REPP - Dr. Keith Kozloff - Electricity Sector Reform in Developing Countries: Implications for Renewable Energy

Table 1: Examples of Renewable Technologies in Developing Countries

Resource Bulk Power
(less than 10 megawatts) Distributied Power
(greater than 10 megawatts)

Wind: Long used for pumping water and other mechanical uses. Though generally stronger in temperate regions, resources are sufficient to produce thousands of megawatts of power in Asia and Latin America. Wind farms consist of many turbines clustered together to generate power for the grid. Capacity in developing countries is still small but growing rapidly in India. Small wind turbines for village or farm use.

Direct solar radiation: Used for concentrating collectors; highest in regions with little cloud cover. Diffuse solar radiation is widespread in the developing world. Solat thermal technologies concentrate sunlight to heat a fluid and produce electricity. Not yet commercially deployed, although several demonstration or pilot projects exist. Photovoltaic (PV) installations already serve tens of thousands of households and have other uses in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. At present costs, PV primarily supply individual users far from electricity grids, and central PV power stations for remote villages. Other applications include lighting, water heating, and space heating.

Biomass: Direct combustion of agricultural and forestry residues for combustion in turbines. Processing sugarcane, rice, coconut, and other tropical foods creates organic waste that can be burned directly or gasified. Bagasse (sugarcane residue); cogeneration (combined heat and power). Village-level combined gasifier/power generators or direct combustion.

Hydro: Among the most mature renewable technologies; used for many years to power rural areas. Only about 10 percent of the developing world's potential small hydor capacity has been exploited. Large-scale hyrdo has been a mainstay of the generation mix in many developing countries but is controversial due to ecological and social impacts. Smaller scale (10-50 megawatts) installations are being developed. Minihydro (up to 5 megawatts) and microhydro (less than 100 kilowatts) generators for individual and community applications.

Geothermal: Untapped geothermal resources can be found on both sides of the Pacific Rim (especially Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Thailand) and in the East African Rift Valley. Central-station hydrothermal generation. Installed geothermal capacity in developing countries is projected to grow from about 2,000 megawatts in 1993 to about 5,000 megawatts in 2000. High efficiency generation for local grids.

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Resource	Bulk Power (less than 10 megawatts)	Distributied Power (greater than 10 megawatts)
Wind: Long used for pumping water and other mechanical uses. Though generally stronger in temperate regions, resources are sufficient to produce thousands of megawatts of power in Asia and Latin America.	Wind farms consist of many turbines clustered together to generate power for the grid. Capacity in developing countries is still small but growing rapidly in India.	Small wind turbines for village or farm use.
Direct solar radiation: Used for concentrating collectors; highest in regions with little cloud cover. Diffuse solar radiation is widespread in the developing world.	Solat thermal technologies concentrate sunlight to heat a fluid and produce electricity. Not yet commercially deployed, although several demonstration or pilot projects exist.	Photovoltaic (PV) installations already serve tens of thousands of households and have other uses in Asia, Latin America, and Africa. At present costs, PV primarily supply individual users far from electricity grids, and central PV power stations for remote villages. Other applications include lighting, water heating, and space heating.
Biomass: Direct combustion of agricultural and forestry residues for combustion in turbines. Processing sugarcane, rice, coconut, and other tropical foods creates organic waste that can be burned directly or gasified.	Bagasse (sugarcane residue); cogeneration (combined heat and power).	Village-level combined gasifier/power generators or direct combustion.
Hydro: Among the most mature renewable technologies; used for many years to power rural areas. Only about 10 percent of the developing world's potential small hydor capacity has been exploited.	Large-scale hyrdo has been a mainstay of the generation mix in many developing countries but is controversial due to ecological and social impacts. Smaller scale (10-50 megawatts) installations are being developed.	Minihydro (up to 5 megawatts) and microhydro (less than 100 kilowatts) generators for individual and community applications.
Geothermal: Untapped geothermal resources can be found on both sides of the Pacific Rim (especially Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, Guatemala, and Thailand) and in the East African Rift Valley.	Central-station hydrothermal generation. Installed geothermal capacity in developing countries is projected to grow from about 2,000 megawatts in 1993 to about 5,000 megawatts in 2000.	High efficiency generation for local grids.