The use of mobile to scale mini-grids for rural electrification Helene Smertnik Advisory Services Manager GSMA
Agenda GSMA Mobile for Development Utilities in a nutshell CPM vs Mini-grid model How can mobile support mini-grid for rural electrification Where do we see these models develop Examples from the field Recommendations
GSMA M4D Utilities in a nutshell The programme leverages mobile technology & infrastructure to improve access to basic energy, water and sanitation services Activities Knowledge Sharing and Convening Advisory Services Innovation Fund Market Building (e.g. investor partnerships) Funding & Timeframe 10M funding, including 5.6M Innovation Grant Fund from DFID s (2013-2017)
CPM and Mini-grids models Community Power from Mobile (CPM) Telecom towers serve as anchor customers for an energy service company Households & businesses in the vicinity of towers also gain access to a clean electricity source for their energy needs The MNO is able to increase revenue and brand loyalty by helping to provide energy which keeps mobile phones charged and usable Mini-grid Decentralised energy source to power the mini-grid Serving a small number of households and businesses, for which customers pre-pay for electricity The MNO is able to increase revenue and brand loyalty by helping to provide a convenient pre-paid payment method
Mobile for mini-grids in rural areas 1. Mobile infrastructure for CPM Outsource power solution to ESCo who sells community energy services or Sell power from over-capacity of BTS power equipment (DG) 2. Mobile agent distribution network Leveraging extensive rural sales dealer/ retail network for distribution or sale of charging/ lighting devices through commercial partnerships 3. Mobile money Opportunity for micro mobile payments: High volumes of small payments for off-grid domestic & small business energy 5. Connectivity GSM networks, alone or in a hybrid model (mix with mesh networks, e.g. Zigbee), to enable 2-way communication between each household meter and the service provider s management system 4. Machine-to-machine communication Opportunity for remote monitoring/ control Growing interest in using smart metering to improve mini-grid load management, especially useful when variable demand. Remote monitoring and control allows theft detection and reaction
Where do we see it happen Phase 1 Grantees: 2.4M awarded to 13 grantees Mini-grid/CPM models Emergence BioEnergy, Bangladesh Persistent Energy Ghana African Solar Design, Kenya Water Energy Phase 2 Grantees: 3.4M to 21 grantees Mini-grid/CPM models Devergy, Tanzania Gham Power, Nepal ME SOLshare, Bangladesh
Examples from the field
Devergy: Mini-grid in rural Tanzania Challenge: Electrification rate in Tanzania of ~25% while over 80% of population is covered by mobile networks 29 million people have access to mobile network before access to the grid Rural electrification through low-cost, scalable, solar PV-based mini-grids, to provide access to basic lighting, charging and appliances to communities. Mobile - Energy bundles sold through Tigo s agent network; Tower & battery in background with smart meter in foreground Use of mobile payment Aimed number of Units/Beneficiaries: 1,500 households / 7,500 beneficiaries Duration: May-15 to Nov-16
Mobile everywhere For staff Use mobile apps / Whatsapp to talk to technicians in the field For customers 2-way communication (through SMS) Mobile money and scratch cards for payments Stopped using scratch cards after 2 weeks (lack of usability, hard to read) For machines M2M communication to run operations: use ZigBee between meters and gateway. Costly to have a SIM card in every meter + Coverage issues 3 years to build the expertise and their own mesh network Between gateway and base station, use GPRS
EBI: Testing the CPM model Challenge: Electrification rate in Bangladesh of 60% while over 99% of population is covered by mobile networks 61 million people have access to mobile network before access to the grid Emergence BioEnergy Inc. (EBI) awarded a grant in January 2014 to Implement the CPM model with a biomass-fuelled engine to power telecom towers, businesses and households in rural communities Evaluate the commercial potential of the service to generate revenues from the sale of power and organic fertiliser, a byproduct of energy generation
EBI: Results During the project, EBI successfully: Powered two Grameenphone towers for a short period Charged lanterns for rental use by shop keepers and other businesses Achieved 20 h. of operation/day, at peak, at one of their sites However: Due to technical issues with the engine prototypes, EBI decided to halt operations and close down the company in July 2015 Further tests of the CPM business model are necessary to explore the right conditions under which it can be viable.
Gham Power: Piloting CPM in Nepal Challenge: Electrification rate in Nepal of 7 million people without electricity. Those connected suffer up to 16hrs of daily blackouts. Solar home system have a high level of penetration in Nepal. Gham Power, in partnership with Mobile Operator NCell, will install solar micro-grids Provide energy to mobile towers, households and businesses, bringing energy access and mobile connectivity to remote communities in Nepal. Prepaid smart meters will deployed at households and businesses Units/Beneficiaries: 160 households, 47 businesses/ 938 Duration: May-15 to Oct- 16
Gham Power: Early results For Customers Offer customers the possibility to move up the energy ladder and grow their energy demand: A large part of Gham customers have moved from a baseline energy package (lighting and mobile charger) to a larger energy package Example: A customer subscribed to a package 1 (load limit of 20w), within a month they upgraded to package 2 (load limit of 100w) to use appliances such as fan, TV For Utilities and Government Gham has designed the mini-gird to ensure that the mini-grid is compatible with the grid. If the grid reaches a mini-grid network, it will plug into the mini-grid directly. For MNOs Provide sufficient power for the MNO to upgrade its connectivity if wish to upgrade from 2G to 3G already upgraded Reliable mobile coverage enables the growth of Mobile Money
Partnering with Mobile Network Operators CPM model - Infrastructure Opportunity MNO s BTS acts as an anchor tenant and guarantees a consistent demand for energy MNOs as a client guarantees the ability to pay for the service Potential spill over for productive users, giving them the opportunity to move up the energy ladder - grinding mill, internet café, farming Challenge CapEx & time intensive and operationally complex MNOs expectations of rapid scale are difficult to meet Similar difficulties in accessing distribution networks Mobile money Convenience of mobile money, in terms of flexible payments and availability of the service Integration with a MNO s MM platform can prove time-consuming M2M Long range, secure, reduced interferences Can be part of a hybrid model, Mobile coverage is not always 100% reliable
Concluding remarks Mini-grid model: developing a viable business A tough business model to crack: high CAPEX, sufficient population density, reliable mobile coverage, policy and regulatory environment Some early champions are proving the viability of the business model Mobile technology: a solution to support viability of mini-grids Mobile to facilitate payments from customers, connectivity for metering and, in the case of the CPM model, providing the anchor load Ncell provides security as a strong anchor tenant, giving Gham access to investment GSMA supporting decentralised and centralised utilities In 2017, the Programme plans to roll out a new round of grants to support utility service providers, using mobile technology, to improve access to energy, water and sanitation
Thank you! For more information: Visit our website www.gsma.com/mobilefordevelopment/m4dutilities Contact the team: Helene Smertnik: hsmertnik@gsma.com m4dutilities@gsma.com