Despite increasing global electrification rates, over 700 million people remain without access to electricity, predominantly in Sub-Saharan Africa. Solar minigrids offer a promising solution for rural electrification in areas unlikely to be connected to the national grid. However, existing evaluations of minigrid projects often overlook holistic performance, particularly the social impacts on the communities they serve. This study aims to fill this gap by proposing a novel key performance indicator (KPI) framework that integrates technical, economic, and social metrics, providing a comprehensive assessment of minigrid performance. The research question guiding this study is: How can a holistic KPI framework enhance the understanding of solar minigrid sustainability and impact? To address this, KPIs were designed through a systematic process involving a literature review, stakeholder engagement, and validation through a case study minigrid in Malawi. The framework was applied using data collected from smart meters, remote monitoring, and enumerator surveys. Key findings reveal that while technical performance was robust, economic sustainability requires further optimisation, and social impacts, particularly on gender and community well-being, were significant. This study demonstrates the importance of a balanced evaluation framework that considers all dimensions of minigrid performance. By adopting such a holistic approach, minigrid developers, policymakers, and investors can make more informed decisions, ultimately improving the sustainability and effectiveness of rural electrification projects.

To achieve electricity access in sub-Saharan Africa, off-grid Distributed Energy Resource Systems, such as microgrids, are required. Sustainability of these systems requires improved business models and efficient maintenance and operations frameworks. However, a lack of technical and economic data from the existing installation base hampers the necessary learning and innovation. This paper describes a case study deployment of DER systems in Malawi, demonstrating the application and benefits of high levels of instrumentation and monitoring. A proposed classification of minimum, preferred and desirable levels of data gathering and sharing is offered as a key recommendation for future DER system deployments in Malawi.

Mini-grids and other Distributed Energy Resource (DER) systems are expected to play a major role in achieving sustainable electricity supply for the 580 million people currently lacking access in sub-Saharan Africa. Data for mini-grid planning is essential for sustainable business models and efficient technical designs; however, primary data in the African mini-grid sector is sparse, especially in Malawi. This paper presents initial case-study findings from ongoing work by Community Energy Malawi to initiate a roll-out of mini-grids in Malawi. Different data sources for estimating mini-grid customer consumption are presented and compared, highlighting the importance of quality datasets for planning and the need for greater efforts on data gathering and sharing in Malawi. With such data, informed decisions on tariffs and business planning can be made to improve financial sustainability for mini-grids.

Mini-grids are the least cost electrification option for over 30% of Malawi’s population, however mini-grid financial sustainability is often compromised due to underutilised generation. Electric cooking is increasing in prominence globally and offers a low carbon alternative to biomass. Powering eCook devices on mini-grids in Malawi has the potential to improve mini-grid profitability while offering environmental and social benefits. This study explores this opportunity drawing on pilot case study data from mini-grid powered eCook devices gathered through smart meters and social impact surveys. Technical analysis presents statistical load profiles compared to modelled profiles, indicating lower eCook demand from measured profiles and likelihood of fuel stacking. Analysis is utilised to investigate opportunities and challenges for mini-grid eCooking in Malawi through technical and economic lenses, including potential impact of carbon credits on financial models. Recommendations given to accelerate mini-grid eCooking in Malawi include demand side management, smart cooking subsidies, and further data analysis.

