ANNUAL - The Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE)...Programme (2016 – 2018) at the 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lisbon, ARE is delighted to look back again at another

© Alliance for Rural Electrification

ANNUAL REPORT 2017

1

Phot

o cr

edits

- M

obis

ol

2017

ANNUALREPORT

Phot

o cr

edits

- So

laris

Offg

rid


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

2

Table of contents

Phot

o cr

edits

- M

obis

ol

Phot

o cr

edits

- RV

E. S

OL

1. Farewell from the President 3

2. Foreword by the Executive Director 4

3. ARE Key Achievements in 2017 and Way Forward for 2018 5

4. ARE Vision and Mission 9

5. Global Energy Access Policy and Business Situation 10

6. ARE Key Activities per Region 14

7. ARE Projects with (Commercial) Cooperation Partners 18

8. ARE Business Promotion and Marketing 21

9. ARE Governance and Organisation 22

10. ARE Membership Development 25

11. Testimonials from ARE Members 26

12. Annex 1: ARE Members List 28

13. Annex 2: ARE Financials 2017 33

14. Annex 3: Highlights of ARE Events 2017 34

15. Annex 4: Abbreviations List 36


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

3

1 Farewellfrom the President

The Alliance for Rural Electrification (2006 – 2018): A Bright Story

When I joined Isofoton in 2001, the main business of the company was rural electrification in developing countries. In reality, at that time this enterprise was almost the only business for all PV manufacturers in the world. Therefore, I joined the company to contribute to enlarge businesses through single PV modules that could so easily change the lives of people.

Four years after, in 2005 the situation was completely different: the feed-in tariff business became dominant – covering about 99% of the PV market and I was lucky to lead a successful company in a growing market.

And more importantly, I was President of the PV European Association and I had a very good friend, Michel Viaud that was the Secretary General of the European Photovoltaic Industry Association (EPIA; now Solar Power Europe (SPE). I shared with him the idea to establish a new association to promote rural electrification. He was enthusiastic and put a lot of energy to help me create the Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE) which we could officially launch in 2006 - Thank you, dear Michel!

In the very beginning, it was only set up as an association of associations located in the Renewable Energy House (REH),

in Brussels, but soon we understood that the companies had to be directly represented to give better guidance on what the private sector needs, and we therefore opened the Statutes to allow for full and associate Memberships.

There have been many supporters who have helped ARE to become what it is today, the leading global industry association as first point of contact for clean energy access technology and business solutions in Africa, Asia and Latin America. Out of the long list of gratitude and acknowledgements I would like to highlight the following persons: Firstly, Michel Viaud, who unfortunately died unexpectedly in December 2006, Christine Lins, who supported us in the REH, Paula Llamas, the first ARE Secretary General, followed by Guido Glania and Simon Rolland, who did a good job in difficult times and contributed to the development of ARE, and very importantly to Marcus Wiemann, ARE Executive Director, who fortunately joined ARE in February 2013. This year, he together with his team celebrate five years of leading ARE to the best position ever achieved. The off-grid industry relies on your expertise and looks forward to your continued commitment to the sector!

And I will never forget the many Member companies that made contributions, not only in terms of yearly fees, but working and contributing with their expertise and experiences in meetings, seminars and conferences all around the world. The list is too long but they all know.

Now, after more than 12 years as President of ARE, I can only express gratitude to everyone that has worked together with us to reach what I hope one day will be doable: Clean electricity for all. Shining a light for progress.

Phot

o cr

edits

- M

obis

ol

Phot

o cr

edits

- Ru

ral S

park

Ernesto MacíasARE President (2006 – 2018)


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

4

Marcus WiemannARE Executive Director (2013 – present)

Phot

o cr

edits

- H

ivos

2 Forewordby the Executive Director

Phot

o cr

edits

- M

obis

ol

Phot

o cr

edits

- A

ccio

na M

icro

ener

gia

Again, building on the refined 3-year Strategy and Work Programme (2016 – 2018) at the 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lisbon, ARE is delighted to look back again at another more successful year – in terms of profiling of the association, having a positive impact to the sector and Membership growth! The positive development was supported by its newly launched multi-stakeholder and governance approach comprising of four dimensions of ARE activities in Africa, Asia and Latin America in addition to knowledge sharing and promotion of ARE Members’ expertise:

• Policy dialogue & advocacy• Private sector cooperation & matchmaking• Capacity building & trainings • Finance access & funding

In acknowledgement of the impressive results achieved, we would like to thank all existing and new Members and Partners for their continued support so that ARE can continue to fill important gaps in the energy access landscape. In respect of its strong Membership base which stands at the forefront in terms of off-grid know-how investment power, ARE has been delighted that core topics addressed by the association in 2017 and earlier, notably topics such as the Productive Use of Renewable Energy (PURE) and Women Empowerment gained traction. These topics were addressed in the IEA World Energy Outlook 2017 and by SEforALL, with whom ARE could enter into a Proud Partnership in 2017.

To address the main challenges, in particular the need to create business-friendly conditions and to engage more effectively with local project developers, ARE is well placed with 38 companies of its membership based in Africa, Asia and Latin America. We are also seeing intensified cooperation and involvement from development finance organisations such as the African Development Bank (AfDB), the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), ElectriFI and OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) as well as the Agence Française de Développement (AFD), German Investment Corporation (KfW DEG), Proparco and Netherlands Development Organisation (SNV) to collaborate with ARE either through commercial partnership agreements or directly as Members.

We were also very happy that we could grow the footprint of ARE on energy access in close collaboration with our longstanding Partners: the Africa-EU Energy Partnership (AEEP) and the Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme (RECP). The AEEP and RECP are great working examples for establishing stable policy and private sector dialogue in Africa.

With this 12th Annual Report we would like to inform you about the work of ARE as the global industry association acting locally in Africa, Asia and Latin America and we hope that you will find the content interesting. More importantly, with the interest to further establish the clean-off-grid industry in the 21st century, we are always looking for Partners and Members who have the same level of passion and commitment as us to join ARE. Feel free to contact us and together we can work on electrifying the world with renewable energies and at affordable prices. The topic is too important – let’s not lose the momentum in a time where the world seems to become more and more divided!


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

5

3 ARE Key Achievementsin 2017 and Way Forward for 2018

The establishment of the Four Service Lines Concept from the refined 3-year Strategy and Work Programme (2016 – 2018) has led to another year of steep Membership growth (+ 44 totalling to 151). 2017 was a significant year for ARE and its followers:

• ARE Newsletter (+ 17,500 to 44,000 newsletter subscribers)• ARE website (+ 1,800 to 3,200 monthly visits)• ARE social media channels (+ 5,500 to 7,300 followers)

Thanks to the acknowledgement of SEforALL as Proud Partner, ARE has been in the position to grow its role as the global voice for the clean off-grid industry. The association has also been present on the ground in many target regions including Latin America (achieved one year earlier than scheduled) where we could develop some dedicated local activities. It is clear that the combination of both global leadership and advice and support on the local country level will pave the way of ARE in the future.

ARE global approach on bringing energy access

12

3

4

5 6

7

8

11

12

13

14

15 17

18 1920

21

22

16

1 - Lusaka (Zambia)2 - Lusaka (Zambia)3 - Addis Ababa (Ethiopia)4 - Dakar (Senegal)5 - Abidjan (Ivory Coast)6 - Abidjan (Ivory Coast)7 - Astana (Kazakhstan)

8 - Mumbai (India)9 - India10 - South and South-East Asia11 - São Paulo (Brazil) 12 - Panama City (Panama)13 - Tegucigalpa (Honduras)14 - Buenos Aires (Argentina)

15 - Lisbon (Portugal)16 - New York (United States of America) 17 - Rome (Italy)18 - Lille (France)19 - Munich (Germany)20 - Memmingen (Germany) 21 - Fuerteventura (Spain)22 - Brussels (Belgium)

9

10


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

6

Global Events & Activities

Africa

1 - Lusaka (Zambia): Sustainable Energy Southern Africa Forum of the Africa-EU Energy Partnership 31 Jan – 2 Feb 2017Participants: 230Achievements: Advocating for clean energy access in Southern Africa, business facilitationThematic focus: SEforALL goals & multi-stakeholder partnerships; market information

2 - Lusaka (Zambia): Training hosted by the Energy Access Work Stream of the AEEP 4-5 Sep 2017Participants: 50Achievements: Training on mini-grids to African rural electrification agencies; launch of tariff calculation toolbox1 by EUEI PDF; Young Leaders’ Call for Action2 Thematic focus: Mini-grid tariffs

3 - Addis Ababa (Ethiopia): Talking business: Microfinance for Decentralised Renewables in Africa 9 Oct 2017Participants: 40Achievements: Creating links between DRE and microfinance companies Thematic focus: Microfinance for decentralised renewables

