Professional with 30 years senior management experience in the energy sector. Lecturer in Strategy and Innovation at Boston University Questrom School of Business. Phone: 4407155925
Multi-user microgrids (MUMs) are an emerging approach to electricity service that allows neighbor... more Multi-user microgrids (MUMs) are an emerging approach to electricity service that allows neighboring customers to obtain greater resilience in electricity service, from a set of locally-installed distributed energy resources (DERs) of their own choice (sometimes including solar energy and energy storage), through joint participation in a power production and delivery system that can operate independently from the host electric utility.
To date, there are relatively few MUMs in operation. This is primarily because regulated utility service from the electricity grid has historically been adequate and cost-effective for most customers – and it is highly likely that this will remain largely true, so that MUMs will not become widespread anytime soon. However, with improving microgrid economics and increasing customer needs for resilience, there will be a growing number of situations in which MUMs will become viable. Even today, certain sets of customers find the benefits offered by MUMs to outweigh the additional costs.
Despite this, MUM activity has been extremely limited because of a number of significant barriers associated with implementing this novel business model. Exacerbating this, there is a dearth of comprehensive study on these barriers. Consequently, the goal of this research is to provide a first investigation into the barriers to MUM development and some early hypotheses on potential remedies that would facilitate MUM development when and where they might be a good solution – with a particular focus on the Northeastern U.S.
Based on review of publicly-available information augmented by targeted interviews with individuals who have been active in the MUM arena, the research uncovered seven primary barriers to MUM development:
• Inability to Monetize Resilience (and Other Value Streams) • Conflicts with Pre-Existing Rights Associated with Electricity Delivery • Preferential Rights for Utilities to Cross Public Rights-of-Way • Ambiguity About Viable MUM Ownership Models • Utility Assertion of Rights Via Legal Action • Lack of Suitable Risk-Mitigation Structures • Insufficient Leadership to Coalesce Solutions
Our research further surfaced the following actions that have generally been helpful to date in addressing these barriers and facilitating development of MUMs: • Utility Ownership or Strong Utility Participation in MUMs • Creatively Leveraging Opportunities to Reduce MUM Costs • Tailoring Business Models to Situation-Specific Needs • Phased Development to Spread Costs Over Time • Robust Execution Capability and Stakeholder Collaboration Based on our findings, the research team recommends the following activities by stakeholders committed to advancing MUM viability:
• Increasing Awareness and Understanding of MUM-Specific Issues • Strengthening Regulations and Policies to Improve MUM Playing Field • Standardizing MUM Design and Implementation • Creating Viable Mechanisms Valuing and Monetizing MUM Services • Learning from MUM Innovations Elsewhere • Organizing for Greater Impact The report concludes with some suggestions on topical areas that merit additional research to improve the ability to successfully develop MUMs where they can create significant value for customers.
The future of electricity supply and delivery on the continent of Africa represents one of the th... more The future of electricity supply and delivery on the continent of Africa represents one of the thorniest challenges facing professionals in the global energy, economics, finance, environmental, and philanthropic communities.
Roughly 600 million people in Africa lack any access to electricity. If this deficiency is not solved, extreme poverty for many Africans is virtually assured for the foreseeable future, as it is widely recognized that economic advancement cannot be achieved in the 21st Century without good electricity supply. Yet, if Africa were to electrify in the same manner pursued in developed economies around the world during the 20th Century, the planet’s global carbon budget would be vastly exceeded, greatly exacerbating the worldwide damages from climate change.
Moreover, due to low purchasing power in most African economies and fiscal insolvency of most African utilities, it is unclear exactly how the necessary infrastructure investments can be deployed to bring ample quantities of power – especially zero-carbon power – to all Africans, both those who currently are unconnected to any grid as well as those who are now served by expensive, high-emitting, limited and unreliable electricity supply.
With the current population of 1.3 billion people expected to double by 2050, the above-noted challenges associated with the African electricity sector may well get substantially worse than they already are – unless new approaches to infrastructure planning, development, finance and operation can be mobilized and propagated across the continent.
This paper presents a summary of the present state and possible futures for the African electricity sector. A synthesis of an ever-growing body of research on electricity in Africa, this paper aims to provide the reader a thorough and balanced context as well as general conclusions and recommendations to better inform and guide decision-making and action.
This report summarizes the current state of the electricity sector in Haiti, to form a knowledge ... more This report summarizes the current state of the electricity sector in Haiti, to form a knowledge base from which to subsequently evaluate options for how best to increase electricity access in Haiti. Accordingly, this report summarizes the results of an extensive review of the publicly-available information on the electricity sector in Haiti, supplemented by targeted interviews with selected individuals known to be knowledgeable about electricity in Haiti based on their recent involvement in assessing the sector or in pursuing/supporting development opportunities. No interviews were conducted with representatives of: • Electricité d’Haïti (EDH), the company that serves as the de facto monopoly service provider of electricity across Haiti, or • Any part of the Government of Haiti (GOH), which owns EDH, or • Any part of the U.S. government or other multinational agencies that provide aid to the GOH
This assessment was limited to profiling the activities of the primary entities involved in multi-customer electricity grids in Haiti. These can be grouped into three main categories, which also serve as the three main chapters of this report: • The monopoly utility, EDH • Independent power producers (IPPs) that generate and sell electricity to EDH • Developers of independent microgrids in locations not served by EDH
Additionally, other approaches exist for providing electricity services to individual customers in Haiti – either generation/storage systems that supply a wired building or compound, or stand-alone unwired electricity devices (e.g., solar lanterns) enabled by generation/storage – but these were not evaluated for this study. A final but important caveat: the availability of data regarding the status of the electricity sector in Haiti is very limited, and what data that exists is of uncertain or poor quality, with considerable conflicting information. As a result, subjective judgment was often required in interpreting and drawing conclusions, and whenever possible, multiple sources of information were used for triangulation purposes.
