UNEP Workshop Energy Access, Cape Town, May 2009 Energy security and development Philip Lloyd Energy...

UNEP Workshop Energy Access, Cape Town, May 2009

Energy security and development

Philip LloydEnergy Institute

Cape Peninsula University of Technology


What I would like to say

• Energy security is something we have come to expect as a right

• Poverty knows no rights– This is as true for energy as for anything else

• The challenge is at its keenest in rural areas• In developed societies, and semi-urban or urban

environments, affordability is the prime concern• In developing societies, energy security can be

challenging even in urban environments


Energy Security as a Right• In developed societies it is difficult not to believe that the

benefits which energy confers are not ‘automatic’, that they are not a ‘right’

• The developed world recognizes that there is a direct link between energy availability and economic development– The IEA models the growth in energy demand as driven

primarily by population and economic growth

• Loss of power, or loss of fuel, are recalled as temporary aberrations in an otherwise ever-reliable system– 14 August 2003 is remembered over NE US & Canada – 55

million affected


Poverty knows no rights• However, the poor, in whatever society they live,

know energy security as a fact of life.• In some developed societies, this is recognised

explicitly– For instance, in many parts of Europe and US the

elderly and poor are given a heating allowance in winter

• But generally, poverty means either consuming less or going without

• Because there is a linkage between energy and wealth, lack of energy security means lack of wealth – poverty is its own worst enemy


The Rural Challenge

• It is recognised that energy security is lowest in rural areas worldwide

• Relatively low population density means the per capita cost of distribution of energy is high– Eskom sets a limit of >50 homes/sq km

• The problem is particular severe in Africa, where lack of infrastructure means distribution of energy is singularly difficult


The Rural Challenge II

• Data are rather hard to come by• Quite a good idea can be gained from South

Africa– Its census data includes energy use– http://www.statssa.gov.za/

• If we just look at cooking, electricity dominates in cities, wood and paraffin share the rural load, with gas in wood-poor areas, and animal dung not insignificant

http://www.statssa.gov.za/


The Rural Challenge III

• In many rural areas, energy security is only achieved by adopting multi-fuel strategies– In rural Kwa Zulu Natal, we found the average

household had three cooking appliances• Wood, paraffin for when it rained, gas for when there

was a party• Wood was harvested throughout the day, from 2a.m.

to 11p.m.• Gas in that area cost 3x what it cost in the cities• Solar cookers had been abandoned


The Rural Challenge IV

• Demands for modern communications/ entertainment are met by batteries– 100% coverage of radio, in use 18h/day– Frustration with cellphones, not readily

recharged• One of the major demands for solar, usually using

stolen PV panels• “Backyard” PV installation and maintenance works!


The Rural Challenge V• In many areas, wood is NOT readily available• Ever-increasing distances must be covered for

harvesting• The woodlot solution has generally not been

successful• Also, there may be a preference for particular

species; other wood may be plentiful, but the desired species is brought in from as much as 200km away– In such cases it takes on considerable value


The Rural Challenge VI• In many parts of Africa, rural energy security is

threatened because cities are energised using charcoal– Charcoal is employed because the transport costs per

unit of energy transported is much lower than transporting wood

• But the production of charcoal is a very inefficient use of wood

• Extensive deforestation is the result• One should not stress climate change impacts of

deforestation in this context – see Chad!


The Semi-Urban Challenge

• In developed societies, there is generally no real problem in either semi-urban or urban contexts– The distribution networks needed to provide

modern energy services are taken as part of the essential infrastructure

• In developing societies, many semi-urban communities are ‘informal’– Energy services – indeed, all forms of service –

are rudimentary


The Semi-Urban Challenge II

• The community being ‘informal’, cash reserves are low

• Energy security is impacted by lack of cash, yet there is reliance on money to purchase essential services of all kinds

• The net result is that energy security is weak, and there are no proven strategies for overcoming the weakness


The Semi-Urban Challenge III

• Nevertheless, some strategies are in place• Multi-fuelling is prime

– For instance, using a free basic electricity allowance until it is consumed, then switching to paraffin

– Borrowing a cupful of paraffin, or a hubcap of coal, until pay day

– Utilising any combustible waste• The urban waste from Soweto is essentially free of

combustibles in winter


The Semi-Urban Challenge IV• Sometimes security is achieved at a cost

– Space heating on the South African ‘highveld’ is by coal, which is cheap, but the appliances in which to burn coal are expensive

– Low-income families use ‘mbaulas’ – open braziers – to burn the coal with awful indoor air pollution, and consequent respiratory ailments

– Similarly the widespread use of paraffin in ‘affordable’ appliances leads to massive fires and loss of life


The Semi-Urban Challenge V

• One of the clear signals that lower-income families try to choose the cheapest option is the low takeup of electricity– Many homes in electrified areas still cook and heat

space using thermal fuels such as coal and paraffin

• Extensive research has failed to show that provision of electricity significantly raises household income– Although small retail services are widespread, use of

refrigerators prominent


The Urban Challenge• Many developing societies have yet to

achieve widespread servicing of even major cities

• Lack of energy security holds back all kinds of development– Factories can only work when there is power– Standby generators only work if fuel

distribution is efficient

• These are endemic to development everywhere


To conclude

• Energy security affects all levels of society in developing nations

• Achieving energy security is critical to social and economic growth

• Massive capital is needed to achieve this, which is in short supply

• High levels of skill are also needed to maintain the energy infrastructure and ensure it achieves its economic life


Thank you!

And thanks also to:

• CPUT for hosting me

• The organisers for inviting me

• The People for educating me about what energy security really means in their lives

UNEP Workshop Energy Access, Cape Town, May 2009 Energy security and development Philip Lloyd Energy...

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