Sustainable rural electrification through micro-grids in developing nations — A review of recent development

Despite the efforts by various governments in developing countries to provide energy access to their rural communities, there is still a number of people without electricity. One of the major obstacles to increasing energy access in rural communities is the low population density and low energy consumption due to the lack of substantial economic activities in those areas. In addition, some of these communities are remote and require grid extension for electrification. Given the low energy consumption in these communities, the costs of these extensions may not be justified. Thus, microgrids are attracting interest as viable solutions. In this paper, a review of recent developments in rural electrification through micro-grids is presented. This work first lays the background on the challenges hindering the mass deployment of this system in rural areas and presents the recent solutions and their shortfalls. Schemes proposed with a view to improving the access to financial resources needed to establish these projects are reviewed and their practicability in rural communities is given. It was in the review that finances play a major role in the development and sustainability of the micro-grids. Hence, financial models are developed to ensure that the project does not rely only on the revenue it generates, but, can also enable a third income stream for a sustainable energy access solution. • Opportunities in rural electrification. • Challenges hindering the mass of rural communities. • Financial resources need to deploy micro-grids project in rural areas. • Techno-economic solutions.