The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and Sweden’s Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) have examined the potential for renewable power generation based on resource availability all over Africa.

Power systems need to be increasingly flexible to accommodate rising solar and wind shares. This brief examines the uses of demand-side flexibility, outlines solutions to achieve these, and highlights examples in actual power systems.

With the energy systems of many African countries dominated by fossil-fuel sources that are vulnerable to global price volatility, regional and intra-continental power systems with high shares of renewable energy can provide least-cost option to support continued economic growth and address the continent’s acute energy access problem. Unlocking Africa’s huge renewable energy potential could help to take many people out of poverty, while ensuring the uptake of sustainable technologies for the continent’s long-term development.

This report identifies useful regulatory practices for the era of rapidly improving renewable energy technologies. It draws key insights from experiences with integrated resource planning (IRP) in South Africa and the US.

This report highlights the findings from AVRIL (“Addressing Variable Renewable Energy in Long-term Energy Planning”), a project by IRENA that has identified the best practices in long-term planning and modelling to represent high shares of VRE. 

The municipal authorities for Zhangjiakou City, in co-operation with the China National Renewable Energy Centre (CNREC) and IRENA, have adopted an ambitious 30-year roadmap to phase out coal-fired power generation and scale up solar and wind power instead.

This report shows the importance of regional coordination in long-term planning, by showcasing collective opportunities for North African countries to diversify their electricity generation mixes and reduce their reliance on fossil fuel resources by 2040.

This report examines Paraguay’s energy institutions and their governance, long-term energy planning practices, and the socio-economic benefits of promoting renewable and low-carbon technologies in the end-use sectors.

The Global Atlas for Renewable Energy (Global Atlas) aims to close the gap between countries with access to the datasets, expertise and financial support to evaluate their renewable energy potential, and those lacking such elements. As of January 2015, a total of 67 countries and more than 50 institutes and partners were contributing to the initiative, which is coordinated by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA).

The report outlines recommendations to help Tunisia achieve its 30% renewables goal while boosting growth and development.

The municipal authorities for Zhangjiakou City, in co-operation with the China National Renewable Energy Centre (CNREC) and IRENA, have adopted an ambitious 30-year roadmap to phase out coal-fired power generation and scale up solar and wind power instead.

The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) presents two reports demonstrating its ground-breaking renewable energy resource-assessment tool, concentrating on the region of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS):

This report evaluates Thailand’s options for power generation, transport development, thermal and bioenergy use, and identifies the key challenges in scaling up renewables.

This report outlines a planning approach to boost flexibility, specifically to accommodate the largest possible shares of variable renewable (solar and wind) energy sources. 

Colombia ha colaborado con la Agencia Internacional de Energías Renovables (IRENA) para evaluar la flexibilidad del parque de generación propuesto en los planes nacionales de expansión. El último plan reclama una penetración ambiciosa de energía solar y eólica que excede incluso las estimaciones del programa REmap de IRENA.

Uruguay ha colaborado con la Agencia Internacional de Energías Renovables (IRENA) para explorar la posible incorporación de la metodología de la herramienta FlexTool de IRENA en el proceso de planificación energética del país.

This white paper, developed by the IRENA Coalition for Action, explores the role of energy utilities in the energy transition and outlines the achievements and implementation strategies of national, regional and local utilities switching to 100% renewable energy. The paper also includes an updated global mapping of national and sub-national 100% renewable energy targets.

This study seeks to map suitable areas in Burkina Faso for deploying utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) and wind power projects.

This REmap study, prepared in co-operation with the European Commission,  identifies cost-effective renewable energy options for all EU Member States, spanning a wide range of sectors and technologies.

Colombia engaged with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to assess the flexibility of the electricity mix proposed in their latest national expansion plan which pointed to VRE penetration exceeding IRENA’s Renewable Energy Roadmaps (REmap) estimates.

Este informe de la Agencia Internacional de Energías Renovables (IRENA) describe un método para potencial la flexibilidad del sistema eléctrico desde el punto de vista de la planificación, específicamente para acomodar la mayor participación posible de energía renovable variable (solar y eólica).

Les énergies renouvelables à faible coût jouent un rôle de plus en plus important dans l’offre d’électricité en Afrique de l’Ouest. Ce rapport présente trois grands scénarios pour la croissance des énergies renouvelables dans les systèmes d’énergie de la région, notamment en ce qui concerne les principaux objectifs nationaux et régionaux.

Low-cost renewable energy, especially from solar photovoltaic (PV) installations, has become an increasingly important part of West Africa’s electricity supply. This report outlines three broad scenarios for the growth of renewables in the region’s power systems, particularly in relation to key national and regional targets.

Panama engaged with the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) to carry out a flexibility analysis for the power system considering a high penetration of Variable Renewable Energy (VRE).