4 - Dakar (Senegal): ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum 11-13 Oct 2017Participants: 70 Achievements: Launch of the Regional Off-Grid Electrification Project (ROGEP)Thematic focus: Funding and flanking measures for off-grid RE in the ECOWAS region

5 - Abidjan (Ivory Coast): ARE Board and Members Business Delegation Workshop with AfDB 23 Oct 2017Participants: 9 ARE MembersAchievements: Building better understanding of AfDB and ARE prioritiesThematic focus: Lessons learnt from the industry

6 - Abidjan (Ivory Coast): 6th EU-Africa Business Forum 27 Nov 2017Participants: 270Achievements: 10 years of the Africa-EU Energy Partnership (AEEP)Thematic focus: AEEP achievements; EU External Investment Plan3

Asia

7 - Astana (Kazakhstan): Renewable Energy and Quality of Life 14-15 Aug 2017Participants: 150Achievements: UN initiative on renewable energy for refugee campsThematic focus: Productive use; renewable energy and refugees

8 - Mumbai (India): Intersolar India 7 Dec 2017Participants: 75 Achievements: Indian off-grid sector dialogue Thematic focus: Energy access in India; policy; productive use of renewable energy; financing for off-grid renewable energy

9 - Webinar on Learnings from the Rockefeller Foundation’s Smart Power for Rural Development Programme in IndiaParticipants: 35Achievements: Sharing of best practices on mini-grids in IndiaThematic focus: Mini-grids in India; productive use

10 - Webinar on Support Schemes for Rural Electrification in South and South-East AsiaParticipants: 25Achievements: Overview of support schemes in India, Myanmar, Philippines, Cambodia and IndonesiaThematic focus: Mini-grids in India; productive use

1 http://www.euei-pdf.org/en/seads/capacity-building/renewable-energy-tariff-calculation-toolbox-for-ecowas 2 https://www.ruralelec.org/news-from-are/young-leaders-issue-call-action-african-rural-electrification-agencies

3 https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/eu-external-investment-plan-factsheet_en


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

7

Latin America

11 - São Paulo (Brazil): ARE Off-Grid Workshop at Intersolar South America 22 Aug 2017Participants: 70Achievements: First ARE-led event in LACThematic focus: Innovative business models

12 - Panama City (Panama): Off-grid Energy for Rural Development in Latin America and the Caribbean 2 May 2017Participants / Achievements: 40 Thematic focus: Productive use; rural electrification subsidies; reliable technologies

13 - Tegucigalpa (Honduras): IDB workshop: Mejores Prácticas en Programas de Acceso a Servicios Modernos de Energía 6 Jun 2017Participants / Achievements: 70 Thematic focus: Productive use

14 - Buenos Aires (Argentine): 2nd Latin American Energy Week 6 Dec 2017Participants: 200Achievements: New ARE Publication: “Access to Energy Services through Renewable Sources in Latin America & the Caribbean”Thematic focus: Productive use

Europe & North America

15 - Lisbon (Portugal): ARE Energy Access Investment Forum 21-23 Mar 2017Participants: 300 Achievements: 500 B2B Meetings; Young Leaders in Energy Access Awards; ARE Awards 2017; Call for Action of Young Leaders in Energy Access; ARE-ENERGIA Position Paper: Women and Sustainable Energy; consulting offered by ARE Partner Vlerick Business SchoolThematic focus: Innovative business models; gender balance; youth career development

16 - New York (United States of America): SEforALL Forum 3-5 Apr 2017Participants: 1,000Achievements: Launch of the new SEforAll Global Tracking Framework and the HIVOS communique ‘Joining forces to accelerate energy access’, to which ARE contributed; launch of the Microgrid Investment Accelerator; Power4All’s Decentralised Renewables: From Promise to ProgressThematic focus: Global progress on energy access and new initiatives

17 - Rome (Italy): RES4MED Annual Conference: Innovation as the key enabler to power Africa 22 May 2017Participants: 120 Achievements: ARE signed MoU with RES4MED to cooperate and develop joint activities such as policy and business dialogues, knowledge and network exchange, capacity building & training, and outreach activities Thematic focus: Innovative business models

18 - Lille (France): Seminar for approved projects 1 Jun 2017Participants: 80Achievements: Launch of the project Low Carbon Off-grid Communities (LOGiC) focusing on renewable energy based microgrids for EU islandsThematic focus: Micro/mini-grids; productive use

19 - Munich (Germany): Off-Grid Power Conference at Intersolar Europe 31 May – 2 Jun 2017Participants: 60 Achievements: ARE-Intersolar PartnershipThematic focus: Solar PV; mini-grids trends; off-grid technologies

20 - Memmingen (Germany): Off-Grid Experts Workshop 28-29 Sep 2017Participants: 400 Achievements: Phaesun Awards; ARE-Stimulus Training on customer-orientation for practitioners Thematic focus: Productive use


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

8

21 - Fuerteventura (Spain): Africagua 6-7 Nov 2017Participants: 200Achievements: 2 ARE Board Members showcased ARE expertise Thematic focus: Water and energy

22 - Brussels (Belgium): High-level Conference on Africa 22 Nov 2017Participants: 600Achievements: Considered as only business association as speakerThematic focus: Productive use, capacity building, youth career development

Phot

o cr

edits

- A

ccio

na M

icro

ener

gia


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

9

4 ARE Vision and MissionOur VisionThe vision of ARE is that by 2030 everyone in the world and in particular all rural people in low-and medium income countries should have access to affordable, secure and clean energy and energy services.

Our MissionARE, who represents the decentralised clean energy sector with Members along the whole value chain, was founded in 2006 to act as a solution provider in order to advance access to clean energy and energy services in developing and emerging countries. As Proud Partner of SEforALL, ARE collaborates with SEforALL through specifically tailored interventions which lie on the critical path as identified by the Global Tracking Framework (2017).

ARE mobilises and unites all private sector players and Partners who are passionate and committed to improve regional socio-economic development and quality of life of individuals with the provision of electricity.

By bringing together the off-grid sector, ARE is there to assist decision-makers from both, private and public sector, by:

• Providing key policy, technical and financial recommendations to develop and to incentivise business enabling markets and framework conditions that will allow for higher investments into self-sustainable and business-driven rural electrification markets;

• Sharing best practices in order to enable interested players by making use of lessons learnt and thereby engage more effectively in project implementation and deployment as well as into operations and the management of commercially viable business models;

• Acting as a global matchmaking platform for B2B and B2Finance with the purpose to direct and to increase available funding and financing so that rural electrification technologies can be rolled out in a systematic manner;

• Bringing Members into a more competitive position to successfully grow their businesses on the international level.

ARE strongly believes that with the appropriate mix of instruments and better coordination of existing and planned initiatives of engaged stakeholder groups, it will be possible to mature and commercialise rural electrification markets so that future investments will achieve adequate risk returns!

In this regard and given that Members come from all continents representing over 30 countries and are active in almost every single country in the world4, ARE is constantly looking for:

• new projects and business opportunities which its Members with and without further technical, financial or training support can turn into energy access results on the ground;

• new Members and strong Partners to increase mutual understanding of roles and activities exchange and interaction amongst with a vested interest.

Phot

o cr

edits

- RE

CP

4 https://www.ruralelec.org/matchmaking-platform

https://www.ruralelec.org/matchmaking-platform


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

10

5 Global Energy Access Policy and Business Situation

According to the BP Energy Outlook 2018 economic growth and energy consumption will further decouple in the future. It is expected that global GDP will more than double until 2040, but energy consumption will increase by only 35%. Over the next decades the energy mix will be more diversified than ever before, and renewables will be by far the fastest-growing fuel source, increasing five-fold and providing around 14% of primary energy. However, the growth of renewables will still be too low to keep up with the additional energy demand which will be driven higher by a third mainly by developing economies. While fossil and nuclear energies will provide for 60% of the additional energy demand, renewables will only cover 40%.

According to the IEA Energy Access Outlook 2017, 1.1 billion people remain without electricity in 2016, 84% of which live in rural areas. Efforts to promote electricity access are having a positive impact in all regions, but progress remains slow as it is estimated that 674 million people will still not have access by 2030.

Phot

o cr

edits

- Be

noo

Ener

gies

Africa

North Africa

Central Africa

East Africa

South Africa

Other Southern Africa

West Africa

Developing Asia

China

India

Indonesia

Other Southeast Asia

Other developing Asia

Central & South America

Middle East

World

2000 2016 2030

New PoliciesScenario

million % million % million %532

14

73

164

15

108

158

1059

18

600

99

100

242

56

15

1672

66%

10%

90%

90%

34%

86%

67%

33%

1%

57%

47%

33%

68%

13%

9%

27%

588

0

98

172

8

135

175

439

0

239

23

42

135

17

17

1060

48%

0%

75%

61%

14%

69%

48%

11%

0%

18%

9%

11%

27%

3%

7%

14%

602

0

122

135

1

156

188

54

0

0

0

2

52

4

14

674

36%

0%

63%

34%

1%

55%

36%

1%

0%

0%

0%

<1%

9%

1%

5%

8%

Source: IEA Energy Access Report 20175

5 https://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/WEO2017SpecialReport_EnergyAccessOutlook.pdf, pg 49


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

11

To bridge this gap, additional focus will have to be given to off-grid solutions such as mini-grids and stand-alone solutions, which can deliver up to 60% of the new connections (IRENA, 20176) needed to achieve Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 and are often the more competitive solution in remote, rural and isolated areas of emerging countries.

