Techno-economic and environmental analysis of energy communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. The case of the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Diplôme Master Techno-economic and environmental analysis of energy communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. The case of the Democratic Republic of the Congo eng 2023 author Martin's Ange Nkonko Kibelo 962710 director Yilmaz Selin 872963 68 Energy access is significantly constrained in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Various factors simultaneously concur to this phenomenon. However, community-scale renewable energy and energy communities can support an increase in energy access. The literature presents substantial gaps concerning the electricity demand and related generation costs in SSA, specifically in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), where no literature could be found. Due to its fast-growing demography, addressing data scarcity in DRC is central to achieving universal electricity access. This research investigates the potential techno-economic and environmental impacts of micro-grids in rural solar energy communities. To do so, we develop a dataset providing data on demand estimations that consider the population, appliance ownership in these communities as well as electricity consumption of these appliances, according to which we sized the micro-grid and the storage. A techno-economic analysis is performed to quantify the costs related to the implementation of the system by conducting a levelized cost of energy analysis. Eventually, the CO2 reduction potential is tested by comparing CO2 emissions from a diesel generator to CO2 emissions from PV and batteries. The results show that a 163-kW solar system with a storage capacity of 65 kWh could satisfy the residential load of the modeled community at an LCOE of 0.18 $/kWh. Based on these findings, policy recommendations were proposed to reduce this LCOE. CO2 reduction potential was estimated to be 3649 tCO2eq for the whole community. We stress the potential benefits that could result from implementing the energy communities and community-scale energy planning into policies. Dewey 320 Master en études africaines Mémoires électroniques 129 24 Global Studies Institute 0DJ false 7829d124-48e2-4931-9a55-2562a33a0d39 Master thesis Public file.pdf 1813474 application/pdf OA OTHER c8a2d794dc925ee7005e1b87e829cbe7069a8832dc03e7c9df5c345f23eefac1 openAccess Centres et instituts / Global Studies Institute

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Techno-economic and environmental analysis of energy communities in Sub-Saharan Africa. The case of the Democratic Republic of the Congo				2023	270	73

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