Solar/PV Mini-grid Programme in Indonesia - Executive Overview

Preface

In 2012 the Directorate General for New and Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation (EBTKE) launched an ambitious rural electrification programme: the annual electrification of over 100 rural communities across Indonesia using 15kW to 150kW solar mini-grid systems (PLTS Terpusat). GIZ EnDev uses the terminology “photovoltaic village power” (PVVP).
The PVVP Programme is a collaboration between EBTKE and GIZ. EBTKE annually installs more than 100 PVVPs, through local contractors, while GIZ conducts the technical inspections and community preparations. This two-year partnership has yielded some strikingly positive results. Not only has it lead to the development of an effective quality improvement instrument, but also strengthened one of the world’s largest rural electrification programmes using renewable energy-based mini-grid systems.

EBTKE’s rural electrification programme using PVVP systems was launched in 2012 with an annual budget of over €20million. Tenders and contracting was done in the budget years 2012 and 2013, while GIZ EnDev inspections of PVVP installations were done in the years 2013 and 2014 respectively. Therefore these inspections and findings are referred to PVVP2013 and PVVP2014 in this Executive Overview report.

EBTKE’s programme was not cozily restricted to a few confined and manageable regions, but encompassed 28 provinces and 87 districts in 2013 and 25 provinces and 83 districts in 2014. In an archipelago of 6,000 inhabited islands, characterized by dense jungles, extremely mountainous terrain and only poor and sporadic access to transport and
communication infrastructure, the logistical challenge alone is daunting. Nonetheless, by mid 2014 EBTKE managed to deploy 236 PVVP installations, providing electricity to over 21,000 rural households and over 900 social institutions.

EBTKE was keenly aware of the key challenges and thus their briefing of GIZ EnDev was straightforward:

Design and implement a support initiative that can objectively inspect the technical quality of the PVVP installations, build necessary operational skills in the community and provide concise feed-back to EBTKE before the contractor warranty period expires.

Key Experiences and Lessons Learnt

With two years of jointly collaborating in the roll-out of Indonesia’s rural electrification PVVP Programme, EBTKE and GIZ EnDev can look back on several achievements and valuable experiences. This Executive Overview considers major experiences only, while it is of course understood that innumerable smaller lessons learnt abound. Also not all outcomes
were planned for, nor expected, and it is therefore appropriate to take stock and reflect on lesson learnt. 

GIZ EnDev submits Executive Reports on the findings of the technical evaluations, in order to record lessons learnt and make recommendations for improvements.

Hint

This Executive Overview describes the key experiences made by EBTKE and GIZ in rolling-out the national PVVP Programme in the years inspection years 2013 and 2014 and takes a closer look at (refer to documents uploaded):

3.1 GIZ Mini-grid Service Package (MSP) .............................................................................................. 3
3.2 Turn-key PVVP specifications.......................................................................................................... 4
3.3 Contractor accountability ............................................................................................................... 5
3.4 Site accessibility and conditions ..................................................................................................... 6
3.5 PVVP quality and performance improvement................................................................................ 7
3.6 Number of connected households ................................................................................................. 8
3.7 Remote monitoring......................................................................................................................... 8
3.8 Community preparation.................................................................................................................. 9

Download the Publication

Indonesia Solar Mini-grid Programme EnDev Executive Overview 2014

Conclusion

This Executive Overview crystallizes the most important lessons learnt over the last two and half years of EBTKE’s PVVP Programme, through which over 100,000 rural people have benefitted with access to electricity. GIZ EnDev, being privileged to accompany EBTKE on this development path, can summarise some key conclusions as follows:

• EBTKE has found effective ways of streamlining its PVVP technical specifications and no major adjustments are required.
• EBTKE’s feed-back mechanism to contractors, via GIZ EnDev’s MSP instrument, is bold and very effective at improving PVVP performance and quality. This transparency is far more conducive towards immediate advances for PVVP sustainability, than general standards or training programmes (although these might be useful long-term measures).
  
• Community preparation is currently undertaken by GIZ EnDev, but this is only a once-off measure (Contractors are required to conduct training for the PVVP operator, but this training is strictly technical and does not consider any managerial or administrative aspects). Far more efforts are required to mainstream community preparation and long-term support. As this should not be EBTKE’s core activity, suitable partners must be solicited. This may include other government ministries, but most notably should involve provincial governments, as they are far more accessible for the community.
  
• Indonesia’s solar energy contractors are a vital partner in EBTKE’s rural electrification effort, and several of them have proven their commitment to technical quality by accepting significant risks and undertaking voluntary and costly on-site improvements. Measures to reinforce this public-private relationship can be strengthened, for instance by providing more site-specific information in tender documents, and making the contractors responsible for long-term PVVP operation and performance.
  
• It is not easy for a Village Management Team  to access technical support or purchase spare parts, with contractors concentrated in only a few urban areas. As the market for solar energy technologies in Indonesia increases, contractors will see merit in establishing rural agents. This process should be expedited though, by providing contractors with incentives. A  concession area-based maintenance contract, possibly coupled with an energy-related payment per delivered kWh, is one model to consider.

• EBTKE’s PVVP Programme’s ultimate success rests with how the good performance of the PVVP installations is ensured. The first step towards this is to maintain and share exact data on locations. For this purpose, EBTKE is establishing an Information Clearing House on renewable energy in Indonesia. GIZ EnDev has thus provided EBTKE with a geo-location database with graphic platform, called RE-Map. Over time, this database should accommodate all renewable energy installations in Indonesia as a prerequisite for informed decision-making.
  
  

Further Information

• Mini-grid portal on energypedia
  
• Indonesia Energy Situation
• PV Mini-grid Inspection Guide
• Community Management Guide for Mini-grid

References

• Contact the author for further information