Providing electricity for all by 2030 would require annual investment of USD 52 billion per year, more than twice the level mobilised under current and planned policies. Of the additional investment, 95% needs to be directed to sub-Saharan Africa (IEA, 2017).

Additional key market drivers include:

• A large market to replace diesel generators with renewable energy (currently there are approximately 400 GW in operation, either in the form of industrial facilities and mines operating remotely, as back-up units where electricity supply is unreliable or as community mini-grids (IRENA, 20157);

• Economic growth in emerging and developing markets (World Bank, 20168);

• Population growth, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa will increase the energy demand. In 2013, the IEA estimated that the number of people without access to electricity in 2040 in Sub-Saharan Africa would reach 530 million (IEA, 20139);

• Strongly falling technology costs;• Money flows into the market: USD 9 billion invested

Source: Microgrid Investment Accelerator (MiA), 2017

in electrification to enable universal access to modern energy services in 2012. Since then, many new public, private and philanthropic financial initiatives have been launched, as appears from the Mapping of Clean Energy Mini-Grid Support Providers and Programmes done by the SEforALL High Impact Opportunity on Clean Energy Mini-Grids (HIO CEMG10), the African-EU Energy Partnership’s (AEEP) mapping of energy initiatives in Africa and the African-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme’s (RECP) Funding Database; (SEforALL, 201511);

• Increased uptake of successful business models, e.g. Pay as You Go (PAYG) and Fee for service (FFS) partnerships with telecom operators and social services to roll out electricity supply in parallel, distribution approaches involving kiosks selling electricity, but also FMCG, internet etc;

• Increasing demand of rural households to make use of electricity-fed appliances during the day (e.g. fridges, cook stoves, TV, mobile phones etc.) and at night (e.g. lighting) as well as of local companies who use electricity for industrial/ processing purposes and providing services.

Sub-Saharan Africa

The largest energy access gap is still in Sub-Saharan Africa, where 43% of the population now has access to electricity. 26 million people gained access annually since 2012, an almost tripling of the rate seen between 2000 and 2012. Despite the promising signs, energy access efforts still struggle to keep up with population growth (electrification efforts outpaced population growth for the first time in 2014, leading to a decline in the number of people without access since then (IEA, 2017). Out of the 674 million people projected to be without energy in 2030, it is estimated that 600 million will be in Africa.

It is therefore imperative that more attention is given to off-grid solutions in Africa. A number of international initiatives, which could help address increase energy access, are in the pipeline:

One such initiative is the Regional Off-Grid Electrification Project12 (ROGEP) launched in Dakar in October 2017 which aims to increase access to sustainable electricity services

6 http://www.irena.org/DocumentDownloads/Publications/IRENA_REthinking_Energy_2017.pdf, pg 147 http://www.irena.org/DocumentDownloads/Publications/IRENA_Off-grid_Renewable_Systems_WP_2015.pdf 8 http://www.worldbank.org/en/news/press-release/2016/01/06/anemic-recovery-in-emerging-markets-to-weigh-heavily-on-global-growth-in-2016 9 http://www.iea.org/publications/freepublications/publication/WEO2013.pdf10 http://www.se4all.org/hio_clean-energy-mini-grids 11 http://www.se4all.org/sites/default/files/GTF-2105-Full-Report.pdf 12 http://www.ecreee.org/news/ecowas-launches-preparation-regional-grid-electrification-project-rogep

Estimated source of additional generation required to achieveuniversal electricity access by 2030 (by region)

Stand-alone Mini-grid On-grid

AFRICA

17%

40%

42%LATIN

AMERICA

10%

30%60%

DEVELOPING

ASIA

19%

44%

37%


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

12

in the ECOWAS region. The initial budget for the project is estimated at USD 200 million and will cover all 15 ECOWAS member States and Mauritania, Chad, Central African Republic and Cameroon. The project will entail technical assistance to improve off-grid market ecosystem, including creating the conducive environment for private investments. The project will also support financial intermediaries to finance service providers to electrify households and commercial enterprises including the establishment of a credit facility for private sector solar enterprises to develop the market for off-grid electricity products and services in the project countries.

A second key example is the External Investment Plan13 (EIP) of the European Union, which was adopted in September 2017 to help boost investment in partner countries in Africa. It aims to contribute to the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals14 (SDG) while tackling some of the root causes of migration; and to mobilise and leverage sustainable public and private investments to improve economic and social development with a particular focus on decent job creation.

The EIP also supports partner countries by mobilising finance through the European Fund for Sustainable Development; providing technical assistance to help prepare investment projects, and by developing a favourable investment climate and business environment.

A third example is the “New Deal for Energy in Africa15 ” launched by AfDB, which is a partnership-driven effort with the aspirational goal of achieving universal access to energy in Africa by 2025. As part of efforts of the AfDB to bring energy access to Africa, the developing bank has also launched the “Facility for Energy Inclusion16”. The facility will be focused on providing senior and mezzanine debt financing to small scale projects (on-grid, mini-grid and off-grid) with total costs less than USD 30 million and to distributed energy companies and other entities focused on off-grid energy solutions. The facility will seek,

through a stream-lined platform, to alleviate the barrier of high transaction costs faced by small scale projects and increase the flow of capital to the energy sector. While playing a catalytic role, the facility will also seek to operate on a commercial basis.

Asia-Pacific

Between 2012 and 2014, according to the IEA, an estimated 93.1 million people in Asia and the Pacific gained access to electricity as the population grew by 83.8 million. The regional rate of electrification rose to 90.3%, up from 89.8% in 2012, though national rates varied widely. Despite impressive growth rates, the figures mask that there is still a large rural population in the most remote areas of the continent that remain without energy access.

In South-East Asia, 65 million people remain without electricity access and millions more only have access to poor quality connections, relying on costly and polluting diesel generators to meet demand (IEA, 2017). Of those currently without access, over 95% live in four countries: Indonesia (23 million people), Philippines (11 million), Myanmar (22 million) and Cambodia (6 million).

In South Asia, despite impressive strides, India still has a staggering 239 million people without electricity access. Half a billion people in India have gained access to electricity since 2000, with electricity now reaching 82% of the population, up from 43% in 2000 (IEA, 2017). Building upon the impressive progressive made, the plans of the India government to spend an additional USD 2.5 billion on rural electrification, announcing that it aims to reach 100% household electrification by end of 2018, via the Saubhaya Scheme (BNEF, 201717 ).

However, a recent report from the Clean Energy Access Network (CLEAN) clarified that at the current rate of household electrification it would take more than 20 years

13 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/external-investment-plan/what-eus-external-investment-plan_en 14 https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/policies/sustainable-development-goals_en15 https://www.afdb.org/en/the-high-5/light-up-and-power-africa-%E2%80%93-a-new-deal-on-energy-for-africa/ 16 https://www.afdb.org/en/projects-and-operations/project-portfolio/p-z1-f00-063/ 17 https://about.bnef.com/blog/4q-2017-frontier-power-market-outlook/

Source: Bloomberg New Energy Finance, GARV portal.

Million households electrified

In order to achieve 100% household electrification by 2018, 3.3 million

households will have to be provided electricity connection every month

from November 2017

0.03 0.030.03 0.03

0.03

0.030.03 0.03 0.03

0.03

3.3

Jan-17 Feb-17 Mar-17 Apr-17 May-17 Jun-17 Jul-17 Aug-17 Sep-17 Oct-17 Nov-17onwards

Status quo of energy access in India


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

13

to electrify the remaining households in India and that the vast majority of new connections come from grid extension. To scale up the rate of electrification and reach last mile consumers in India, more consideration will have to be given to decentralised renewable energy solutions such as mini-grids and stand-alone systems (CLEAN, 2017).

Latin America

Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) may be the first developing region to achieve universal access to electricity. Statistics indicate that electricity coverage in the region is at present at about 97%. However, this means that some 22 million people – about six million households – still lack

Phot

o cr

edits

- ec

olig

o

service, most of live in isolated communities far from the grid and in difficult terrain.

Providing electricity access to these people requires solutions based on an evaluation of factors such as technology, environmental and social context, economic viability and a cost-benefit analysis, and requires the mutual collaboration of both the public and private sectors.

The IDB delivered a high-level analysis which estimated that about 60% of the electricity access deficit in LAC could be resolved with urban and rural grid extensions and the remainder via off-grid solutions. About 30% of the off-grid solutions could be in the form of mini-grids and the rest would rely on individual systems.

