photovoltaic (PV)panels and energy storage (batteries). A modular approach for the implementation of smart grids can promote a more cost-effective organic growth, distributing resources more evenly and avoiding oversizing or undersizing of rural electrification systems. Such modularization would also allow new partners or new equipment sets to be added to the infrastructure smoothly. Finally, we suggest the introduction of an AI-based algorithm capable of adapting the smart grid management to new infrastructure modifications (addition of new prosumers or consumers). The algorithm proposed would be able to help control the quality and cost of power for all participants, reduce operation and maintenance costs of the systems, and balance generation and consumption. With that, the suggested modular implementation in conjunction with AI-based smart grid management will provide smart grids that can reduce costs of investment and fair consumption and generation balance that, with time, can promote local sustainable industrial and human development in a virtuous circle to boost social transformation

Optimisation multi-objectif et aide à la décision dans le contexte de systèmes/processus complexes et multi-physiques

Les systèmes de production d'énergie hybride batterie-solaire-éolienne sont très instables en raison de la fluctuation de la puissance de sortie causée par les variations instantanées de la disponibilité de l'énergie solaire et éolienne, faisant de la puissance de sortie une variable incertaine. Cette thèse se propose d'évaluer l'influence de l'incertitude et de produire une analyse de risque de chaque sous-système constitutif, à savoir l'Eolienne et le Générateur Photovoltaïque, afin de fournir des informations quantifiées sur l'incertitude pour faciliter le processus de prise de décision dans la conception d'une configuration optimale d'un système de production d'énergie hybride batterie-solaire-éolienne. La puissance de sortie de l'éolienne et du générateur photovoltaïque en tant que variables incertaines ont été modélisées en termes probabilistes en utilisant le principe du modèle de combinaison multimodèle probabiliste afin d'améliorer la précision de l'estimation de la puissance de sortie. En bref, cette thèse tente d'optimiser les paramètres d'équipement et la modélisation probabiliste de la puissance de sortie d'un système de production d'énergie hybride batterie-solaire-éolienne pour évaluer l'influence de l'incertitude et de l'analyse des risques menant au processus de prise de décision.Hybrid Battery-Solar-Wind Power Generation Systems are highly unstable due to the fluctuation of the output power caused by instantaneous variations in the availability of solar and wind energy, making the output power an uncertain variable. This thesis intends to evaluate the influence of uncertainty and produce a risk analysis of each constituent subsystem, namely the Wind Turbine Generator and the Photovoltaic Generator, to provide quantified uncertainty information to aid in the decision-making process in designing an optimal configuration of an Hybrid Battery-Solar-Wind Power Generation System. The output power of the Wind Turbine Generator and Photovoltaic Generator as uncertain variables were modeled in probabilistic terms using the principle of Probabilistic Multi-Model Combination Model in order to improve the accuracy of the output power estimation. Briefly, this thesis makes an attempt to optimize equipment parameters and probabilistic modeling of the output power of an Hybrid Battery-Solar-Wind Power Generation Systems to assess the influence of uncertainty and risk analysis leading to the decision-making process

Rural Electrification in Mozambique: Challenges and Opportunities

The International Energy Agency states that access to electricity is an essential condition for sustainable human development, however, it is estimated that approximately 22% of the world population (about 1.6 billion people) does not have access to electricity, a significant part of these people live in rural areas of developing countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, despite the fact that Africa has enormous potential in renewable and non-renewable energy sources. In Mozambique, approximately 50% of the population does not have access to electricity due to the fact that 66.6% of the population lives in rural areas, where the rate of access to electricity is even worse, paradoxically, Mozambique has a significant potential for renewable energy sources equivalent to 23 TW, this potential when combined with factors such as commitment to ensuring access to electricity for all, forecast of population growth and electricity demand, generates huge investment and long term business opportunities in the electricity sector, however, there are economic, social and cultural challenges that constitute uncertainties that should be considered in the decision-making process for investment in rural electrification infrastructure in the specific context of Mozambique and Sub-Saharan Africa in general. This article aims to discuss the possibilities that Mozambique has to guarantee access to electricity for all by 2030 (emanating from United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 7) emphasizing land use plans and education for rural electrification benefits through the use of renewable energy sources