Holistic Approach to Develop Electricity Load Profiles for Rural Off-Grid Communities in Sub-Saharan Africa
Abstract
Providing energy access to remote, rural communities in sub- Saharan Africa (SSA) is particularly challenging in areas where grid extension is not a viable option. For these communities, electrification and the fulfillment of UN’s SDG 7 can only be achieved effectively by means of off-grid electricity supply systems. However, especially the planning process of renewable energy based mini-grids requires a careful estimation of the specific electricity needs. In order to predict the electricity load profile of a particular community, a hybrid load profile modelling approach is applied in this research article which combines methods and elements from both top-down and bottom-up load profile models. The hybrid model and its output are validated with real measurement data recorded in the two largest off-grid settlements of Namibia, Tsumkwe and Gam. The current status of the results indicates that the hybrid load profile modelling method is a powerful approach to generate representative electricity load profiles for typical consumers in isolated rural communities in SSA.