“ARE is focused on the one of the most important issues in our pledge to “leave no one behind” – a pledge made in both signing the SDGs and the Paris Agreement. Securing access to reliable,

affordable and clean energy for rural, low income communities – the largest part of the more than 1 billion people without access to sustainable energy is a critical component

of living up to that pledge. By joining the SEforALL partnership network, ARE brings their leadership to a movement that is focused on going further, faster – together.”

Rachel KyteSpecial Representative of the UN Secretary-General & CEO

SEforALL


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

14

ARE undertook a great number of activities in 2017 to help to achieve clean energy access and support the decentralised renewable energy sector on a global and on a regional level.

Firstly, as a hub for the sharing of knowledge and recommendations, ARE has not only been asked for advice from relevant bodies and actors in the sector but also participated through its Board, Members and Secretariat (via committees, working groups, conferences and workshops) to provide added value to discussions based on professional private sector experience and lessons learnt (see overview in Annex 3).

This knowledge has also been used in top global off-grid publications including the International Energy Agency World Future Energy Outlook, the SEforALL Global Tracking Framework, Climatescope and the REN21 Global Status Report. Secondly and more specifically, ARE was active in Africa, Asia and Latin America along the following four focus areas in addition to knowledge sharing and promotion of ARE Members’ expertise:

• Policy dialogue & advocacy

• Private sector cooperation & matchmaking

• Capacity building & trainings

• Finance access & funding

How ARE tackled challenges in Africa?

The ARE Sub-Working Group (WG) Policy & Business Development Africa, represented by 20 Members from

Africa and with 95% being active in the continent, is ARE’s biggest Working Group coordinated by David Lecoque, Policy and Business Development Manager. In consultation with those Board Members with the highest interest in Africa (FRES, ABB, RVE.SOL, EDP and Practical Action)

the Members of the WG were regularly informed about upcoming activities and possibilities for engagement and contributions.

6 ARE Key Activities per Region

1. Policy Dialogue & Advocacy

As the leading global industry association for decentralised renewables in emerging countries, ARE strongly advocated on behalf of the sector and brought in fresh thinking to solve the energy access puzzle, by working together with all major stakeholders such as SEforALL, the European Union, the African Union, Development Finance Institutions (DFIs) and other relevant players.

In particular, ARE worked together with the Africa-EU Energy Partnership (AEEP) and led its Energy Access Workstream (EA WS) which was initiated in April 2016. This workstream, consisting of the African Association for Rural Electrification – CLUB ER (public sector), Practical Action (NGO/CSO), Strathmore University (Academia) and ARE (private sector), supported by the AEEP Secretariat, has the mandate to close the communication and knowledge gaps between the public, private, NGO and academic sector, to promote business and technology solutions to effectively tackle energy access, to raise public interest for clean energy access as a topic and to contribute to the SEforALL and SDG 7 processes on energy access.

Highlights of the AEEP EA WS activities in 2017:

• Webinar on the role of distributed energy solutions in enabling and promoting enterprise development in sub-Saharan Africa co-organised with AEEP, Clean Energy Solutions Center, United Nations Foundation’s Energy Access Practitioner Network and ARE, to kick off a new Practitioner Network webinar series to share best practices in different geographic and thematic contexts on 17 Jan 2017;

• Sustainable Energy Southern Africa Forum / Multi-stakeholder Forum on Sustainable Energy (including site visits) in Lusaka (Zambia) on 1-2 February 2017;

• Young Leaders in Energy Access Awards with six out of 300+ applicants being awarded to present their Call for Action at the 3rd ARE Energy Access Investment Forum in Lisbon (Portugal) on 22-23 March 2017;

• Training on mini-grid tariff setting for 17 African Rural Electrification Agencies in Lusaka (Zambia) on 4-5


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

15

September 2017, leading to a greater understanding of the roles, experiences and contributions of REAs, rural electrification policy approaches and experiences as well as mini-grid pricing models and tariff calculation;

• Active participations at the High-Level Conference: Towards a Renewed Partnership with Africa in Brussels (Belgium) on 22 November 2017 followed by the 6th EU-Africa Business Forum / EU-AU Summit in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) on 27 November 2017.

2. Private Sector Cooperation

As the first point of contact for questions around decentralised renewable energy solutions in emerging markets, ARE was again the natural partner for the public sector who has shown a stronger interest to collaborate with the private sector in the planning stages for future legislation and financing initiatives. Indeed, policies, regulations, financial instruments and community-development initiatives have a greater impact when the experiences of actors who deliver projects on the ground are considered in their design and implementation.

In this vein, ARE worked closely together with the Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme (RECP). This longstanding collaboration is centered on three key activities, namely:

• ARE acting as a conduit for exchange and market intelligence between the RECP and the decentralised RE sector;

• organising information and mobilisation workshops; and• developing business matchmaking events.

Highlights of ARE-RECP activities in 2017:

• “Market Information Day - Business Opportunities for Decentralised Renewables in Southern Africa” at the AEEP Sustainable Energy Southern Africa Forum in Lusaka (Zambia) on 31 January 2017;

• B2B Off-grid Matchmaking as part of the 3rd ARE Energy Access Investment Forum”in Lisbon (Portugal), on 23 March 2017; and

• Interaction and supporting activities with renewable energy business associations.

3. Capacity Building & Training

During 2017 ARE has been intensively working to establish a training course on rural electrification where over 1-2 days,

interested persons and organisations, either from public or private/civil society sector can learn about the key essentials on how to develop and to implement sustainable renewable energy access projects in rural areas. Also training packages on successful ways for de-risking are available for interested stakeholders from the (developing) finance sector.

Highlights of ARE activities in 2017:

• Renewable Energy Bootcamp for business students of Vlerick Business School linked to 3rd ARE Energy Access Investment Forum in Brussels (Belgium) on 21-23 March 2017.

4. Access to Finance & Funding

As part of its continuous advice to DFIs on how to best engage with the off-grid market, which is characterised by small to medium scale investments, ARE has been very active to get more closely involved with the (development) finance sector and thereby in its efforts to close another important gap which is hindering upscaling. In addition to established schemes within and outside the association such as the 1st Call for Proposals of OFID and ARE (one mini-grid to be installed in Mali by ARE Member Access S.A.R.L.; see chapter 8), ElectriFI of the European Commission or Green Mini-Grid Market Development Programme of the African Development Bank (AfDB), ARE has a growing interest to establish this needed exchange on better project finance for the benefit of its Members. As a result, it is nice to notice that based on strengthened working relationships leading financiers, notably the AFD, KfW DEG, Proparco and SNV, have joined ARE as Members which should offer a fruitful ground for foresighted common plannings.


• ARE Business Delegation to the African Development Bank in Abidjan (Ivory Coast) on 23 October 2018 (led to a common roadmap of activities of common interest from 2018 onwards);

• Invite to ARE by ECREEE and World Bank to support with the new implementation of their Regional Off Grid Electrification Project (ROGEP) programme launched in Dakar (Senegal) on 11-13 October 2017; and

• Workshop “Talking business: Microfinance for Decentralised Renewables in Africa” to support the African Microfinance Week (SAM) organised by ARE Member Appui au Développement Autonome (ADA) in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) on 9 October 2017.


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

16

How ARE tackled challenges in Asia

The ARE Sub-Working Group Policy & Business Development Asia with 18 Members from Asia and 55% with interest in the continent is the second biggest Working Group of ARE coordinated by Jens Jaeger, Policy and Business Development Officer.

1. Policy Dialogue & Advocacy

Thanks to ARE Board Member and Working Group Chair Katarina Hasbani based in Singapore, ARE was present at numerous events in the region (see Annex 3) and thereby to considerably grow its network and more importantly learnt how ARE can use its expertise to help on energy access. As a result, based on constructive exchanges with governments and donors, ARE is hopeful to take the lead on a number of activities in 2018.

Highlights of the ARE activities in 2017:

• Asia Clean Energy Forum in Manila (Philippines) on 5-9 June 2017, where ARE contributed with its views both on productive use of renewable energies for off-grid projects and on improving conditions for energy access start-ups in Asia;

• Renewable Energy and Quality of Life in Astana (Kazakhstan) on 14-15 August 2017, where ARE moderated a session on productive use & rural development and contributed to a high-level dialogue with Infrastructure Development Company Limited (IDCOL, Bangladesh), International Energy Agency (IEA), International Labor Organisation (ILO), International Organization for Migration (IOM) on renewable energy quality of life and refugees; and

• Solar & Off-grid Renewables South-East Asia in Bangkok (Thailand) on 20-21 November 2017, where ARE contributed to high level discussions on how to advance the microgrid market in South-East Asia and which lessons could be learnt from off-grid projects in Africa.

2. Private Sector Cooperation

In 2017 ARE significantly increased its activities in uniting private sector players from or interested in the Asian off-grid sector. As typically done in other regions of the world, ARE worked together

with local Partners to increase the impact of its activities.


