Evaluating the use of a MicroGrid as a power solution for Africa´s rural areas

Energy availability and reliability is critical to the development of a region, especially for those still in the development phase. Africa, which is the largest and most populous continent after Asia, has only 2% of the world´s industrial capacity. Africa´s per capita income is roughly 15% of the world average and it consumes roughly 3% of world´s energy. Approximately one-third of the estimated 1.6 billion people worldwide that do not have access to electricity currently reside in Africa. Insufficient energy supply has been one of the main factors that have negatively impacted the development of Africa, especially in its rural areas. There are many options that exist for increasing the availability of electricity in this region of the world. The implementation of a MicroGrid is one such option. The intent of this paper is to evaluate the different MicroGrid concepts which could serve as an energy solution for Africa´s rural areas.