Potentials of Biomass Cooking Fuel Production in Displacement Settings
Overview
The Energy Solutions for Displacement Settings (ESDS) project, commissioned by the German government and implemented by German Development Cooperation (GIZ), seeks to improve energy access in refugee-hosting areas of Gambella Region, Ethiopia; Turkana County, Kenya; and West Nile, Uganda. Imbalance between woodfuel requirements and sustainable biomass supply in these areas can result in increasing collection distances, greater commoditisation of fuel and rising energy prices. It may also contribute to environmental degradation. ESDS commissioned a study to identify the most viable options for increasing access to safe, reliable and sustainable biomass cooking fuel for refugees and hosts; and to develop business models and implementation approaches for the selected solutions. The study was carried out by a team from INTEGRATION environment and energy GmbH, a Germany-based consulting company.
Country Context
Fuel supply to refugees in the ESDS locations is dominated by locally sourced firewood and charcoal. In West Nile and Gambella, most firewood is self-collected at little or no cost, so willingness to pay for alternatives is likely to be low. In Kakuma, the fuel economy is largely monetised. This offers more potential for market-based alternatives since people are already paying for their fuel. For alternative fuels to be adopted, however, price and performance needs to compete closely with existing low-cost options. Across all three sites, most refugees have limited purchasing power and woodfuels will continue to dominate cooking energy supply. There have been various initiatives to promote non-woodfuel sources of energy for cooking over the decades in which refugees have been hosted in these regions, none of which have been able to compete on cost and quality with charcoal or firewood. The challenge has been to ensure reliable supply of good quality fuel at a competitive price, relative to woodfuels, after introductory funding for alternatives has been phased out.
Firewood, Charcoal and Alternatives
Through a multi-criteria shortlisting process, firewood and charcoal were identified as the most viable biomass-based fuels for cooking in the three locations. Fuel briquettes manufactured from carbonised biomass (char) showed the most promise as a biomass-based alternative to firewood and charcoal, out of 21 fuels considered. Other biomass-based options such as pellets, ethanol and non-carbonised briquettes were assessed as less realistic for reasons of cost, availability or user acceptability. Solutions based on fossil fuels and electricity were deemed out of scope for the assignment. Char briquettes have been widely produced in East Africa and private firms have penetrated niche markets outside the humanitarian sector, primarily for commercial and industrial use. Their experiences indicate that briquettes should be mass produced in mechanised operations to achieve reliable output, consistent quality and economies of scale. A compelling price/performance offering is required to incentivise a shift away from charcoal, the next most affordable option. Manufacturing briquettes for household cooking has not been a viable business proposition, however, with most producers reliant on grants and unable to sustain sales to the domestic cooking market.
| The top-ranked fuel in the assessment was charcoal, which is an energy-dense, adaptable and popular fuel that is readily available in local markets. | 
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| Charcoal was followed by firewood, Africa’s most widely used fuel due to its availability, access, cost, familiarity and suitability for a variety of diets and cooking traditions. |
Partners
GIZ's Energy Solutions for Displacement Settings (ESDS) project cooperate with UNHCR to enhance the access to sustainable energy in displacement contexts, and the Energypedia page has been created to share learnings across various practitioners to spur the development of clean energy solutions.
