Leveraging the Sweet Spot Renewables has to Offer: A Time to End Fossil Fuel Dependency
Access to clean and affordable energy in Africa has been a major challenge; it is estimated that one out of every three Africans still lacks access to energy. This lack of energy access has put enormous pressure on governments on the continent to provide access to affordable energy. This pressure and other factors has resulted in a global shift from fossil fuels over the last couple of years; however, Africa is still trailing behind, as most of its governments still nose-dive to source dirty fossil fuels to oil the wheels of their nation.
Africa as a whole offers a wealth of renewable resources that provide a substantial amount of energy to various regions across the continent, including biomass-based, geothermal, solar, and hydroelectric power among others.
The continent is home to a vast amount of renewable energy sources that have been under-utilized. The African energy market has thus far been dominated by three main types of fossil fuels: oil and gas in the north, coal in South Africa (as it is home to 90% of the total coal reserves on the continent), and biomass that is prominent across the region. The oil-rich Middle East has been promoting the use of wind and solar, which offer a more technological market maturity. The Arab world has been able to create a viable market for renewable investment, developing an enabling environment (feed-in-tariffs, net metering, auctions, etc.) that has attracted private sector investment. In promoting renewables in Latin America and the Caribbean, various programs were developed to foster a strong, sustainable, and vibrant renewable energy market. The Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme (CREDP) was form to break down market barriers and nurture the commercialization of renewable energy, the Caribbean Council for Science and Technology (CCST) was established to promote mutual transfer of groundbreaking technologies on the continent, and the Institute of the Americas (IOA) has been championing energy information sharing for over 25 years in the region. However, many may argue the move in those regions was prompted by high GHG emissions; while Africa on the other hand emits a considerable 2-3% of the global greenhouse gas emissions, this argument fails to realize Africa has been the most vulnerable region even though it emits the least GHG of all regions. In the midst of all these challenges in Africa, a lot has been written about the continent's potential to be a global leader in renewable energy development, but will this anticipated growth ever be achieved if African states continue financing outdated dirty fossil fuel infrastructures?
It is well-documented that African states are endowed with an abundant sun, wind and geothermal supply than any other continent on the globe, which at times makes it difficult to understand why they look for dirty alternatives to oil the wheels of their nations. This quest has been driven to achieve economic, socio-technical, and geopolitical dominance in the region. The continent is blessed with abundant renewable energy potential, but cross-border cooperation among countries has been limited. With the exception of a handful of states, many countries in the region are reluctant to collaborate in developing a cross-continental energy system that could make renewables accessible around the continent. The establishment of the Africa Clean Energy Corridor, West Africa Clean Energy Corridor, Pan-Arab Clean Energy Initiative (PACE), Renewables Readiness Assessment (RRA), and the Entrepreneurship Support Facility bought some fresh air. However, the prevalent lack of collaboration over the years has resulted in the average effective electricity tariff on the continent amounting to US $0.14 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) against an average of US $0.18 per kWh in production costs, which is much higher than other developing regions.
Gone are the days when fossil fuels were the cheapest options available; renewables are becoming cheaper and a better option than the current grid-reliant fossil fuels. The challenge of making energy accessible in Africa cannot be solved using bulky grids or transporting energy thousands of kilometers on transmission channels that result in wastage. This challenge could better be solved if African states leverage renewables (solar mini grids, wind turbines, etc.) that could be produced and consumed in areas where they would be needed. Governments and its partners on the continent need to be smart enough that putting more coal into the fire would make it strive to achieve a universal access to energy no-where. The development of a comprehensive approach that would speed up scaling up renewable development is key. The emergence of mini grids as a more reliable and cost-effective rural electrification option should be considered in efforts to make energy universally accessible on the continent. This can be done through enabling policies and access to finance for start-ups and SMEs using mini grids that makes energy production more affordable and efficient. Renewable energy development offers the continent the option to be a global renewable powerhouse and the option to re-write its energy story.