renewable energy systems for remote areas in australia

Renewable energy systems for remote areas inAustralia

David Lowe*, C.R. Lloyd

Centre for Appropriate Technology, Alice Springs, Australia

Abstract

It has been long thought that the northern and central regions of Australia are idealplaces for the installation of remote area power supplies (RAPS) based on renewableenergy. In particular the solar regime in these areas is among the highest in the world. The

Centre of Appropriate Technology has been undertaking a project, as part of theAustralian Cooperative Research Centre for Renewable Energy research program, to lookat the viability of renewable energy systems in remote areas of northern and centralAustralia. The study has involved compiling a database of existing knowledge of

renewables in these areas combined with a set of site visits and case studies to look at bothcommunity attitudes to renewable energy and the actual operation of the systems. Thestudy started in early 1997 and is due to be completed towards the end of 1999. The

present paper outlines the logistics of the study and some of the results. The emphasis sofar has been on wind and solar systems (including hybrid diesel systems) in Aboriginalcommunities. Some work has progressed for systems in pastoral properties and tourist

ventures. The ®eldwork to date has covered northern South Australia and the NorthernTerritory. Further ®eldwork will occur in northern Queensland and Western Australia inmid 1999. 7 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

1. Background

The study is part of the Australian Cooperative Centre for Renewable Energy(ACRE) market assessment program. Known internally as Project 6.3, it has the

0960-1481/01/$ - see front matter 7 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

PII: S0960 -1481 (00)00043 -4

Renewable Energy 22 (2001) 369±378

www.elsevier.com/locate/renene

* Corresponding author.

aim of identifying and establishing opportunities for the application of renewableenergy power systems to meet the service infrastructure needs of remotecommunities. The Centre for Appropriate Technology (CAT) is undertaking theproject, which began in early 1997. The project is a little over half way throughand it is anticipated that the ®nal report will be available by the end of 1999.

2. Introduction

Renewable energy options have been a salient feature of outback living formany decades, for water pumping in particular. The galvanised iron windmill, forexample, was ever present on the skyline during the early part of this century.During the late 1970s and early 1980s photovoltaic (PV) systems made their ®rsttentative appearance as alternative systems for providing electricity to isolatedhouseholds. The early systems were expensive, used primitive electronic controls(by today's standards) and were often not well understood by either the user orthe supplier. It was not surprising then that these renewable energy systems didnot gain much of a foothold and that in some cases the technology produced anadverse consumer reaction. Also around this time small diesel generating setsbecame cheaper and more reliable meaning that even the windmills began to bereplaced with fossil fuel burning options.

Another factor, which has worked against renewable energy options, has beenthe modernisation of the Australian outback. Better communications, roads,television and radio has driven remote communities to demand the appliances thattheir urban dwelling counterparts accepted as essential. While early this centurycooking in such areas was usually on wood ®red stoves the consumer demandnow is for gas and electric stoves and microwave ovens. Hand powered washingmachines have been replaced by electric powered automatic options and air-conditioning is viewed as essential in many of the hotter remote parts ofAustralia. The trend towards increased electrical loads has made it even moredi�cult for renewables to compete on straight economic terms with dieselgenerating sets. This trend has meant that the market for renewable based remotearea power supplies (RAPS) in Australia faces a completely di�erent demandpattern than that which exists in many of the developing nations.

Despite the above market penetration problems, it seems obvious (perhaps!)that if renewable energy is going to be viable anywhere it must be so in theremote areas of Australia, where the cost of traditional (fossil fuel generated)electricity is very high. It is also expected that photovoltaic (PV) based RAPS inparticular will be the best option in the high insolation, northern areas of thecountry. In terms of size there has been some suggestion within the industry thatrenewable RAPS can be cost e�ective for replacement of small diesel systems ofless than about 30 kW.

This paper presents a market survey of renewable energy applications in remoteareas in Australia to see what is actually out there and what people think about

D. Lowe, C.R. Lloyd / Renewable Energy 22 (2001) 369±378370

renewable energy. In addition it attempts to answer the question: does theconventional wisdom of the renewable energy industry match with the real world?

