Project Planning Tools, Resources and Networks for Off-Grid Electrification in Nigeria

*IFEOMA MALO & DESMOND DOGARA BARDESON

Introduction

Distributed Renewable Energy (DRE) is considered to be a major means of electrifying a significant percentage of the unelectrified and underserved population in Nigeria. In order to deploy the thousands of mini-grids, solar home systems and commercial and industrial solar plants effectively, project planning tools have proven important. These tools aid in pre-feasibility and feasibility analysis, demand assessment, system sizing and design, and other stages of the DRE project planning process.

To address these challenges and promote the utilization of best practices and open tools for DRE project planning and implementation, Clean Technology Hub (CTH), in collaboration with Wuppertal Institute through the WISIONS of sustainability initiative, launched an online course titled ‘People-Centered and Holistic Approaches to Off-Grid Electrification in Nigeria for a New Generation of Energy Practitioners’.

The course aims to improve the social impact and sustainability of DRE projects by increasing long-term community governance of such projects. The course targets early-career energy sector professionals, entrepreneurs, and civil society actors with technical backgrounds who work in underserved communities in Nigeria.

Project Planning Tools, Resources and Networks for DRE Projects

The fourth session of the course focused on the topic of project planning tools, resources, and networks for DRE projects and how they can help assess the demand and supply of energy services in different contexts and scenarios.

The session was led by Gregory Ireland (M.Sc.) and Paula Preuß (M.Sc.), researchers from the Off-Grid Systems Unit at RLI, who have extensive experience in developing and applying open-source tools for DRE project planning and analysis.

Gregory Ireland introduced the participants to the Off-Grid Planner, an open tool that supports project planners in conducting demand assessment and spatial optimization of solar mini-grids and solar home systems.

Paula Preuß demonstrated how to use the Community Mini grid tool developed under the project ‘Communities of Practice as Drivers of a Bottom-Up Energy Transition in Nigeria’. This open tool assists communities in estimating, at the pre-feasibility stage, the system components, system size, costs, tariff, business model and other key features of a potential DRE system for their communities, which they are able to download as an implementation plan with which to approach project developers.

Conclusion

The online course on People-Centered and Holistic Approaches to Off-Grid Electrification in Nigeria for a New Generation of Energy Practitioners is a capacity-building initiative that aims to improve the social impact and sustainability of DRE projects in Nigeria by increasing long-term community governance of such projects. The course targets early-career energy sector professionals, entrepreneurs, and civil society actors with technical backgrounds who work in underserved communities in Nigeria.

The fourth session of the course focused on the topic of project planning tools, resources, and networks for DRE projects and how they can help assess the demand and supply of energy services in different contexts and scenarios.

The session was very informative and inspiring, and trainees look forward to learning more from the upcoming sessions. If you are interested in learning more about the course or the DRE sector in Nigeria, you can visit the following links:

Social Media Handles WISIONS & Wuppertal Institute:

LinkedIn:

• @WISIONS of sustainability
• @Wuppertal Institut für Klima, Umwelt, Energie gGmbH
• @Clean Tech Hub Nigeria

Facebook:

• @WISIONS of sustainability
• @Clean Tech Hub- Energy Innovation Centre

Twitter / X:

• @wisions
• @Wupperinst
• @cleantechhubng

Instagram:

• @wupperinst
• @cleantechnologyhub