African Micro-Grids

Will the continent out of necessity become a distributed Micro-Grid Power? Off-Grid reports:

Lacking the billions of dollars necessary to expand creaky national electricity grids and build large power plants, Africa’s political and economic leaders are experimenting with alternatives. Electricity is increasingly being generated by microdams, solar cells, and microturbines. “Off-grid electricity could be the next great technological leap forward in Africa,” says Mark Hankins, a consultant in Nairobi who specializes in alternative power supplies.
In Kenya, one million households use car batteries as their main source of electricity. From Lagos to Nairobi, even the poorest slum dwellers are driven to purchase fuel that can create power to charge cell-phone batteries and provide light.

More here
Read related papers here & here
Watch related video on Micro-grids by Chris Marnay here:

Diagram courtesy of Toshiba

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