Globally, approximately 2 billion people have access to some form of electricity but do not have access to clean cooking, the majority of which rely on the traditional use of biomass. Cooking with biomass leads to an estimated 3.8 million deaths per year attributed to household air pollution. The widespread practise of cooking with non-renewable wood fuels also contributes to ecosystem degradation and the emission of approximately 1 gigaton of CO2/year (2% of global emissions total). According to the State of Access to Modern Energy Cooking Services report by the World Bank, ESMAP and MECS, not progressing beyond the status quo is costing the world more than US$2 trillion each year; US$ 1.4 trillion from the negative impacts on health, US$ 0.2 trillion per year from climate impacts and environmental degradation and US$ 0.8 trillion per year from its adverse effects specifically on women. A growing body of evidence is showing that, in many settings, modern energy cooking services such as electric cooking are already cost-effective alternatives. For many countries in the Global South with a strong enabling environment (including having access to affordable, reliable electricity and the presence of a strong, active modern cooking sector) a transition to electric cooking is already taking place, mainly among the consumer class. For other countries where many households have limited or no access to modern energy, a suite of innovative business models and technologies are rapidly expanding opportunities to transition to electric cooking via mini-grid and off-grid systems. To understand where the greatest opportunities and challenges for a scale up of electric cooking in the Global South lie, a Global Market Assessment (GMA) for electric cooking has been conducted by the Modern Energy Cooking Services (MECS) programme which seeks to “to rapidly accelerate the transition from biomass to clean cooking on a global scale”. The GMA has drawn on the experience of a range of stakeholders to identify the key factors which influence the viability of a scale up of electric cooking and represents this as a weighted score constructed from 37 indicators covering 130 countries in the Global South. As electric cooking relies on a electricity which can now be supplied in a variety of different ways, the GMA provides a score for national grid, mini-grid and off-grid (standalone) supported electric cooking.

Globally, three billion people still use biomass to accommodate their cooking needs, causing negative health and adverse environmental impacts. Recent research promoting the use of electric cooking devices (eCook) to reduce biomass usage includes data capture, market assessments and eCook device prototyping to give a clearer vision on how people cook and associated costs. However, when dealing with analysis of electrification in rural and remote areas, a lack of information remains for the optimum size and costs of off-grid systems to accommodate eCook loads. The techno-economic modelling software HOMER-Pro is used in this paper to simulate four different mini-grid models to evaluate optimal configurations for the Dedza mini-grid in Malawi with increased household (HH) eCook use, targeting economic and environmental objectives. The simulation results reveal that model 4 which represents the optimized photovoltaic (PV)/battery/diesel hybrid mini-grid model, provides the lowest Cost of Electricity (COE), less greenhouse emissions, a higher Renewable Fraction (RF) when accommodating eCooks, and as the eCook penetrations increase the COE reduces due to the relative increase in the total annual electric load served (E served ).

Access to energy is widely acknowledged as an enabler for development, and a lack of energy is a barrier to economic empowerment.Currently just 12% of the Malawian population have access to the national electricity grid, with rural electrification at only 5.3%.Solar photovoltaic (PV) microgrids offer increased access levels over pico-solar systems and solarhome systems, and are a successful rural electrification method in many areas of Africa.This paper addresses the research question of: "what is the market potential for solar microgrids in Malawi?" through a multidisciplinary methodology and outlines necessary steps to overcome the key risks and barriers for implementation nationally.Case studies of existing initiatives in Kenya and Rwanda have been used to inform a system and business design appropriate to Malawi.The market potential of PV microgrids in Malawi has been identified and quantified through a novel approach combining microgrid optimisation software HOMERPro with Geographic Information Systems tools.The methodology also includes an energy ecosystem mapping exercise to identify and frame influencing parameters affecting microgrid implementation nationally.The findings show that solar microgrids are cost competitive with diesel microgrids in all locations in Malawi, although the addition of dispatchable diesel generation may provide economic benefits in larger, more urban systems.To implement solar microgrids would cost approximately $210 per person and average operational expenses of $17 per person per year.It was determined that 42% of Malawians may be most cost effectively served by existing infrastructure, 37% would be best served by microgrids and 21% would be best served by solar-home systems.

