Improving energy access and climate resilience in Africa’s fringe communities

Información del proyecto

AfricaEnergyParks

Identificador del acuerdo de subvención: 101147383

DOI

10.3030/101147383

Fecha de la firma de la CE 2 Mayo 2024

Fecha de inicio 1 Junio 2024

Fecha de finalización 31 Mayo 2028

Financiado con arreglo a

• Climate, Energy and Mobility

Coste total

€ 6 552 152,50

Aportación de la UE

€ 4 994 556,75

Coordinado por

AARHUS UNIVERSITET
Denmark

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - AfricaEnergyParks (Improving energy access and climate resilience in Africa’s fringe communities)

Período documentado: 2024-06-01 hasta 2025-11-30

Resumen del contexto y de los objetivos generales del proyecto

For Africa to meet its SDG targets by 2030 and to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050, it will require over 900 million people to be granted sustainable energy access. The model used so far has been to expand grid electricity to underserved and off-grid communities. This pathway has proven to be slow, expensive, and commercially unsustainable. An alternative pathway is to develop self-sufficient rural renewable energy systems (or parks) that take into account the needs and capacities of local populations through a participatory approach. Furthermore, the energy system must be based on a nexus approach, linked to the provision of water and food, and delivering benefits to people and the environment.

AfricaEnergyParks is a concept for demonstrating this pathway and providing African countries with a model that can be replicated. Three Key Results Areas (KRAs) will be used to gauge the overall impact of the project: a) level of energy access achieved (electricity, cooking and PUE), b) improvement in the livelihoods of the population served (incomes, health, education, water and food security), and c) the improvements in the recovery and regeneration of the local environment.

Trabajo realizado desde el comienzo del proyecto hasta el final del período abarcado por el informe y los principales resultados hasta la fecha

- The ensure microgrid installation, the project secured 6 acres of land at Arigong under a 50-year lease sufficient for all microgrid components. The team obtained the necessary operational permit from the Ministry of Energy and an Environmental Permit from the EPA, and completed site layout designs to enable construction activities.
- A technical basis for integrated PV–BESS–BCHP system design has been developed, consolidating the load/resource inputs and component constraints, and establishing a repeatable workflow to inform sizing and operational feasibility. These activities support design decision-making without implying final design closure.
- The biomass combined heat and power (BCHP) plant requires a consistent supply of wood fuel as its energy source to generate electricity. In alignment with this requirement, the PUE user needs survey report has detailed the strategy for sustainable biomass production. This strategy is specifically designed to ensure a reliable, environmentally responsible supply of wood fuel for the BCHP, thereby supporting electricity generation for the selected rural community in Ghana.
- Preparatory work for testing and validation of the microgrid system and its components was initiated. This included ongoing discussions on digital solutions for data collection, cloud storage, and data transfer to ensure robust monitoring and reliable performance assessment of the BCHP, PV, and BESS subsystems. A transportable Power Quality Analyzer has been acquired, and relevant training is underway, enabling detailed electrical measurements during laboratory and field testing.
The Site Acceptance Test (SAT) plan has been outlined, specifying the parameters to be checked and measured before deployment in Ghana.
- To meet immediate wood biomass needs for the microgrid, fuel wood obtained from land clearing on the project site has been stored for use. Furthermore, for future biomass needs, a 10-acre woodlot plantation has been established with technical support from FC. Over 5,000 seedlings were planted in August 2025. The woodlot plantation will be one of the energy stocks to feed the PUE system of the project.

Avances que van más allá del estado de la técnica e impacto potencial esperado (incluida la repercusión socioeconómica y las implicaciones sociales más amplias del proyecto hasta la fecha)

The adoption of the CREMA governance framework ensures community ownership and long-term sustainability of renewable energy value chains. Biomass resource potential was quantified, and BCHP operational sensitivities were tested in scenario studies to inform assumptions about the value chain for renewable fuels. These results provide an evidence base that will be refined as feedstock and operation inputs mature.

The project is also collecting and collating relevant datasets to establish baseline data against which the social, environmental, and economic sustainability analysis of the project will be performed. For example, the completion of an SDG Report at M12 has provided relevant baseline data on societal attributes (e.g. income levels, cultural practices, energy requirements and usage, etc.) of communities in the project area before the application of the developed project solutions. Thus, during and after the uptake of the developed project solutions, sustainability analysis can be performed.