• World Future Energy Summit in Abu Dhabi (UAE) on 16-19 January 2017 where the Middle East Solar Industry Association (MESIA) and ARE signed an MoU to increase renewable energy for energy access purposes and economic development in the Middle East; and

• ARE Off-Grid Workshop at Intersolar India in Mumbai (India) on 7 December 2017, where ARE gathered more than 75 private sector stakeholders in the Indian off-grid renewable energy to discuss market and policy conditions, business opportunities, cross-sector cooperation, standards as well as to showcase financial and technical instruments supporting rural electrification projects in India and South Asia.

3. Capacity Building & Training

During 2017, ARE has been intensively working to establish a training course on rural electrification where over 1-2 days, interested persons and organisations, either from public or private/civil society sector can learn about the key essentials on how to successfully develop and to implement sustainable renewable energy access projects in rural areas. Also, training packages on successful ways for de-risking are available for interested stakeholders from the (developing) finance sector.

4. Access to Finance & Funding

In 2017, ARE has become a Partner of the Energy for All partnership of the ADB, to strengthen investments in energy access in Asia and in particular South-East Asia. Via the Energy for All partnership, ARE Members can also promote their case studies on a sub-section of the website dedicated to sharing best practices on off-grid solutions. With regards to the above mentioned 1st CfP of OFID and two ARE Members (Rahimafrooz and Mlinda Foundation) implement two mini-grid projects, in Bangladesh and India respectively (please see Chapter 8: “OFID – ARE Cooperation”).


• ARE Webinar on “Learnings from the Rockefeller Foundation’s Smart Power for Rural Development Programme in India” on 4 May 2017, focused on best practices as well as policy for mini-grids in India; and

• ARE Webinar on support schemes for rural electrification in South- and South-East Asia supported by ARE Member Rural Spark, where in particular policies and financial support schemes for mini-grids and stand-alone solutions in Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Myanmar and the Philippines were shared.


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

17

How ARE tackled challenges in Latin America and the Carribean?

The ARE Sub-Working Group Policy & Business Development Latin America was originally planned to start in 2019, but as a result of growing confidence and common goals with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), ARE could already start its first activities in the continent half a year earlier. The work of ARE, which aimed to support one

Member from Chile and about 25 Member with interest in the region, was coordinated by Marcus Wiemann, Executive Director of ARE, in close exchange with ARE Board Member Karl Kolmsee from Smart Hydro Power acting as chair of the Working Group. Also here, ARE could perform a number of activities around policy dialogue, private sector cooperation, capacity building & training as well as access to finance & funding.


• ARE Off-Grid Workshop at Intersolar South America in São Paulo (Brazil) on 22 August 2017 where with the help of moderator Unai Arrieta (ARE Member TTA) about 70 participants discussed ways to better facilitate the implementation of innovative business models in Latin America;

• 2nd Energy Week for Latin America and the Caribbean in Buenos Aires on 4-7 December 2017 where was ARE invited to share its experiences in- and outside the continent in the high-level session;

• Launch of new ARE Publication: “Access to Energy Services through Renewable Sources in Latin America & the Caribbean” (publication in Spanish language planned for 1st half 2018); and

• ARE Training to Energy Access Team of IDB in Washington on 12-13 December 2017 (rescheduled for 12-13 February 2018 because of inappropriate weather conditions for travelling).

Latin America: 2017 marks the year the private sector becomes a more active player in rural electrification

As a Member of the ARE Board and active as Chair of the ARE Sub-Working Group Policy & Business Development responsible for Latin America, I had the pleasure to support activities carried out by ARE in the region. 2017 was as important for positioning of ARE as for rural electrification in Latin America itself.

While the private sector is strong in initiating and implementing all kind of projects with or without the help of national governments in Africa, rural electrification in Latin America is mainly taken forward by the national governments – the private sector is barely visible unless undertaken by Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) projects. One obvious reason for this difference is that the electrification rate in most Latin American countries is well above 90% which limits the market for rural electrification. Rural electrification in Latin America has traditionally focused on satisfying the basic needs of an underprivileged rural minority as part of its national task.

Two conferences in 2017 somehow set a different scene. In May 2017, the global Smart Village initiative held their all Latin American workshop and in June 2017, IDB invited ARE to discuss best practices in rural electrification and energy access. In both conferences, managers from private for-profit companies met with representatives of governments and supra-national institutions and compared experiences and benchmarked best practices. One result was, that rural areas in Latin America no longer only provided natural resources to be processed in the cities. Electrification and the employment of other utilities like communication, transport and potable water can also facilitate even in most remote areas productivity gains for the good of the local population, the countries and (given lower transport volumes) the natural environment. This new focus on smart business models for rural electrification that goes well beyond the basic need satisfaction does and will open more the stage for a new cooperation between politics and private sector and becomes supra-national: innovation arises from knowledge of best practices and local markets (like in the Amazon area) often work by crossing national borders.

Karl KolmseeARE Board Member (2015-2018)


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

18

Given the main interest of ARE to develop immature markets towards commercialisation it is the particular interest here to highlight in particular results achieved with commercial Partners of ARE. With regards to the Africa-EU Energy Partnership (AEEP) and the Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Programme (RECP) please kindly see section ‘How ARE tackled challenges in Africa’ (pg 14). For the cooperation with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) please look at section ‘How ARE tackled challenges in Latin America and the Caribbean’ (pg 17).

Intersolar - ARE PartnershipBased on the common positive experience made during two Off-grid Power Fora at Intersolar Europe in Munich in 2015 and 2016, Intersolar and ARE agreed to work in two more continents in 2017:

While the 2-day Off-Grid Power Conference 2017 powered by Members of the Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft (BSW) and ARE – and supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) - at Intersolar Europe in Munich on 31 May to 1 June 2017 enjoyed again high attention with over 450 participants, ARE was happy to see similar promising results with 70 guests at Intersolar South America in Sao Paulo on 22 August 2017 with a

7 ARE Projects with (Commercial) Cooperation Partners

keynote speech on the outlook on renewable off-grid energy in Latin America by IDB and moderation by ARE Member Unai Arrieta from TTA and with also 70 attendees Intersolar India in Mumbai on 7 December 2017 with keynotes from GE Power and Smart Power India and constructive discussions on how again to raise more attention for off-grid solutions.

LOGiC – ARE PartnershipIn respect of the growing internationalisation of the off-grid sector and in the belief that profound technology and know-exchange between low and medium to high income countries is crucial to effectively contribute to SEforALL and its targets, ARE joined a consortium led by North-Holland-North (NHN) to support the Low Carbon Off-grid Communities (LOGiC) project as Communications Partner.

The objective of the project (60%-funded by Interreg North-West Europe) is to develop a standardised model for renewables-based decentral hybrid energy systems (DHES) for scaling up the use of decentralised renewables on islands and in remote areas. These are the three areas in NWE act as pilot locations for the hybrid systems which combine renewable energy sources such as tidal, wind and solar PV as well as batteries: Meckenbach (Germany), Orkney Islands (United Kingdom) and Texel (the Netherlands).

“We are proud to partner with the ARE on solar off-grid topics. This year’s Off-Grid Power Conference in Munich was a great success for all partners. We are

looking forward to the next editions in São Paulo and Mumbai to enhance our fruitful partnership in the future.”

Florian WessendorfManaging Director

Solar Promotion International GmbH (Intersolar)


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

19

OFID – ARE CooperationARE was awarded grant funding of USD 990,000 by OFID in July 2015 , to provide de-risking mechanisms for business ventures to facilitate the deployment of hybrid energy mini-grids for affordable and sustainable energy services.

Following a call for proposals, the ARE Executive Evaluation Committee selected four projects to implement hybrid mini-grid systems:

• In Bangladesh, Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy Ltd will install a hybrid mini-grid that includes a 80 kWp PV plant and a 40

kW diesel genset in the Island of Muradpur, benefiting 310 households (1,430 people) and 40 productive users.

• In Jharkhand, India, Association Mlinda will install hybrid mini-grids in 3 rural villages (Narotoli, Shahitoli and Pasanga), each comprising of a 20-kWp of renewable energy plant and a 12-kW diesel genset. It is foreseen that a total of 319 households will gain access to affordable, quality and sustainable energy services over a ten-year period; 41 existing market-based micro-businesses will increase their income and more generally, create possibilities for productive use (beyond markets) and 46 direct and indirect jobs will be created within local communities.

• In Blendio, in the Sikasso Region of southern Mali, ACCESS S.A.R.L. will install a hybrid mini-grid that includes a 32 kWp PV plant and a 68 kW diesel genset, serving 300 households and 40 productive users.

• In Mozambique, in the village of Titimane, Energias de Portugal, S.A. will install a PV/biomass hybrid mini-grid with a generating capacity of 100 kWp PV and 60 kW biomass gasification. 900 households, 33 productive users 3

community buildings will have access to electricity.

