No one can doubt the causal relationship between energy and economic growth. What we need to do is decide on how we provide energy to enable this.
We need to realise that the key dimensions of energy accessibility, affordability, reliability and sustainability cannot be considered mutually exclusive - they are intrinsically linked and can be achieved simultaneously to enable economic growth.
Novel thinking upon which we can base future energy systems hypothesises that reliable, sustainable and affordable energy for all will be dominated by renewables-based electricity as the primary energy carrier. This will also integrate previously decoupled energy demand for electricity, cooling, heating and mobility. I will briefly outline how the four key dimensions of energy need to be achieved.
Energy accessibility is a clear key starting point for Africa with more than 630 million of the 1.1 billion people in sub-Saharan Africa not having access to electricity. However, even with access, if energy is not reliable, the costs to an economy are massive and orders of magnitude higher than the costs of the energy itself.
Load shedding
Pertinent examples of unreliable energy supply and impacts on the economy in recent years include two of the biggest economies in Africa - Nigeria, where gas network infrastructure is continuously vandalised and South Africa, where coal fleet performance dropped in 2014/15 resulting in rotational load shedding.
Sustainability deals with the provision of modern energy systems, which are future proof and viable in the long term for individuals, businesses and governments with emphasis on renewable energy and energy efficiency. Access, reliability and sustainability have direct impacts on the affordability of the energy system.
The simultaneous balancing of these dimensions is critical in Africa. Energy solutions that do not deal with all of these dimensions simultaneously, considering the particular context of each country, will not result in economic growth.
The good news in recent years is that these dimensions can be sufficiently dealt with via the use of renewable energy-based electricity supply options. Arguments surrounding the expensive and intermittent nature of renewable energy (particularly solar PV and wind technologies) are becoming invalid as various energy sector stakeholders find novel, improved and cheaper solutions every year.
An example that addresses the expensive nature of renewable energy technologies is in South Africa where recent renewable energy auctions have resulted in solar PV and wind becoming the cheapest new-build electricity supply technologies. This can be reproduced in any other African country (and should be) as it addresses affordability and sustainability simultaneously. The intermittency argument is being dealt with in a number of ways globally, including increased regional interconnections of transmission networks, novel packaged off-grid solutions, reduced storage costs, improved forecasting capabilities and better understanding system flexibility requirements (on the supply and demand side).
Access to sustainable, reliable and affordable energy for all is possible. It will enable the economic and personal growth of Africa and all Africans. It is possible, we can do it, and we will do it.
* Jarrad Wright is a principal engineer at the CSIR Energy Centre, where thought leadership is pursued to better inform key energy sector decisions.
* The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Independent Media.
BUSINESS REPORT