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To date, there are relatively few MUMs in operation. This is primarily because regulated utility service from the electricity grid has historically been adequate and cost-effective for most customers – and it is highly likely that this will remain largely true, so that MUMs will not become widespread anytime soon. However, with improving microgrid economics and increasing customer needs for resilience, there will be a growing number of situations in which MUMs will become viable. Even today, certain sets of customers find the benefits offered by MUMs to outweigh the additional costs.
Despite this, MUM activity has been extremely limited because of a number of significant barriers associated with implementing this novel business model. Exacerbating this, there is a dearth of comprehensive study on these barriers. Consequently, the goal of this research is to provide a first investigation into the barriers to MUM development and some early hypotheses on potential remedies that would facilitate MUM development when and where they might be a good solution – with a particular focus on the Northeastern U.S.
Based on review of publicly-available information augmented by targeted interviews with individuals who have been active in the MUM arena, the research uncovered seven primary barriers to MUM development:
• Inability to Monetize Resilience (and Other Value Streams)
• Conflicts with Pre-Existing Rights Associated with Electricity Delivery
• Preferential Rights for Utilities to Cross Public Rights-of-Way
• Ambiguity About Viable MUM Ownership Models
• Utility Assertion of Rights Via Legal Action
• Lack of Suitable Risk-Mitigation Structures
• Insufficient Leadership to Coalesce Solutions
Our research further surfaced the following actions that have generally been helpful to date in addressing these barriers and facilitating development of MUMs:
• Utility Ownership or Strong Utility Participation in MUMs
• Creatively Leveraging Opportunities to Reduce MUM Costs
• Tailoring Business Models to Situation-Specific Needs
• Phased Development to Spread Costs Over Time
• Robust Execution Capability and Stakeholder Collaboration
Based on our findings, the research team recommends the following activities by stakeholders committed to advancing MUM viability:
• Increasing Awareness and Understanding of MUM-Specific Issues
• Strengthening Regulations and Policies to Improve MUM Playing Field
• Standardizing MUM Design and Implementation
• Creating Viable Mechanisms Valuing and Monetizing MUM Services
• Learning from MUM Innovations Elsewhere
• Organizing for Greater Impact
The report concludes with some suggestions on topical areas that merit additional research to improve the ability to successfully develop MUMs where they can create significant value for customers.
Roughly 600 million people in Africa lack any access to electricity. If this deficiency is not solved, extreme poverty for many Africans is virtually assured for the foreseeable future, as it is widely recognized that economic advancement cannot be achieved in the 21st Century without good electricity supply. Yet, if Africa were to electrify in the same manner pursued in developed economies around the world during the 20th Century, the planet’s global carbon budget would be vastly exceeded, greatly exacerbating the worldwide damages from climate change.
Moreover, due to low purchasing power in most African economies and fiscal insolvency of most African utilities, it is unclear exactly how the necessary infrastructure investments can be deployed to bring ample quantities of power – especially zero-carbon power – to all Africans, both those who currently are unconnected to any grid as well as those who are now served by expensive, high-emitting, limited and unreliable electricity supply.
With the current population of 1.3 billion people expected to double by 2050, the above-noted challenges associated with the African electricity sector may well get substantially worse than they already are – unless new approaches to infrastructure planning, development, finance and operation can be mobilized and propagated across the continent.
This paper presents a summary of the present state and possible futures for the African electricity sector. A synthesis of an ever-growing body of research on electricity in Africa, this paper aims to provide the reader a thorough and balanced context as well as general conclusions and recommendations to better inform and guide decision-making and action.
Accordingly, this report summarizes the results of an extensive review of the publicly-available information on the electricity sector in Haiti, supplemented by targeted interviews with selected individuals known to be knowledgeable about electricity in Haiti based on their recent involvement in assessing the sector or in pursuing/supporting development opportunities.
No interviews were conducted with representatives of:
• Electricité d’Haïti (EDH), the company that serves as the de facto monopoly service provider of electricity across Haiti, or
• Any part of the Government of Haiti (GOH), which owns EDH, or
• Any part of the U.S. government or other multinational agencies that provide aid to the GOH
This assessment was limited to profiling the activities of the primary entities involved in multi-customer electricity grids in Haiti. These can be grouped into three main categories, which also serve as the three main chapters of this report:
• The monopoly utility, EDH
• Independent power producers (IPPs) that generate and sell electricity to EDH
• Developers of independent microgrids in locations not served by EDH
Additionally, other approaches exist for providing electricity services to individual customers in Haiti – either generation/storage systems that supply a wired building or compound, or stand-alone unwired electricity devices (e.g., solar lanterns) enabled by generation/storage – but these were not evaluated for this study.
A final but important caveat: the availability of data regarding the status of the electricity sector in Haiti is very limited, and what data that exists is of uncertain or poor quality, with considerable conflicting information. As a result, subjective judgment was often required in interpreting and drawing conclusions, and whenever possible, multiple sources of information were used for triangulation purposes.