The completion of the grant contract with OFID is planned for spring 2018. The report with lessons learnt will be shared after completion.

“The Alliance has proved to be a helpful partner to help us access funding through OFID to enable us to electrify hundreds of homes and small businesses in remote areas of rural

India.”

Rebecca SymingtonExecutive Director

Mlinda Charitable Trust


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

20

AFDB – The African Development BankGMG market development program

European CommissionElectriFI

GIZ - Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit

Risk Mitigation Study together with HNUCEMG HIO - Mapping Exercise

IRENA - International Renewable Energy AgencyMarketplace

Project NavigatorOFID - The OPEC Fund for International Development

Clean Energy Mini-gridsRECP - Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation

ProgramFinance Catalyst

Rockefeller FoundationCEMG HIO - Mapping Exercise

Berkeley University, RAEL - Renewable & Appropriate Energy Laboratory

Colombia Off-grid Market StudyPeru Off-grid Market Study

Bloomberg/ClimatescopeBloomberg New Energy Finance

Cambridge & Oxford UniversitySmart Villages initiative

DevelopmentAidBusiness Intelligence Development

IEA – International Energy AgencyWorld Energy Outlook

REN 21 - Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century

Global Status ReportMini-grid Policy Toolkit

SAIRECUSAID

Hybrid Mini-grids StudyUNF – United Nations Foundation

Energy Practitioners Network

POLICY & REGULATION PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION Raising Awareness

OVERVIEW OF ARE PARTNERSHIPS (Established from 2013-2017)

Investment & Finance

AEEP - African EU Energy PartnershipCustodian Workstream Energy Access

Productive Use of Renewable Energy in AfricaCLUB-ER - Club des Agences et Structures Nationales en

charge de l’Electrification RuraleRural Electrification in Africa

DFID – UK Department for International DevelopmentUK Africa Campaign Launch

EUEI PDF - EU Energy Initiative Partnership Dialogue FacilityMini-grid Policy Toolkit

IRENA - International Renewable Energy AgencyCoalition of Action

Policies & Regulations for Private Sector Renewable Energy Mini-gridsPower For All

Energy Sector Working GroupRECP - Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation Program

Mini-grid Policy ToolkitSEforALL – Sustainable Energy for All

Clean Energy Mini-grids High Impact OpportunityGlobal Tracking Framework: Progress Towards Sustainable Energy 2017

Asian Development BankEnergy for All

ALER - Assosciao Lusofona de Energias RenovaisDecentralised renewable energy solutions in Portuguese-speaking

developing and emerging countries EBTC – European Business and Technology Centre

India Off-grid Market StudyTechnology Transfer, India

Inter-American Development BankInnovative Business Models for Clean Energy Access in Latin America

Intersolar, BSW & OttiOff-Grid Forum

IRENA - International Renewable Energy AgencyIOREC

GESA - Global Energy Storage AllianceAdvance education, collaboration, knowledge

GOGLA – Global Off-Grid Lighting AssociationPromotion of the use of off-grid lighting applications

IEC – International ElectrotechnicalStandards

AFSEC - Standards for Rural Electrification in AfricaCollaboration Pledge

MESIA - Middle East Solar Industry AssociationPromotion of solar power in the UAE

RECP - Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation ProgramPrivate Sector Cooperation Partner & Stakeholder mobilisation partner

RES4MED - Renewable Energy Solutions for the Mediterranean

Decentralised renewable energy promotion in MENA and Sub-Saharan African countries

T9 – International Energy Agency Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme Task 9

IEA-PVPS T9Information Exchange

Market Access & Technology Transfer Market InformationPRIVATE SECTOR COOPERATION CAPACITY BUILDING


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

21

8 ARE Business Promotion & Marketing In 2017 ARE initiated a new Working Group on Business

Promotion and Marketing so that based on closer exchanges with its Membership the associations can better serve the needs of the individual Members as well as of the whole industry. On 6 June 2017, Ling Ng, acting as coordinator of the Working Group, invited Members for a 1st meeting to discuss

the agenda of the year. Board Members from EDP Renováveis S.A. and Practical Action gave advice on how to communicate ARE messages and publications more effectively. Last year, ARE via its Business Promotion & Marketing services significantly increased the visibility of its Members’ activities and of the association itself in 2017. As a result, ARE has become a well-recognised partner at events and conferences, experiencing a peak in speaker requests and event endorsements.

Advice& AdvocacyDonation button

Job Alerts at ARE Job Platform

Increase of case studies from ARE Members from 49

to 60

Online payment function at ARE events

Overview of ARE Communication Highlights

ARE WEBSITENew features

Advice& AdvocacyIncrease of ARE Newsletter

readership from 26,500 to 44,000

Six ARE Newsletters with high-level editorials from the AfDB,

EDP, IDB, IEA, UN Women & Vlerick Energy Centre

3,200 unique visitors/month to the ARE website

30 Partnership agreements, where ARE Members receive

10-20% discount + free passes

Increase of Social Media followers from 5,500 to over

7,300

ARE Annual Report 2016

ARE-ENERGIA Position Paper: Women &

Sustainable Energy

ARE-IDB ‘Access to Energy Services through

Renewable Sources in Latin America & the

Caribbean’

AEEP ‘African Young Leaders Report’

Weekly Alerts every week to ARE Members

with in-depth information about

upcoming business opportunities (for Members only)

AREPUBLICATIONSARE STATISTICS


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

22

9 ARE Governance and Organisation For the purposes of good governance and to ease effective decision-making, ARE has implemented a clear governance structure to complement the ARE Statutes by the description of ARE internal roles and responsibilities as well as rules and procedures.

As Knowledge & Intelligence as well as Business Promotion & Marketing Services have been identified as the most vital services, these have been given top priority in the new governance concept.

ARE AGM

ARE Working Structure1st phase : Focus on two Business Lines

ARE BOARD

ARE MANAGEMENT & GOVERNANCE

Sub-WG Africa

Sub-WG Asia

Sub-WG LatAm

Knowledge &Intelligence/Events WG

ARE Members

Advocacy &Advisory

WG

BusinessCreation &

Support WG

BusinessPromotion &

Marketing WG

EECOFID-ARE CfP


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

23

ARE Board of DirectorsRepresentatives of the Board of Directors for 2017 remain unchanged. Michael Wollny stepped down as ARE Vice-President but retained his position in the Board. Guilherme Collares Pereira took up the role of Vice-President at the Annual General Meeting on 21 March 2017.

Founder Ernesto Macías announced his departure as President of the Association at the ARE Energy Access Investment Forum on 22-23 March 2017 (Read his Farewell in Chapter 1). ARE would like to thank Ernesto Macías for his strong and long dedication to further clean energy access and to bring ARE in its present situation.

Solarwatt, Spain (2014-2018)

EDP, Portugal (2014-2018)

FRES, the Netherlands (2014-2018)

ABB, Spain (2016-2020)

KXN Nigeria, Nigeria (2014-2018)

Smart Hydro Power, Germany (2015-2019)

Practical Action, UK (2016-2020)

Revelle Group (2016-2020)

RVE.SOL (2015-2019)

Wollny Consulting, Germany (2014-2018)

President

Vice President

Vice President

Board Member

Board Member

Board Member

Board Member

Board Member

Board Member

Board Member

NAME AFFILIATION, COUNTRY (TERM) FUNCTION

“It has been very gratifying being Member of the Board of ARE for the last four years, as one can see clearly the progress of decentralised RET industry actions in developing countries,

and its unquestionable potential to reach the 2030 access to energy objectives.

However, the task is huge and there are still important barriers to overcome, above all governments commitments to put in place favourable and resilient legislation and regulatory frameworks, so to allow private sector to invest. At EDP, we are committed

to also contribute to the integration of remote rural communities into their respective economies.”

1. Macías, Ernesto

2. Collares Pereira, Guilherme

3. Nijland, Caroline

4. Astorga, Pablo

5. Ighodaro, Anthony

6. Kolmsee, Karl

7. Leopold, Aaron

8. Uherova Hasbani, Katarina

9. Vendeirinho, Vivian

Guilherme Collares Pereira ARE Vice-President (2017-2018)

1 2 3 4 5

6 7 8 9 10

10. Wollny, Michael


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

24

With the view of expanding its activities in Asia, the Secretariat expanded its team to four people. Jens Jaeger joined as Policy & Business Development Officer on 3 January 2017. The Secretariat was also supported by freelance consultants and interns.

