Hundreds of thousands of people in Latin America stand to benefit from PV/battery/diesel hybrid systems if the installation masterminded by former ILZRO President Jerome Cole can prove its sustainability. Dr Cole tells BEST about the potential of the system.
Although I had walked the streets of Padre Cocha on many occasions over the past several years, I saw a big difference on my most recent visit in late January this year,
The jungle heat and humidity were the same; the Peruvian people were as friendly as ever; the children were cute and curious. The difference, however, was evident from the music being played in the houses, and from the freezers that had appeared like magic in the small shops and even in some of the private homes. People were watching television and using computers. Entrepreneurs were using their new power supply to chill drinks and make ice for sale to tourists, who are already beginning to arrive from the city of Iquitos – the tourist gateway to the Peruvian Amazon – about 20 minutes away by river.
It was clear to me that, although Padre Cocha had been receiving continuous electricity for only a few months, it was already having an impact on the quality of life. The village itself is growing because of the availability of reliable power. It was hard to imagine that, only about two years ago, this village had no electricity at all. And while, from ILZRO’s standpoint, the project had been primarily about showcasing a Remote Area Power Supply (RAPS) system designed around lead-acid batteries, it has developed into much more than that.
You can’t work with these people without becoming infected by their pride and sense of community. And now they are on the threshold of overcoming their biggest problem: the grinding poverty caused by the lack of access to dependable energy. To be sure, there is much more to be done to assure the sustainability of the system. The system still needs be optimised by improving the efficiency of the distribution system. Appropriate tariffs must be set, with the collaboration of the government. More training must take place in the productive uses of electricity. And for the time being the population will have to remain frugal in their use of the still-precious and limited new resource.
All this is proceeding, and will take time. But a great deal has been accomplished, and it was evident in the streets of Padre Cocha in January.
The involvement of the International Lead Zinc Research Organization (ILZRO) in Padre Cocha began in mid-1997 with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between ILZRO, the Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines and the Solar Energy Industry Association to bring RAPS to the Amazon region of Peru. The thrust of the effort was to provide 24-hour electricity to isolated communities which have no opportunity to be connected to the national grid system. Many of these communities have diesel generators and mini-grid systems; the concept was to design a new system using batteries for storage and photovoltaic panels to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants.
ILZRO commissioned a feasibility study, which was completed in early 1998. A Project Implementation Plan was completed in mid-1998 and the regional government in Loreto approved their portion of the funding for the project in October 1998. A Peruvian civil association to implement the project, ILZRO RAPS Peru (IRP), was founded by ILZRO and Doe Run Peru in Iquitos in February 1999. Then there was a pause in progress as the long process of obtaining funding, in addition to that provided by ILZRO, delayed the project for some time.
In late 2000 funds from the Global Environmental Facility and Common Fund for Commodities were finally obtained, allowing implementation to begin in early 2001. The electronics and batteries were installed in August 2002, but we were forced to wait until the Government of the Region of Loreto provided its promised funding for the photovoltaic (PV) panels in March of 2003. The PV was installed in April and the system began operation in start-up mode in May.
Technical problems in the grids, the generator and the electronics were encountered, but all were eventually overcome; the system has been in full operation since late October. There have been no problems with the batteries. The village has formed a mini-utility company – called Electro RAPS Padre Cocha (ERPACO) – to operate and maintain the system, and collect tariffs.
The Padre Cocha system is a hybrid RAPS system, designed to provide 300 kWh of utility grade a.c. electricity over a 24-hour period. The system contains a diesel generator, battery banks, battery chargers, a photovoltaic array and inverters to convert the a.c. energy from the generator to d.c. for storage in the batteries and to convert the d.c. energy from the batteries back to a.c. for use in the village.
When the system is optimised the generator should run for about 2.75 hours per day. This will provide about 65% of the daily energy input, with the remainder coming from the PV. This mix was chosen on the basis of minimising the operating costs and balancing them with the installation costs over the expected 20-year life of the installation.
The systems are modular, and the batteries and electronics are housed in modified shipping containers. Depending on the village’s demand, the modules can be joined in parallel to provide increments of 150 kWh/day. For example, two modules are used in Padre Cocha, providing 300 kWh/day. The modules can be installed with a new generator, or retrofitted to an existing generator. Unique and innovative attributes of the systems include advanced lead-acid batteries, a sophisticated electronic supervisory control system, and remote monitoring via satellite.
The battery banks are made up of strings of heavy-duty 2-volt cells (375 Ah, 240 VDC). They are advanced design, flat plate, gel, valve-regulated lead-acid (VRLA) batteries. The lack of major maintenance requirements, particularly the fact that watering is not required, makes VRLAs particularly desirable for such applications. The cells feature ultra-thick plates and high-concentration silica gel, and have been designed for long-life performance in high temperatures.
