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Success and failure in the political economy of solar electrification: Lessons from World Bank Solar Home System (SHS) projects in Sri Lanka and Indonesia

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  • Sovacool, Benjamin K.

Abstract

This study contrasts two national solar home system (SHS) programs that relied on the same World Bank approach, but reached dramatically different results. The Energy Services Delivery Project (ESDP) in Sri Lanka was an exemplary renewable energy access program, successfully installing 21,000 off-grid SHSs alongside grid-connected mini-hydro capacity and off-grid village hydroelectric systems. It reached all of its targets ahead of schedule and below cost. By contrast, the Indonesia Solar Home System Project (ISHSP), which ran from 1997 to 2003, sought to reach one million rural Indonesians through the sales and installation of 200,000 SHSs. However, by project closing in 2003, less than five percent of the original sales target, or only 8054 units, had been installed. The ESDP and ISHSP were the World Bank's first foray into a “market-based renewable energy services provision model.” Based on original research interviews and field observation, the article finds that contrasting the two programs—one a success, the other a failure—offers lessons for energy and development practitioners, namely that effective programs are those that select appropriate technology, often with input from households themselves; they promote community participation and ownership; and they have robust marketing, demonstration, and promotion activities.

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  • Sovacool, Benjamin K., 2018. "Success and failure in the political economy of solar electrification: Lessons from World Bank Solar Home System (SHS) projects in Sri Lanka and Indonesia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 482-493.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:enepol:v:123:y:2018:i:c:p:482-493
    DOI: 10.1016/j.enpol.2018.09.024
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Miller, Damian & Hope, Chris, 2000. "Learning to lend for off-grid solar power: policy lessons from World Bank loans to India, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 28(2), pages 87-105, February.
    2. Martinot, E. & Cabraal, A. & Mathur, S., 2001. "World Bank/GEF solar home system projects: experiences and lessons learned 1993-2000," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 5(1), pages 39-57, March.
    3. Chaurey, Akanksha & Krithika, P.R. & Palit, Debajit & Rakesh, Smita & Sovacool, Benjamin K., 2012. "New partnerships and business models for facilitating energy access," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 47(S1), pages 48-55.
    4. World Bank, 2015. "The World Bank Annual Report 2015," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 22550, December.
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    3. Andrea A. Eras-Almeida & Miguel Fernández & Julio Eisman & José G. Martín & Estefanía Caamaño & Miguel A. Egido-Aguilera, 2019. "Lessons Learned from Rural Electrification Experiences with Third Generation Solar Home Systems in Latin America: Case Studies in Peru, Mexico, and Bolivia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(24), pages 1-24, December.
    4. Amin, Sakib Bin & Chowdhury, Mainul Islam & Jamasb, Tooraj & Khan, Farhan & Nepal, Rabindra, 2023. "Green Energy Finance and Gender Disparity: The Case of Mountain Areas in Bangladesh," Working Papers 2-2023, Copenhagen Business School, Department of Economics.
    5. Setyawati, Dinita, 2020. "Analysis of perceptions towards the rooftop photovoltaic solar system policy in Indonesia," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    6. Tsiaras, Evangelos & Papadopoulos, Demetrios N. & Antonopoulos, Constantinos N. & Papadakis, Vagelis G. & Coutelieris, Frank A., 2020. "Planning and assessment of an off-grid power supply system for small settlements," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 1271-1281.
    7. Nathanael Ojong, 2021. "Solar Home Systems in South Asia: Examining Adoption, Energy Consumption, and Social Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(14), pages 1-16, July.
    8. Davide Mazzoni, 2019. "Digitalization for Energy Access in Sub-Saharan Africa : Challenges, Opportunities and Potential Business Models," Working Papers 2019.02, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    9. Butera, Federico Maria & Caputo, Paola & Adhikari, Rajendra Singh & Mele, Renata, 2019. "Energy access in informal settlements. Results of a wide on site survey in Rio De Janeiro," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 134(C).
    10. Thomas, P.J.M. & Sandwell, P. & Williamson, S.J. & Harper, P.W., 2021. "A PESTLE analysis of solar home systems in refugee camps in Rwanda," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 143(C).

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