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On the African continent, electricity demand is higher than supply. Many countries on the continent depend on artificial means to generate electricity, such as energy generators that cause alarming damage to the environment. Let's take the example of Nigeria, where the electricity shortage is equal to 173,000 MW, since the total energy needs of the country is about 180,000 MW. A similar situation exists in sub-Saharan African nations, where people are experiencing a severe electricity shortage. In rural areas of Rwanda, where 80% of the population live, only 18% have access to electricity. Some families and organizations are not connected to the state power grid, and even those that are connected (urban population and medium-sized enterprises) do not receive electricity regularly. With these problems in mind, the Rwandan government has developed an ambitious plan to achieve the goal of full electrification by 2024.
Reasons behind the scarcity of energy
One of the reasons for the lack of energy is the high cost associated with the production of electricity and its distribution. Furthermore, the various economic, political and social reasons make it difficult for communities to access electricity. Together with other international agreements, the objective of sustainable development n. 7 of the United Nations aimed at making universally accessible energy focuses on renewable energy. In many African nations, the focus of the electrification strategy is on renewable energy. Many international organizations such as the World Bank, the African Development Bank and the Overseas Private Investment Corporation are investing in wind power and solar energy and their efforts have just begun to see results.
Renewable sources in the foreground
Wind and photovoltaic (PV) energy are one of the easiest and most effective decentralized energy sources to achieve village electrification. Linking villages and companies that are not connected to the state power grid will also ease the burden on the government of investing in large-scale energy to meet the demand for electricity. Many countries such as Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Togo have established an appropriate political framework in the energy sector for the generation of wind and solar energy.
The African Development Bank is also investing to achieve the goal of generating electricity from 160 GW from the African continent by 2025. Having said this, experts believe that the penetration of renewable energy in Africa is rather low and that the success of any electrification program is measured by some supplied connections and installed megawatt capacity rather than by end users using that power. However, the trend is witnessing a constant change towards new ways of measuring the success of electrification. In African nations, now measuring the success of electrification depends on the increase in productivity due to access to electricity. Even the World Bank is adopting the same measurement criteria with the goal of expanding decentralized energy, thereby improving people's lives.
Blockchain Role
Access to decentralized energy depends largely on demand distribution and management, while data and connectivity play a key role in the realization of the business. With the evolution of blockchain technology, it is now possible to build verifiable open access registries that can help record energy consumption, credit history and, most importantly, enable energy exchanges between families, allowing them to have greater control over energy demand and consumption. The use of blockchain in the energy sector started in 2017 when a non-profit organization, the Energy Web Foundation, developed a scalable and open source blockchain platform that can be used by other companies to develop and manage their own blockchain solutions. Initially, the company created the Marketplace for all Solar PV players where they can communicate with each other and exchange data and other relevant facts. The platform records and communicates the origin of the energy generated with the details of the source, location, weather and carbon dioxide emissions. These things also help to track development in the renewable energy sector universally together with the consumption record.
In a related development, Brooklyn Microgrid recently created an app that allows its users to locally select a preferred power source. The app called Exergy is used to connect residents with photovoltaic solar panels with excess solar energy with residents without solar panels connected to the microgrid. The former can sell the excess of solar energy to the latter with the guarantee of a secure trading property of the blockchain technology.
To achieve global electrification with excess power for all, global partnership and collaboration is needed between all stakeholders, including public and private bodies. The success of these partnerships will depend on open innovations, innovative solutions, mutually beneficial relationships and the active participation of the general public. More importantly, to change the energy scenario of Africa, a primary change in attitude is needed. Furthermore, technologies such as blockchain that provide a shared platform in a transparent and secure manner are equally important for the success of electrification. Blockchain will help in the quicker adoption of a decentralized electrical system and will help to improve productivity, while suggesting new innovative ways of defining end use.