Energy services social enterprises are emerging as a sustainable response to the challenges of achieving SDG 7, but detailed case study insight is lacking to inform the sector. Malawi has one of the lowest electricity access rates in the world, with a rural electrification rate of only 4%. This paper highlights lessons from an energy service social enterprise in Malawi, using a case study framework to outline key achievements and challenges faced. The learning is used to form recommendations on increasing the impact, growth and sustainability of energy service social enterprises, both for grassroots practitioners as well as policy and investment decision makers. It has been found that energy service social enterprises need to develop robust strategies for sustainability through fostering cross sectorial linkages, investing in capacity building and awareness raising, collaborating through research partnerships, budgeting and resource planning conservatively, tracking social impact to inform business strategy, seeking innovation in business planning, and utilising smart subsidies. The case study analysis presented is intended to inform other social enterprises offering energy services, and to progress the rural electrification sector to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 7.

Background A novel project sustainability framework is used to evaluate 65 off-grid solar photovoltaic (PV) energy system projects in Malawi. This study addresses PV projects serving rural public facilities, a solution known to have had historical issues with poor sustainability. A recent countrywide program targeting such facilities was evaluated against existing projects to determine whether this latest iteration offered better results. Method Sustainability is defined at the project-level with metrics justified under the main themes of technical, economic, social, and organizational. Data captured for each project is based on a custom survey and interview of key stakeholders. Projects are grouped according to age, project implementer, income level, and PV system size to compare relative results. Results The sustainability outlook for each project is evaluated. We find sustainability for most projects to be low. Social sustainability was weak with many projects due to low local community stakeholder engagement in terms of numbers of stakeholders, meeting frequency, and community contributions. Organizational challenges included a lack of key management positions in place and extremely limited training provisions. Furthermore, the evaluation highlights the economic health of the system to be key to sustainability, with the “healthiest” projects affording only 37% of expected operations and maintenance costs. Relative to expected demand, systems were found to be undersized for both panels (53% of required) and batteries (57%). Users reported achieving only 60% of their desired consumption. Poor sizing standards related to the lack of load profiles for first-time electricity users as well as poor quality components reduced the overall technical sustainability. Conclusion Rural public facilities with solar PV in Malawi are not well served by isolated community management. Improved sustainability requires the establishment of a robust financial framework prior to project development that includes formal local government support. This paper discusses ideal management frameworks and their ultimate implications for project developers, policy makers, and the research community.

The decentralization of governance is increasingly considered crucial for delivering development and is being widely adopted in sub-Saharan countries. At the same time, distributed (decentralized) energy systems are increasingly recognized for their role in achieving universal access to energy and are being promoted in sub-Saharan countries. However, little attention has been paid by governments and energy practitioners to the dynamic interrelationships between national and local government and the role of governance decentralization in transitioning to distributed energy systems. This paper traces the complex relationships between accelerated delivery of distributed energy and decentralized local governance systems. The argument is grounded in an exploration of two different approaches to decentralized energy systems governance in Kenya and Malawi. For Kenya, analysis focuses on the energy sector since the adoption of the new decentralized constitution in 2010. In Malawi, it focuses on the involvement of the authors in piloting Local Authority Energy Officers in districts under the decentralization of Malawian energy policy. Our analysis shows that accelerating the speed and scale of implementation for distributed energy systems and enhancing their sustainability and socio-economic impacts is directly linked to the quality of local and national governance structures and their interrelationships. The paper extends existing work in energy and evidence literacy for policy actors by developing an analytical framework, to enable more effective local governance within energy access initiatives in the Global South.

This paper presents the findings from a study which used household surveys and expert interviews to investigate cooking practices and understand the barriers and opportunities to the growth of the modern cooking sector in Malawi. The findings from expert interviews highlight barriers to electric and LPG cooking around the weakness of existing infrastructure, lack of consumer willingness and ability to pay and resistance to the adoption of modern cooking devices. The greatest opportunity for electric cooking is in urban areas and on mini-grids, while LPG is also most viable in urban areas, however knowledge and infrastructure gaps need to be narrowed to facilitate growth. An analysis of household surveys in urban, peri-urban and rural areas, using data from "indicative cooking diaries", demonstrates the diversity of cooking practices in Malawian households by showing what, how, and with what, dishes are cooked. It is demonstrated that there is a latent demand for modern cooking in Malawi. Targeted research is needed to test modern cooking devices' ability to cook Malawian dishes in ways which are acceptable to Malawian people, in order to effectively accelerate a transition towards modern cooking in Malawi and address the negative health and environmental impacts of biomass cooking.

