Research Article

Standalone and Minigrid-Connected Solar Energy Systems for Rural Application in Rwanda: An In Situ Study

Table 6

Challenges of off-grid electrification in a nutshell.

PoliciesTariffLicensing settingFinancialTechnicalSocial

No energy access plan identifies off-grid areasMinigrids economic feasibility is under doubtLicenses are expensiveMinor projects are ignored by financing programsWhen dimensioning, there is no consideration for future needThere are no community-based educational initiatives
There is no long-term electrification plan in placeTariffs are too high for rural populations to sustainLicensing is a time-consuming and complicated processPrograms for short-term fundingTechnical standards are inadequateThere are not enough examples of productive use scenarios
Regulations that are only in effect for a short period of time and are subject to changeThere is no suitable payment methodThere is no differentiation made between project sizesFiscal incentives are not availableComponents that are mismatched with the environment
External stakeholders are not involved in the collaboration because it is done in isolationTariff criteria are strict, and there is no distinction between comprehensive financialThe rate of return on investment is predicted to belowThere is no monitoring mechanism in place, and there are no responsible, certified employeesThere was no community input throughout the planning stage
In minigrid initiatives, there is no clear description of stakeholder dutiesInitial investment costs are highThere are not enough restrictions in place to assure dependable operation and maintenanceThere is not enough technical expertise to hire local workers