Germany (February 2013 – present)

Belgium (November 2013 – present)

United Kingdom (January 2014 – present)

Denmark (January 2016 – present)

Spain (January – August 2017)

Peru (February - April 2017)

Belgium (April - August 2017)

Belgium (September – December 2017)

Executive Director

Policy & Business Development Manager

Communications & Marketing Officer

Policy & Business Development Officer

Event Coordinator / LAC support

Research Intern

Administrative Assistant

Administrative Assistant

NAME AFFILIATION, COUNTRY (TERM) FUNCTION

Wiemann, Marcus

Lecoque, David

Ng, Ling

Jaeger, Jens

Gomez, Erika

Palpa, Indira

Ralezo, Mariana

Coucke, LaetitiaTEM

PORA

RY S

UPP

ORT

CORE

TEA

M

ARE Secretariat

“I consider ARE to be a hub that concentrates knowledge and access to main actors working in the sector. This is definitely an asset for young professionals like me that are looking

forward to getting familiar with rural electrification strategies and worldwide initiatives.”

Indira PalpaIntern (February - April 2017)

Alliance for Rural Electrification


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

25

10 ARE Membership Development In 2017, ARE welcomed 44 new Members increasing its Membership from 107 to a total of 151 Members making 2017 and 2016 the most successful years since its creation (see Annex 1 for an overview of current Members of ARE).

2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

4 23 30 40 55 60 68 86 85 94 107 151

In dark blue: ARE Members come from 44 countries; In light blue: ARE Members are active in nearly all countries in the world. 17

WHY JOIN?

Access to high-level decision makers & cooperation partnerships.

Privileged market access through key policy, financing & implementation advice.

Promotion of solutions, expertise & case studies through newsletters, the ARE website, weekly alerts and more.

Advice& Advocacy

Knowledge& Intelligence

Business Promotion& Marketing

Business Creation& Support

With a database of 44,000 contacts in the off-grid sector, ARE is the global rural electrification knowledge hub.

Access to training & knowledge and the newest business models.

Access to the latest publications & research through weekly alerts.

Targeted marketing at events & through multiple communication channels.

Raising visibility through the ARE Off-Grid Matchmaking Platform, website, newsletter & social media.

Numerous event partnerships (discounts, speaking slots) & the ARE Awards.

Weekly briefing on procurement, business & engagement opportunities, events, industry news and jobs.

B2B, B2Finance matchmaking & general networking and business delegations.

Help in accessing funds & finance and management of Calls for Proposals.

To join ARE, please send your application to: [email protected]


mailto:[email protected]


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

26

11 Testimonials from ARE Members

“Our Membership in ARE provided fantastic insights into rural electrification industry and network of market players in Europe, Africa and Asia. ARE Secretariat is very well connected in Brussels

and always ready to support our work. We are happy to step up our engagement in ARE with Board Membership this year.”

Emily KoulavarisManaging Direct/Owner

Revelle Group, Belgium

“The Alliance for Rural Electrification has indeed been very instrumental for not only setting the platform to be able to interact with other companies active in the renewable energy industry,

but also for putting us in touch. ARE has enabled our company to access the appropriate information through the best available channels in order to understand our industry better.”

Alex HofmeyrSales Manager – MEAStuder Innotec, Switzerland

“Through ARE, we have had several international requests for information regarding our micro-hydro

technology, which we expect to increase once we launch commercially.”

Gastón Dussaillant VenezianCMO & CFO

Capta Hydro, Chile

“ARE is the most effective association we have ever belonged to in terms of usefulness, proactivity and practicality when developing new business models. It acts not only as a network facilitator that connects all stakeholders involved, but also as an organisation that compiles and takes into consideration the challenges its Members face in their everyday business, and then creates awareness and lobbies

the institutions with the capacity to alleviate them.”

Rocío HortigüelaCEO

Entiba Energy, Spain


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

27

“Get your impact/contribution in rural electrification internationally recognised by participating in the ARE Awards. ARE recognition will definitely improve our image and contribute to getting more

partners to increase our rural electrification footprint.”

Prosper MagaliDirector of Projects and Business

Ensol Limited, Tanzania

“At ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies, the impact investment fund dedicated to energy access, we are looking for investees and partners able to propose new solutions with considerations for its social and

environmental impacts. ARE was the first association we decided to join as it’s really the best place to work on energy access challenges with members coming from all over the world and bringing various expertise. ARE is the network to start concrete projects, to develop new businesses and partnerships and to lobby for a common regulation framework.”

Laure VinçotteManaging Director

ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies SAS, France

“The Alliance for Rural Electrification is a great network for insights into the electrification and renewables industries, and through conferences, webinars, and community

efforts, has helped to increase our project scope and tap into new opportunities. By bridging the information and knowledge gaps, ARE enables collaboration between

key members and Energo Labs is a proud Member of the network.”

Lathika Chandra MouliProject Specialist

Energo Labs, China

“Energy access for rural and BoP communities is a topic very close to our heart and forms an integral part of Stimulus research and efforts to develop projects that promote pro-poor market based solutions for access to energy,

health, nutrition and sanitation. Our Membership to the ARE connected us to an extensive information platform and large network of stakeholders engaged on ensuring sustainable energy solutions for rural markets. It has been a fantastic experience for us to partner with ARE and Phaesun in sharing some of our learning from Pakistan off-grid markets at the Phaesun Off-Grid Experts Workshop in 2017. We look forward to connecting with more Members and collaboration for mutually beneficial activities.”

Hira Wajahat MalikSenior Project Consultant

Stimulus Pvt. Ltd., Pakistan


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

28

12 Annex 1 ARE Members List (NEW MEMBERS JOINING IN 2017 IN BOLD)

ABB

ABC Contracting

ACCESS-SARL

Appui au Développement Autonome

African Business Energy

Agence de développement de l’électrification rurale

All Power Labs Italy

ALSA Solar Systems

Althelia Climate Fund

Ankur Scientific Energy Technologies

Antenna Technologies Foundation

The August Company

Aquanovis

Aquion Energy

Asantys Systems

Ausar Energy

Autarsys East Africa

Backwoods Solar Electric Systems

Becquerel Institute

Benoolend

Bergey

Bornay

Capta Hydro

cdw Stiftung

CosmoSol

Customized Energy Solutions India

Clear Resource

DSTC Solar Training Centre

E.ON Off Grid Solutions

Eauxwell Nigeria

Ecoligo

Elite Pongamia Bioenergy Project

Encell Technology

Energias de Portugal - Energiedouce

Energo Labs

Energy Access Ventures

Energy Diverse Integrations

Enersol

Company representatives can be directly contacted via the ARE Off-grid Matchmaking Platform18



ANNUAL REPORT 2017

29

ENGIE Rassembleurs d’Energies

Ennera Energy & Mobility

Ensol

Entiba Energy

ESB International

ESPE RINNOVABILI

Eurobat

Factor

Fluidic Energy

Fondazione ACRA-CCS

Fondazione Madre Agnese

Foundation Rural Energy Services

Fraunhofer ISE

Freqcon

FUNAE - Fundo de Energia

Fundación ACCIONA Microenergia

Generaciones Fotovoltaica de la Mancha

GE India Industrial

GERES

Gigawatt Global Off Grid

Gildemeister Energy Storage (Cellstrom)

Global Sustainable Energy Solutions

Grassroots and Rural Innovative Development

Grid Alternatives

Hivos

HOMSOL

HT Energy

Iberdrola

id-eee

Industrial Solar Consulting

Infinite Fingers

Infra Capital Myanmar-ReEx

Innovation Energie Développement

International Power Supply

IREM

Kingspan Wind

KXN Nigeria

LDK Engineering Consultants

LEDsafari

Ludewa Clean Energy

Lumiere du Monde

M-Power

MARGE

Martifer Solar

Masar

Mlinda Charitable Trust


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

30

Mobisol

MSS Mola Solar Systems

Multi Source Power

MWH

Nizam Bijli

NRECA International

Off-Grid Energy Australia

OFGEN

Ossi-Yeto

Phaesun

Phocos

PHPower

Plan Internacional Espana

PlanetEnergy

Power-Blox

Practical Action

Proparco

Qinous

Rahimafrooz Renewable Energy

Reiner Lemoine Institut

RENAC

Renewables in Africa

RES4Med

Revelle Group

Rubitec Nigeria

Rural Spark Energy India

RVE.SOL - Soluçoes de Energia Rural

Sader

SC Sustainable Concepts

Schneider Electric

Siemens

Sigora International

Simpa Networks

SMA Sunbelt Energy

Smart Hydro Power

Smart RUE

SNV Netherlands Development Organisation

SOLAR23

Solaris Offgrid

SolarNow

Solarkiosk

Solarland Electric Power Technology

Solarmate Engineering

Solarwatt Espana

SparkMeter

START Africa


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

31

Stimulus

Studer Innotec

Sunco Energy

Sunlabob Renewable Energy

Sunna Design

Technolectric

Tiger Power

Trama TecnoAmbienta

TRINE

Trojan Battery

Turbulent

Uni of Southampton

University of Applied Sciences Neu-Ulm

Vestas Wind Systems

Virunga Power

Wollny Consulting

Wuppertal Institute for Climate, Environment and Energy

XANT - WWS GROUP


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

32

66%Europe

10%Asia

13%Africa

8%USA

ARE MEMBERS BY REGION

1%

1%ME

Aus

1%LatAm

PVHydroBiomass WindEnergyStorage Mini-grid

72%54%24% 30%27% 76%

ARE MEMBERS BY TECHNOLOGY


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

33

13 Annex 2 ARE Financials 2017

Profit and Cost Items Actuals 2016 (EUR) Actuals 2017 (EUR)

Membership Fees 150.962 186.860

Sponsoring Fees 43.839 36.954

Management Fees 1.061 85.520

Project Fees 27.000 -

Project Fees 219.253 253.126

Operating income/Turnover 442.667 562.460

Services and other goods 338.269 465.074

Renumeration & social security costs 90.080 128.631

Operating result 14.328 -31.245

Financial result 17.305 -1.239

Result 31.633 -32.485

Donor Partners Private Sector

Donor Partners Public Sector

The Financial Report of ARE for 2017 has been prepared and certified by BVBA Solid Bookings, Brussels (Belgium). ARE applied the percentage-of-completion method for its project accounting. As a result of delayed project activities and unpaid invoices, ARE achieved a negative result in 2017.