This paper draws out translational learning for off-grid energy access initiatives from a case study in Malawi. Deploying solar PV 'Charging Stations' in four rural communities, the Sustainable Off-Grid Electrification of Rural Villages (SOGERV) project set out to establish sustainable, community focussed, energy businesses. The market assessment that comprised a major stage of the project initiation is presented here. The financial performance of the SOGERV businesses is then summarised for comparison. It is found that market assessment recommendations for smaller, more affordable portable products were largely accurate. The established businesses tested this market with a range of products and analysis shows that sales are largely in line with market assessment product predictions. However, a larger market than predicted appears to exist and that there is more appetite for the larger 'household-scale' portable products than anticipated. Productive Use of Energy (PUE) customers were harder to establish and were limited to a small number of barber shop, cold-drink sales, video show and shop lighting customers. Stand-alone PV systems were not affordable for the majority and most PUE customers co-located with the charging infrastructure, suggesting a need to facilitate enhanced co-location opportunities or for electricity distribution infrastructure. The findings of the paper demonstrate the opportunity for community focussed energy businesses to support economic development (SDG6) and access to modern sustainable energy (SDG7), and are relevant for energy practitioners, decision makers and planners supporting SDG implementation in developing countries.

This paper presents learning relevant to off-grid energy access initiatives from a case study in Malawi. Deploying solar PV Kiosks in four rural communities, the Sustainable Off-Grid Electrification of Rural Villages (SOGERV) project set out to establish sustainable, community-based energy businesses. Focussing on access to renewable electricity and economic sustainability, the project deployed a set of services and products aiming to meet local needs identified in a detailed market survey of the area. The financial results of each business (sales revenues and operating expenses) are presented and discussed The results demonstrate that, despite operating in remote areas with some of the lowest development statistics in Malawi, the revenues that can be obtained by these businesses have the potential to meet long-term operations and maintenance costs and generate a net surplus over a 10 year tradingperiod. However, results are varied between businesses and many risks to long term economic sustianability remain. The learning provides a platform for further development of SDG7 focussed, community energy projects in Malawi and other similar contexts.

Delivering SDG7 by providing secure access to modern electricity for over 1 billion people globally demands innovation in technology, policy and delivery models. Microgrids, defined as energy generation and supply systems with maximum capacity of 100kW having capabilities of managing local energy supply, are proving a viable solution for remote rural areas in the global South with no prospect of main grid connection. While steady technological progress in the microgrid sector is being observed, effective planning methodologies and delivery models are key to sustainable microgrid implementation. Social enterprise is a collective term for a range of organisations that trade for a social purpose, and offer a niche innovative energy access delivery model that is neither public nor private sector. This paper proposes an evidence-based analysis methodology for assessing the feasibility of a social enterprise delivery model for the deployment of solar microgrids in a developing country. Steps of the methodology include conducting a site-specific feasibility study; assessing the market potential; and business scale-up scenario modelling. Conclusions and recommendations are given on the opportunity for this novel technical and business solution to address energy poverty and achieve SGD7.

