Quality Infrastructure for Renewable Energies in the Context of Climate Change in Sub-Saharan Africa

Current trends in the renewable energy sector in times of climate change

Renewable energies play a key role in climate change mitigation efforts worldwide and can support a country’s energy self-sufficiency (IRENA 2013:9). This is particularly important in developing and emerging countries which have a growing population, increasing electricity needs and low electrification rates. Moreover, some renewable energy technologies such as solar photovoltaic, solar thermal and mini-hydropower installations are well adapted for distributed generation and can support the electrification of rural areas (Agostinelli 2017).

Energy demand in Africa has grown by over 45 % since the year 2000 and electrification efforts in many countries cannot keep up with population growth. Energy supply thus remains low, despite the wealth of energy sources available on the continent. The main issues in Africa’s energy sector are the insufficient capacity and low access to electricity, the poor reliability of the electricity grid and high costs (Agostinelli 2017). It is expected that energy demand will increase substantially in the coming decades as a result of megatrends such as urban population growth and economic development (EUEI PDF 2017).

Sub-Saharan Africa has great potential for renewable energies. As early as 2010, 60 % of energy was generated with hydropower plants in the region and several countries have conducted resource assessments and identified potential for solar power, additional hydropower installations, wind energy, biomass and, in Eastern Africa, geothermal energy (IRENA 2013:6-9). In many countries, renewable energies are also competitive in financial terms. In Kenya and Tanzania, for example, the generation costs of solar photovoltaic and biogas are similar to electricity costs from the public grid for commercial and industrial use, and are considerably lower than electricity generated with diesel (Kaiser 2017).

There is also support on the political level. Internationally, the Paris Agreement provides a policy framework for the advancement of renewable energies and fosters technical assistance and investments in African countries to support climate change mitigation measures. Within the framework of the Agreement, national governments submitted climate action plans along with regions and cities in Sub-Saharan African countries. These plans include the expansion of renewable energies (Munang and Mgendi 2016; EUEI PDF 2017:6). As early as mid-2015, before the Paris Agreement was signed, 35 Sub-Saharan African countries had introduced national renewable energy targets in at least one of the following areas: primary energy supply, final energy consumption, electricity, heating and cooling, and transport (IRENA 2015d).

Furthermore, the Africa Renewable Energy Initiative (AREI) was established to accelerate the expansion of renewable
energy capacities across the continent under the mandate of the African Union. The aim of the initiative is to install 10 GW of renewable energy capacities by 2020 and generate 300 GW from renewable sources by 2030 (AREI 2017).

The achievement of the national and regional targets is challenging because, in most Sub-Saharan African countries,
a favorable policy and an economic and institutional framework still need to be created; at the same time, the different stakeholders need to coordinate and commit to the targets to enable the expansion of renewable energy capacities (Interview 1). Moreover, at present, administrative hurdles, corruption and aspects such as unclear property titles make the expansion of renewable energies difficult. These circumstances delay the development of renewable energies and can result in considerable deadline pressure once the implementation is underway; this, in combination with cost pressure, can compromise the quality of renewable energy installations, especially if experience with renewable technologies is still limited. The
development of solar photovoltaic, for example, is recent in many countries in the region. For this reason, qualified service providers are lacking and services need to be improved. This leads to quality and safety issues – for example, in the installation of rooftop photovoltaic systems. As has been experienced in other developing and emerging economies, the fast development of the technologies in the global market makes it difficult for local industries to keep up. At the same time, capacities to effectively control the quality of imported renewable energy technologies are often lacking. Some countries decide to protect their local industries through local content laws or customs duties, thus creating trade barriers and a national market with limited incentives to be competitive concerning quality (Telfser et al. 2016). Negative experiences with new technologies can damage their reputation and make investors reluctant to support further projects (IRENA 2015b:8).

Significance of quality infrastructure services

As mentioned above, the achievement of national targets is jeopardized by lacking quality due to insufficient coordination
between different stakeholders, by lacking quality assurance, capabilities and capacities of the local industry and service providers, and by time constraints. The establishment of a functioning quality infrastructure is thus essential if the expectations of policy makers, investors and consumers are to be met. Quality infrastructure services help to increase the quality and safety of renewable energy installations and provide consumers with confidence in this technology. Quality assurance and support services are necessary throughout the value chain.

