Renewable Energy in the MENA Region: Key Challenges and Lessons Learned

Author(s):  
Fateh Belaid ◽  
Elias Boukrami ◽  
Razan Amine
2007 ◽  
Vol 18 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 421-430 ◽  
Author(s):  
Md. Tarik-ul-Islam ◽  
Sara Ferdousi

In Bangladesh, annual per capita energy consumption is approximately 200 KgOE3, which is among the lowest in the world. Presently, 70% of the population does not have access to electricity in Bangladesh (GoB, 2004). The average system loss is 20.97% (GoB, 2006). The demand for power is estimated to increase 300 MW annually (GoB, 1996a). In contrast, concerns have been raised about the conventional energy production from fossil fuels that significantly contributes to environmental degradation at the local, regional and global levels. This situation calls for adoption of sustainable energy strategies that permeate every level of the economy and can provide rural dwellers with the services that they want and need. With this backdrop, Bangladesh has been experiencing a gradual shift towards exploring renewable energy resources as a means to fuel rural development in the off-grid areas. The country is endowed with abundant renewable energy resources. The Local Government Engineering Department (LGED), with its mandate for sustainable rural development has embarked on a program for demonstration and transfer of renewable energy technologies in the off-grid rural areas. The project “Sustainable Rural Energy (SRE)‘ has been conceived within the overall framework of ‘Sustainable Environment Management Programme (SEMP)’ with financial support from United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). This project has already completed a number of renewable energy installations demonstrating diversified community applications of these technologies for livelihood and socio-economic improvement of the people living in the remote off-grid villages. The lessons learned from these demonstration plants reveal that, with careful forward planning, renewable energy can provide far-reaching economic and social benefits to people living in remote rural areas in Bangladesh. The private sectors and NGOs (Non-government organizations) have started to take part in the process of renewable energy development with great promise and enthusiasm. However, the process encounters policy, institutional and technological barriers, which are critical for continued development in this sector.


Energies ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (16) ◽  
pp. 5048
Author(s):  
Zachary Barr ◽  
Jesse Roberts ◽  
William Peplinski ◽  
Anna West ◽  
Sharon Kramer ◽  
...  

The marine renewable energy (MRE; renewable energy captured from waves, tides, ocean currents, the natural flow of water in rivers, and marine thermal gradients, without building new dams or diversions) industry has a vital role in the U.S. clean energy strategy as we progress to meet U.S. electricity and blue economy needs with renewable, domestic energy sources. However, a thorough assessment of the U.S. marine energy permitting process from the viewpoints of both developers that propose projects and regulators that permit them has not been performed. Sharing practical experiences in this new industry is vital to increase the efficiency and effectiveness of the permitting process, identify data and information gaps, develop lessons learned, and advance the industry. This paper is a case study of qualitative findings, lessons learned, and recommendations from guided discussions, workshops, and webinars with both marine renewable energy developers and state and federal regulators that have experience in the permitting process in the U.S.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haifa Saadaoui

Abstract This study focuses on the role of institutional factors as well as financial development in renewable energy transition in Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region over the period 1990-2018 using the ARDL PMG method. The investigation of long-run and short-run analysis confirms that institutional and political factors play a key role in promoting the transition to renewable energy, and shows that improving these factors can lead to decarbonization of the energy sector in the long run. Another important finding is that global financial development does not have a significant effect on the transition process in the long run, implying that the whole financial system needs a fundamental structural change to accelerate the substitution between polluting and clean energies. However, in the short term, the impact appears to be negative and significant, highlighting the inadequacy of financial institutions and financial markets in promoting the region’s sustainable path. Moreover, income drives the transition to renewable energy in both short and long term. The causality results show that both financial development and institutional quality lead to renewable energy transition, while there is a bidirectional link between income and renewable energy.This study can provide a very useful recommendation to promote a clean transition in the MENA region.


Energies ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (16) ◽  
pp. 3046 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ole Zelt ◽  
Christine Krüger ◽  
Marina Blohm ◽  
Sönke Bohm ◽  
Shahrazad Far

In recent years, most countries in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), including Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia, have rolled out national policies with the goal of decarbonising their economies. Energy policy goals in these countries have been characterised by expanding the deployment of renewable energy technologies in the electricity mix in the medium term (i.e., until 2030). This tacitly signals a transformation of socio-technical systems by 2030 and beyond. Nevertheless, how these policy objectives actually translate into future scenarios that can also take into account a long-term perspective up to 2050 and correspond to local preferences remains largely understudied. This paper aims to fill this gap by identifying the most widely preferred long-term electricity scenarios for Jordan, Morocco and Tunisia. During a series of two-day workshops (one in each country), the research team, along with local stakeholders, adopted a participatory approach to develop multiple 2050 electricity scenarios, which enabled electricity pathways to be modelled using Renewable Energy Pathway Simulation System GIS (renpassG!S). We subsequently used the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) within a Multi-Criteria Analysis (MCA) to capture local preferences. The empirical findings show that local stakeholders in all three countries preferred electricity scenarios mainly or even exclusively based on renewables. The findings demonstrate a clear preference for renewable energies and show that useful insights can be generated using participatory approaches to energy planning.


2020 ◽  
Vol 5 ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Joseph Kenfack ◽  
Joseph Voufo ◽  
Paul Salomon Ngohe Ekam ◽  
Jeanine K. Lewetchou ◽  
Urbain Nzotcha

Sub Saharan Africa has a great renewable energy potential. Rural areas are suffering from poor energy access. Some systems designed to address this issue are still faced with some difficulties. Appropriate approaches and energy plant development will help remote areas to address the issue of electricity access. The current development of some micro hydro and micro solar energy plants is of poor quality and maintenance, sometimes resulting in failures. There are also some common mistakes made when promoting (designing) an energy system in an African environment. Identifying issues from local constraints and lessons learned will contribute to determining the appropriate sizing, technology and tools to correctly develop micro hydro and micro solar energy plants.


Author(s):  
Raymond Alcorn ◽  
Anthony Lewis ◽  
Mark Healy

The paper discusses the lessons learned from the European Funded Framework 7 Research project Components for Ocean Renewable Energy Systems (CORES) which developed and trialed new components and systems for ocean energy devices. The authors are the coordinator and project manager so the paper will give this overview of the project. This will include detail of the work packages, major achievements, significant impacts, summary results and outcomes of the sea trials.


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