Microgrids can offer a resilient and secure alternative for both rural and city communities. Molly Lempriere looks at some of the microgrids around the world that are transforming the way neighbourhoods produce and consume electricity.
Mini-grids offer a quick route to electrification in parts of the world where grid extensions are unfeasible. Baptiste Possémé looks at the some of the technological and regulatory trends influencing the deployment of mini-grids in Africa and Asia.
Making energy affordable for all, even communities in Africa that have never had access to a reliable grid, need not be as daunting a task as it may sound, argues Dr Amrit Chandan, CEO of circular economy lithium-ion battery company Aceleron.
A project to hybridise the energy supply of Fekola, a gold mine in Mali, Africa, with renewable energy and battery storage, will be supplied with a hybrid energy solution, including energy storage, by Wärtsilä.
Lithium-ion waste from a solar lantern scheme run by oil & gas major Total in Kenya will be recycled into new batteries for solar home systems by start-up Aceleron.
Updated: Germany-headquartered renewables developer Baywa r.e. will deploy a solar-plus-storage solution for a goldmine in Mali that will include 13.5MWh of battery storage and reduce the mine’s dependence on heavy fuel oil during the daytime.
The latest project to be switched on in Nigeria’s solar electrification programme for universities is also thought to be the largest ‘hybrid’ plant of its kind on the African continent so far, inaugurated this week at Bayero University Kano (BUK).
Japanese developer Eurus Energy and Australian-headquartered wind developer Windlab have signed an MoU with Kenyan authorities to develop an 80MW solar-plus-wind-plus-storage facility.
BBOXX has successfully closed a US$50 million Series D funding round that will see the next generation utility company accelerate its global expansion efforts.
Enabling batteries to be repaired, upgraded and reused when no longer suitable for their first life will have social as well as environmental benefits, Amrit Chandan, CEO of Aceleron, argues.