Productive Use of Energy (PUE) is a term describing the use of energy for the delivery of a service or the process of adding value to a product. Typical PUE applications in emerging economies include: irrigation services, maize milling, refrigeration, mobile phone charging, barbershops and entertainment/communication hubs. Existing research has established that promoting PUE in rural areas of developing countries can transform local economies and reduce poverty. However, to deliver a sustainable PUE project with associated social impact requires a robust financial model and ownership structure. This paper shares research and practical experience related to the economic feasibility of rural businesses in Malawi powered by solar PV. Through this, insight into rural PUE opportunities that can become commercially viable and improve the livelihood of rural residents. Feasibility studies of PUE use cases were conducted through surveys of existing businesses to determine CAPEX, OPEX and monthly income. Results of which informed pilot projects of 5 rural businesses powered by standalone solar PV. A commercial `strategy' for wide scale implementation has been considered and this is described along with future research routes to accelerate dissemination of solar PV PUE initiatives.

This paper outlines a statistical modelling methodology for predicting sustainability of PV systems installed in Sub-Saharan Africa, with a sustainability analysis of an example PV system in Malawi, 3.5 years after installation. Social and economic risks to project sustainability are identified (through expert survey and community consultation) and the methodology for including these qualitative risks is described. The project sustainability results are given in terms of probable system operational time (as a fraction). For scenario modelling, the P10 result (P10 can be considered as a measure for the best case; only 10% of cases are better than this) 3.5 years after installation shows how social and economic impacts are predicted to reduce the fraction of time the system is operational to over 1/4 of the expected P10. The caveat to this conclusion, is that social and economic risks (such as component theft/tampering, lack of management, possibility of the grid extending to the area, community leadership and structure) are usually mitigated against at the project planning stage. However, the level and type of mitigation is sporadic and inconsistent and should be given significantly more consideration at project conception.

The level of investment in mini-grids is limited by a lack of understanding of their social impacts. A paucity of published data exists on the issue, presenting a need for mature, better-integrated monitoring and evaluation methodologies. Such social impact focussed data would provide a critical evidence base for supporting claims of the beneficial effects of mini-grids on the communities they serve. This paper provides a literature review exploring the existing knowledgebase on the social impacts of mini-grids, what methodologies are used to evaluate them, and the extent to which social impact monitoring and evaluation is currently carried out. It finds that although there is a general acceptance of the benefits of rural electrification through mini-grids, it is not often based on empirically measured evidence of mini-grid impact on the general well-being or social development of the communities they serve. Existing studies tend to focus more on measuring technical and economic performance of installed systems. Recommendations for a best practice methodology for evaluating the social impact of mini-grids is presented, which will be applied and tested in a variety of development contexts to gain valuable data to inform the sector.

Nepal has an abundance of renewable resources, especially in rural areas where energy demand is still overwhelmingly met by traditional biomass. This paper considers the potential for small scale wind turbines (SWTs) to meet the electrical demand of rural communities in Nepal, as assessed through a GIS-based methodology and considerations of the broader enabling environment. Various datasets are processed in order to generate a map of where small wind is estimated to be a viable off-grid technology. The paper also discusses the anticipated barriers and opportunities available to small wind technology.

Energy is an enabler for development but electricity access is still unobtainable for over 1 million people in developing countries. In Malawi, less than 12% of the population have access to grid electricity and in rural areas this is as low as 1%. Solar microgrids are emerging as a cost competitive, low carbon and reliable method for offering energy access in developing countries. This paper provides a summary of the process and key findings in assessing technical and financial feasibility of a solar microgrid in Malawi, including system design definition, business model discussion and sensitivity analysis of key parameters through techno-economic modelling. The novel approach developed utilises qualitative and quantitative information gathering and assessment in an iterative way to design a robust energy access solution in the most viable local location. The results show that the upper limit of the 'expected energy use' can be up to 5 times higher than the designed energy limit. Higher demand grids are shown to present c.20% lower levelised cost of energy for the cases considered and conversely, the 'low demand' grid case is shown to have c.48% higher levelised cost of energy. This represents a significant range of uncertainly in energy use prediction, which if not treated properly will adversely affect both energy access and microgrid business development. The research presented in this paper will address these challenges in the context of Malawi but is broadly applicable to other similar locations.