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) has identified several benefits of a functioning quality infrastructure
for policy makers, manufacturers, professionals and end users. For policy makers, quality infrastructure enables the detection of low-quality products, which allows growing markets to be protected and strengthened and economic growth to be stimulated. Moreover, it helps provide assurance that the renewable energy installations will perform according to expectations, thus supporting the financial viability of the technologies and increasing the return on investment, including that of public incentives for renewable energies. For manufacturers, quality infrastructure can open new markets if locally provided quality  infrastructure services are internationally recognized and prove the quality of local products. Through testing and certification, as well as through the implementation of a quality management system in accordance with international standards, products and manufacturing quality can be improved. For the renewable energy industry, certification (for instance, of installers)  facilitates hiring processes and improves the competitiveness of service providers. This, in turn, results in higher wages and
more mobility for professionals and attracts talent to the industry. Finally, for end users, a functioning quality infrastructure
creates confidence in products and allows products to be compared based on trustworthy third-party information on performance and durability. Quality infrastructure also increases confidence of financial organizations and investors in technology, making more financial resources available for the sector (IRENA 2015b:8-13).

3. Demand for quality infrastructure services in Sub-Saharan Africa for selected sub-sectors

Solar photovoltaic and solar thermal water heating

The study focusses on two technologies which are powered by the sun: solar photovoltaic and solar thermal water heating. Although the two technologies are substantially different in the way they convert sunlight into energy, risks occur at similar stages and for similar reasons along the value chain, resulting in similar demand for quality infrastructure services in order to ensure quality. Quality gaps can occur along the respective value chain and can have a substantial impact on the long-term performance of the plant.

Assurance of product quality is crucial for all components of solar photovoltaic and solar thermal systems. In many countries, quality control of imported products is lacking and the market is exposed to low-quality imports (Interview 1). Maintaining quality controls for solar photovoltaic components, solar thermal components and complete thermal systems is further complicated by the large number of component providers active on the global market (Interviews 2 & 3).

Regarding the manufacturing of components, the situation is different for solar photovoltaic compared to solar thermal. Within the framework of this study, only one South African company could be identified which produced photovoltaic cells in Sub-Saharan Africa (Barbee 2016), and there are only a small number of photovoltaic module manufacturers in the region. Furthermore, inverters for grid-connected solar photovoltaic installations are mainly imported. The development of quality infrastructure services for quality assurance in photovoltaic module and inverter manufacturing is thus less urgent at present
(it is expected that it will be more important in the future). In contrast, in several countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, solar thermal systems are being manufactured (Interviews 1, 2 & 3). Quality assurance for manufacturing – from raw material to product – is thus very important for this technology.

For planning and site selection, the availability of reliable irradiation data is of utmost importance for both technology types, as it determines the performance potential of the plant (IRENA 2015c; Telfser et al. 2016). Often, imprecise satellite data and estimations are used, resulting in unrealistic performance predictions. For photovoltaic power plants, considerable know-how is needed to successfully plan a plant, as a variety of factors need to be taken into consideration, including orientation, shading,
wind conditions, seismic information and, in the case of rooftop installations, building and rooftop conditions. Moreover, the choice of the correct components is crucial. The chosen technology needs to be matched to the local climatic conditions; for on-grid installations, the inverter needs to be adequate for the system which is being built (Telfser et al. 2016). Furthermore, for solar thermal installations, choosing the right technology is of key importance. In addition, the orientation of the installation is
a determining factor for the performance of solar water heaters (Interview 2).

Problems also arise due to installers lacking know-how and experience (Interview 1; IRENA 2015c; Telfser et al. 2016).  Installation faults are very common in photovoltaic plants worldwide. A study by TÜV Rheinland identified that, throughout the world, installation faults were the cause of more than 50% of serious defects in photovoltaic plants (TÜV Rheinland 2015).  Incorrect installation, often due to minor errors such as loose screws or incorrectly inserted connectors, can thus have  devastating effects on plant performance and financial returns. According to a study of the Solar Bankability project of the European Union, improper installation has the highest financial impact among the most common issues related to modules
and inverters (Solar Bankability 2016:61-63). Despite solar thermal technology being comparatively less complex, the installation of solar thermal systems requires solid knowledge and can result in complete failure of the system if carried out incorrectly. Unfortunately, many countries worldwide have had negative experiences with solar thermal water heaters (IRENA 2015c:22). A common issue caused by erroneous installation is leakages which result in water entering houses through the roof (Interviews 2 & 3).

Finally, during operations and maintenance, correct monitoring is essential for both solar photovoltaic and solar thermal installations to detect underperformance and take measures accordingly. Moreover, during this phase, cleaning is important for ensuring that the performance potential of the technology installed is not compromised (Telfser et al. 2016).

The relevant quality infrastructure services are explained in more detail in the following sections. Regulation needs and other transversal aspects are summarized at the end of the chapter.