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

34

14 Annex 3 Highlights of ARE Events 2017

The following overview shows all events where ARE was represented by the Board and/or Secretariat or had a lead position to make it happen (bold).

DATE EVENT COUNTRY

11-13 Jan

13-15 Jan

18 Jan

31 Jan

31 Jan – 2 Feb

2 Feb

2 Feb

6-10 Feb

14 Feb

16 Feb

21 Mar

21 Mar

22-23 Mar

27 Mar

29-30 Mar

3-5 Apr

18 Apr

24-25 Apr

29-30 Apr

2-3 May

4 May

9-12 May

10 May

22 May

22-23 May

31 May – 2 Jun

5-9 Jun

6-7 Jun

7-8 Jun

20 Jun

24-25 Jul

14-15 Aug

22-24 Aug

4 Sep

4-8 Sep

5-6 Sep

13 Sep

28-29 Sep

28-29 Sep

3-4 Oct

9 Oct

India

UAE

UAE

Belgium

ZambiaGermany

Belgium

Myanmar

GermanyBelgium

PortugalPortugalPortugalFrance

Ivory Coast

USA

Webinar

Belgium

Iran

Panama

WebinarAustria

Austria

Italy

Kenya

GermanyPhilippines

Honduras

Belgium

Belgium

Indonesia

Kazakhstan

BrazilZambiaZambia

Spain

WebinarGermany

Singapore

Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Energy Storage India 2017

IRENA Assembly 2017

WFES Innovative Financing for Renewable Energy Projects in Africa

Enlightening the Migration Debate: the Importance of Sustainable energy access, Brussels

Sustainable Energy Southern Africa Forum of the AEEPLaunch of the Poor People’s Energy Outlook

Workshop on New Models of Private Sector Participation in Development Finance

Learning Event on Upscaling Mini-grids for Least Cost & Timely Access to Electricity Services

ARE Board MeetingRound Table Discussion: How to Support Early Stage Project Development

ARE Board MeetingARE Annual General MeetingARE Energy Access Investment ForumWorld Energy Outlook 2017 High-level Workshop on Energy & Development

4th Annual SEforALL Africa Workshop

SEforAll Forum

IRENA: Development of Bankable Renewable Energy Mini-grid projects

AEEP: Reference Group on Infrastructure Meeting

Iran-EU Business Forum 2017

Off-grid Energy for Rural Development in Latin America & the Caribbean

Learnings from The Rockefeller Foundation’s Smart Power for Rural Development ProgramVienna Energy Forum

Clean Energy and Climate Investment Forum

RES4MED Annual Conference: Innovation as the key enabler to power Africa

IEC: LVDC Conference on Sustainable Electricity Access

Intersolar EuropeAsia Clean Energy Forum 2017

IDB: Mejores Prácticas en Programas de Acceso a Servicios Modernos de Energía

European Development Days 2017

Smart Villages: Smart rural development: the SDGs and the New European Consensus on Development

Energy Security & Sustainability Conference & Exhibition

Renewable Energy and Quality of Life

Intersolar South AmericaTraining hosted by the Energy Access Work Stream of the AEEP2nd General Assembly: African Association for Rural Electrification

5th Microgrid Global Innovation Forum

Support Schemes for Rural Electrification in South- & South-East Asia

Off-grid Experts Workshop 2017

Unlocking Solar Capital: Asia

Fostering the deployment of Renewable Energy in Ethiopia: a Sustainable Roadmap

Talking business: Microfinance for decentralised renewables in Africa


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

35

DATE EVENT COUNTRY

9-16 Oct

11-13 Oct

19 Oct

23 Oct

29 Oct – 2 Nov

6-7 Nov

6-17 Nov

20-21 Nov

21 Nov

22 Nov

27 Nov

4-7 Dec

7 Dec

12 Dec

Ethiopia

Senegal

Belgium

Ivory CoastUAE

Fuerteventura

Germany

Thailand

Belgium

Belgium

Ivory Coast

Argentina

IndiaBelgium

African Microfinance Week

ECOWAS Sustainable Energy Forum

Africa-EU Joint Programme Initiative on Sustainable Energy

ARE Business Delegation Workshop at the AfDBSolar World Congress 2017

Africagua

COP23

Solar & Off-grid Renewables SouthEast Asia

Sustainable Energy in EU External Actions Instruments

High Level Conference: Towards a Renewed Partnership with Africa

6th EU-Africa Business Forum

2nd Energy Week in Latin America and the Caribbean

Intersolar IndiaARE Board Meeting (postponed to 3 Jan 2018)


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

36

AA Action Agenda ADA Appui au Développement AutonomeADB Asian Development BankAEEP Africa-EU Energy PartnershipAFD Agence Française de DéveloppementAfDB African Development BankAGM Annual General MeetingAMDA Africa Mini-grid Developers Association ARE Alliance for Rural ElectrificationAU African Union BMZ German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and DevelopmentBNEF Bloomberg New Energy FinanceBoP Bottom of the PyramidBP British PetroleumB2B Business-to-BusinessCfP Call for Proposals CLEAN Clean Energy Access NetworkClub-ER L’Association Africaine pour l’Electrification RuraleCOMESA Common Market for Eastern and Southern AfricaCOP Conference of Parties CSR Corporate Social Responsibility DFI Development Finance Institution EA WS Energy Access WorkstreamECOWAS Economic Community of West African StatesECREEE ECOWAS Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency EDP Energias de Portugal EIP External Investment Plan of the European UnionEPIA European Photovoltaic Industry AssociationEUEI PDF EU Energy Initiative Partnership Dialogue Facility EUR Euro FFS Fee for Service FMCG Fast-Moving Consumer Goods FRES Foundation Rural Energy Services HIO CEMG High Impact Opportunity Clean Energy Mini-GridsIDB Inter-American Development BankIDCOL Infrastructure Development Company Limited (Bangladesh)IEA International Energy AgencyIEC International Electrotechnical Commission ILO International Labor OrganisationIOM International Organization for Migration IP Investment ProspectusIRENA International Renewable Energy AgencyKfW DEG German Investment CorporationkWp kilowatt peakkW kilowattLAC Latin America and the Caribbean LOGiC Low Carbon Off-Grid CommunitiesLVDC Low Voltage Direct Current MFI Multilateral Finance Institution

15 Annex 4Abbreviations List


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

37

Phot

o cr

edits

- Sm

art H

ydro

Pow

er

MESIA Middle East Solar Industry Association MoU Memorandum of UnderstandingNGO Non-governmental organisationOFID OPEC Fund for International DevelopmentOLADE Latin American Energy Organization PAYG Pay as You Go PV PhotovoltaicsRE Renewable energyRECP Africa-EU Renewable Energy Cooperation ProgrammeREH Renewable Energy HouseREN21 Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century RET Renewable Energy TechnologiesRES4MED Renewable Energy Solutions for the MediterraneanROGEP Regional Off-Grid Electrification ProjectSAM African Microfinance Week SDG Sustainable Development GoalSEforALL Sustainable Energy for AllSNV Stichting Nederlandse Vrijwilligers (Netherlands Development Organisation)SPE Solar Power EuropeTTA Trama TecnoAmbiental UNITAR United Nations Institute for Training and ResearchUSD US DollarWFES World Future Energy SummitWG Working GroupYLEA Young Leaders in Energy Access


ANNUAL REPORT 2017

38www.ruralelec.org

Rue d’ Arlon 69-711040 Brussels - Belgium Tel : +32 2 709 55 42E-mail: [email protected]

Follow us on:

2017

ANNUALREPORT

mailto:[email protected]

www.twitter.com/RuralElec

www.facebook.com/AllianceforRuralElectrification

www.linkedin.com/company/alliance-for-rural-electrification%3F

https://www.youtube.com/user/RuralElec

Documents

ANNUAL - The Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE)...Programme (2016 – 2018) at the 2017 Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lisbon, ARE is delighted to look back again at another