Microgrid economics haiti

Nearly three-quarters of Haiti''s 10 million citizens lack access to reliable electricity. A primary cause is the nation''s limited and unreliable power grid, which forces many small towns to seek their own solutions in order to provide power to local households, schools and the nation''s growing economic sectors. Through a partnership with Washington, DC-based nonprofit EarthSpark International, USTDA is helping plan and deliver clean microgrid solutions in communities across Haiti.

The study, conducted with EarthSpark''s Haitian-affiliated company, Enèji Pwòp, as well as local universities and a think tank, led to the 2019 implementation of a new solar-powered microgrid in the southwestern town of Tiburon, where 500 homes and businesses now have access to clean, reliable electricity. In addition, the deployment of SparkMeter''s advanced equipment has also enabled greater energy efficiency and stronger resilience in the event of severe hurricanes.

Tiburon is now one of a small handful of communities in Haiti with reliable 24-hour electricity. And EarthSpark now has plans to dramatically scale up its microgrids in Haiti to 24 smart, solar-powered grids in the next four years, to be financed in part by a $9.9 million commitment from the Green Climate Fund.

"Microgrids hold enormous potential to quickly bring electricity to communities across rural Haiti," said Allison Archambault, President at EarthSpark International. "With local and national government support as well as international cooperation, the launch of the Tiburon grid is a success story for multi-sector partnerships building a market that can scale-up to sustainably electrify the 70 percent of the Haitian population still living without electricity."

USTDA''s Acting Director Enoh T. Ebong added: "This project has already helped Haiti vastly expand its microgrid operations, providing more citizens with access to reliable power and clean energy. We are confident that the innovation of U.S. technology will continue to make the decisive difference in Haiti and integrate microgrids in communities throughout the country."

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and NREL supported Haiti in this initiative with trainings and technical assistance to enable private sector partnerships and the scale up of advanced energy technologies. The interactive trainings hosted by the USAID-NREL Partnership focused on minigrid construction and operation for both private developers and government stakeholders.

Additionally, a geospatial analysis tool, the Renewable Energy (RE) Data Explorer, was developed by the USAID-NREL Partnership for the Dominican Republic and Haiti to analyze and visualize renewable energy potential on the island.

Throughout its history, Haiti has experienced repeated natural disasters including hurricanes, tropical storms, flooding, and earthquakes. The country''s infrastructure and small national grid are vulnerable to blackouts, energy price volatility, and other destabilizing forces.

As such, rebuilding Haiti''s energy systems with a focus on stability and affordability is critical. Without access to reliable power, Haiti''s efforts to spur economic growth, improve access to education, and enhance quality of life are hindered.

Minigrids can improve energy access in rural areas by enabling power supply for communities that would otherwise be without reliable electricity. While the basic engineering principles of minigrids are well established, construction and operation methods can vary widely and be location dependent. This may result in variations in power quality and reliability.

In March 2019, a technically robust minigrid RFP was released as part of a broader plan to support the development of 54 minigrids in Haiti, incorporating significant shares of renewable energy. The RFP was developed by the Autorité Nationale de Régulation du Secteur de l''Énergie(ANARSE), the Government of Haiti''s electricity regulator, and the Energy Cell within the Ministry of Public Works, Transportation and Communication (MTPTC), with advisory support from the World Bank, USAID, and NREL.

The RFP lays out key regulatory elements to enable successful minigrid deployment, including licensing, service levels, power quality, technical standards, tariffs, and preparation for grid arrival.

The USAID-NREL Partnership also developed a Renewable Energy Data Explorer for the Dominican Republic and Haiti. This tool performs visualization and analysis of renewable energy potential that can be customized for different scenarios. RE Data Explorer can support prospecting, integrated planning, policymaking, and broader energy sector planning to accelerate renewable energy deployment.

To support the minigrid RFP process, NREL provided a training to 30 renewable energy developers identified by the Government of Haiti as prequalified bidders. It focused on the following key topics identified as priority areas by the developers in advance of the training:

The developer training was broadly aligned with NREL''sQuality Assurance Framework(QAF) for minigrids, whichprovides a flexible approach and guidelines for developing safe, high-quality, and financially viable minigrid power systems for remote customers.Portions of the discussion sessions focused on ways to implement key minigrid approaches specific to Haiti. For more information about the QAF, see the Clean Energy Solutions Center website.

Building on the training for project developers and support for the RFP, NREL provided a three-day virtual training to Government of Haiti stakeholders on developing a broader policy environment for minigrids and use of the RE Data Explorer to support renewable energy deployment more broadly.

The Dominican Republic and Haiti, two countries at opposite ends of the same Caribbean island, are also at opposite ends of the transition to renewable energy. Despite having comparable populations of close to 11 million people, the energy capacity in the Dominican Republic exceeds that of Haiti by a factor of 10 to one. Yet both countries depend significantly on expensive imported fossil fuels, and are looking increasingly to renewable energy sources to meet new demand and reduce energy prices.

Without delving deep into a fascinating and complicated history, a combination of political instability, geographical vulnerability and foreign intervention (among other factors) has led to the divergent economic performance of Haiti and the Dominican Republic. This economic asymmetry is reflected in the energy sector. In Haiti, installed energy capacity is 250-400 megawatts, compared to over 4,000 MW in the Dominican Republic.

Currently, Haiti is divided into different isolated and unreliable electricity grids, publicly run by the under-performing Haiti Electric Utility. Power plants are in disrepair, blackouts are frequent and8 million Haitians live without electricity– over two-thirds of the population, compared with zero in the Dominican Republic. This lack of access to affordable and reliable power has been a significant factor in hindering investment and the development of business – a vicious cycle fostered by energy poverty.

The recent collapse of thePetroCaribe programhas also contributed to Haiti''s fragile political and economic situation. Under the program, Venezuela offered Haiti discounted oil on cheap credit, allowing the government to subsidize retail fuel prices heavily. The subsidies are now fiscally unsustainable, and attempts to withdraw them recently led to widespread protests and have clouded the manufacturing sector with uncertainty. Haiti must find energy alternatives.