The installation includes a control and supervision system which monitors the voltages, current and temperature of the battery bank, the current and voltage of the solar panel assemblies, the temperature of the environment and other system parameters to determine the operating conditions of the battery bank and the charging requirements.
When fully operational the monitoring system will consist of a satellite link between each of the remote community power systems and one or more central host computers. The remote systems will gather data during the course of normal daily operation and provide a daily summary report with baseline data. Technicians can remotely monitor the operational status of each system, test key systems and change system set-points and functions as needed.
Short-term plans consist of taking the appropriate steps to help ensure the sustainability of the Padre Cocha system. Firstly the village grid system must be substantially improved. The grid, which was installed by the local government, has turned out to be highly inefficient. Power factor values show that about 40% of the generated energy is being lost in distribution. The actual demand has been about 210 kWh/day, but to meet this demand nearly 365 kWh/day must be generated. This translates into longer diesel generator run times, with resultant higher operating costs, for the provision of a 24-hour electricity supply.
An engineering study of the grids and how to improve them has been prepared and, with the cooperation of the local government, upgrades are in the process of being implemented. It is clear, however, that the design of the RAPS system is adequate to meet the demand while allowing for more growth and the development of productive uses. Productive uses, which will improve the economy of the village, include the further development of eco-tourism, more efficient manufacture of craft items, and the making of ice to prevent spoilage of fish and agricultural products from the area.
Another major issue is the tariff. Charging enough to cover long-term operating costs-such as fuel, administration, maintenance and a fund for battery replacement-is essential. This is both an economic and a political exercise. The populace, naturally, will resist payment of a tariff that they consider too high. Therefore it is essential that the population be educated about the costs of operation and the ramifications of not paying. Implicit in this is also education in energy efficiency. Meters are installed in each house, but they are not currently in use; residents all pay the same amount, basically for the purchase of fuel. However, for long-term sustainability, the concept of payment based on consumption must be recognised and adopted.
The installation of a second pilot system in the village of Indiana is currently on hold. The electronics and batteries for the second system have been purchased, and are in storage in Iquitos, but the local government has not yet provided the promised funding for the PV panels. Further, because of all the delays, the costs of completing the second system will be greater than anticipated; all parties want to see that the Padre Cocha scheme is fully successful and sustainable before proceeding.
The Padre Cocha installation has resulted in heightened interest in hybrid RAPS systems in Peru and neighbouring Latin American countries. In a new initiative the Peruvian governmental agency Instituto Nacional de Desarrollo (INADE), which is responsible for major development projects in Peru, has proposed the installation of an additional 12 systems in villages along the border with Ecuador. This would be funded with Peruvian and international funds through the Binational Plan for Development of the Peru-Ecuador Border Region, which was set up after Peru and Ecuador signed a peace agreement in 1998.
INADE and ILZRO RAPS Peru have signed an agreement to jointly pursue this effort. The border region comprises over 400,000sq km, of which 85% is in the Amazon region, some 10% on the coast and 5% in the mountains. It has a total population of 4.5 million, of which 1.6 million is Ecuadorian and 2.9 million Peruvian.
The Binational Plan aims to raise the standard of living of communities in the border area by building social and productive infrastructure, while paying close attention to crucial environmental considerations. It will aim to harmonise development policies for the sustainable use of ecosystems along the border. The binational programmes seek to bring economic integration to the border areas and link them to the rest of the two countries. National programmes will provide infrastructure and services to meet the basic human needs of the populations of these areas. Electricity, obviously, is vital to those goals.
Informal interest in the systems has also been expressed by Ecuador and by regional Peruvian electricity utilities charged with the responsibility of providing power to isolated communities.
Recognising the potential opportunities presented by this activity, ILZRO and I have set up a new joint venture company, ILZRO RAPS Latin America, to work towards full commercialisation of hybrid RAPS systems throughout the region. Given the complexities and delays encountered in installing the system in Padre Cocha, this may seem to some as a risky initiative; however, the fact is that there are literally hundreds of thousands of villages in Latin America with either no electricity or with electricity for only a few hours per day.
In its final report, issued in 2001, the G8 Renewable Energy Task Force stated:
“Modern energy services are fundamental to economic, social, and political development, and are essential in sustaining human life and improving human welfare”
The report recognised that “energy is the lifeblood of modern societies and is a pre-requisite for the welfare and well-being of all people”. We think that the demand by the rural poor for electricity is an irresistible force that eventually must be met. In a world committed, at least in principle, to the concept of sustainable development, the hybrid RAPS systems, using renewable energy and the unique ability of batteries to provide the energy when it is needed, is an opportunity well worth exploring