3. The extent of the study

The types of remote sites that are thought to be potentially amenable torenewable energy options in Australia include: indigenous communities, pastoralproperties, mining operations, communication installations and tourism and othermiscellaneous sites. The energy intensive mining industry has been excluded fromthe agenda at this stage, as has the communications sector. The latter due to itsstrong but well-documented existing commitment to PV-based renewables inremote areas. Thus the list of candidates is reduced to three. The original intentwas to start with indigenous communities, move to pastoral properties and then®nally to look at tourism and other sites. The initial emphasis on indigenouscommunities puts the project in line with CAT's charter, which is to assist remoteindigenous communities with regard to technology transfer Ð the provision ofenergy supplies being an obviously important part of the infrastructure that isneeded in communities. The ®rst step was to identify the target group ofcommunities. This step was achieved by utilising existing studies such as the 1992Health and Infrastructure Needs Survey (HINS) and the 1997 Western AustralianEnvironmental Health Needs Survey (WA-EHNS). These studies identi®edpopulation data and the source of energy supply for all known indigenouscommunities in Australia. From this information and national census data wehave compiled a database of around 1356 remote indigenous communities in WA,QLD, SA and the NT.

Communities in other areas of Australia are generally located su�ciently closeto a non-indigenous service centre to preclude them from consideration. The 1356communities are found to range in size from single family outstations to largetowns. Of the total remote indigenous population of around 80,000, two thirds ofthe inhabitants (67%) live in 94 large communities with a population greater than200. The remaining 33% of the remote population live in 1262 communitieshaving less than 200 inhabitants. It is only the latter category of communities withless than 200 inhabitants that have been targeted for the present study. Fig. 1shows the remote population for the three states and the NT.

By examining the existing databases, and supplementing the information withtelephone calls to the communities or community resource centres, a reasonablepicture has been obtained of the present market penetration of renewable energyinto remote indigenous communities. The analysis shows that the greatest numberof communities with existing renewable energy systems are located in the NT(157) followed by SA (48), WA (19) and QLD (4). Fig. 2 shows this break-up forthe three states and the NT. For SA nearly all the systems are located in the APlands. The low number of systems in Queensland may be indicative of thegenerally larger community sizes in that state and the relatively recent move tooutstations.

D. Lowe, C.R. Lloyd / Renewable Energy 22 (2001) 369±378 371

4. Field surveys

The next step in the market study has been to undertake a ®eld survey of aselection of the target communities. So far this survey has been limited tonorthern SA and the NT. Early in the project a formal questionnaire wasdeveloped to elicit information on the physical integrity of the energy supplysystems as well as the attitudes of the people using the systems. A trial of thequestionnaire form showed, however, that the large variety of di�erent situationsexisting in the ®eld meant that the form was best used as a checklist rather than a

Fig. 1. Comparison of states and the NT. Population composition of communities.

Fig. 2. Comparison of states and the NT. Number of remote communities and RE systems.


formal methodology. The selection of communities has been based on acombination of e�cient logistics and the desire to obtain as wide as possiblegeographical coverage. The result has been that four main areas have beencovered. These areas include the Anangu Pitjantjatjara (AP) lands in northernSouth Australia, communities around Alice Springs (to a distance of around600 km) a small number of communities centred around Tennant Creek, andcommunities in the ``Top End'' centred around Darwin (extending from PortKeats in the west to Arnhem Land in the east). As of the end of 1998 one or bothof the authors had visited some 74 communities which included 90 separaterenewable energy systems. The survey distribution has closely followed thedatabase distribution of existing systems, which showed that they were located inthe AP lands and around the three main centres in the NT. That they are centredon the main supply and maintenance centres is not surprising.

Individual visits consisted of a physical examination of the installed systems,photographs and interviews with the users. Roofs were climbed and the number ofpanels were counted and identi®ed, batteries were checked and where possiblevoltages measured. In some cases logbooks provided a wealth of information.Operation of the system was checked by visual indication usually by making surelights or a refrigerator was working. Solar bores were checked by overriding thestorage tank ¯oat switches to ascertain a positive pumping action. This level ofdetail was necessary as in some cases we were assured that the system wasworking but on examining the system found the opposite to be the case. Peopleinterviewed ranged from individual householders to community resourcepersonnel. As a separate exercise, if the system suppliers could be found they werequizzed on the details of the installation. In this regard the response fromsuppliers has been erratic with some very cooperative and some wary both ofowning up to failed systems and to giving away trade secrets on successfulsystems. In addition to the indigenous communities some surveys were made ofpastoral properties and tourist ventures, if they were logistically convenient. In allcases considerable e�ort was given to ensuring that the surveyors were not seen tobe promoting renewable energy. What we were after were unbiased opinions andso any hint that we were for (or against) such systems may have in¯uenced theresponses.

5. What have we found out?

As mentioned a total of some 74 sites were surveyed in the NT and northernSA. The surveys commenced around June 1998 and ®nished by the end of thatyear. Sites in northern SA, Tennant Creek and around the Alice Springs regionwere visited by vehicle from Alice. Sites in the ``Top End'' were accessed byvehicle out of Darwin.


5.1. Site details

Typically the sites surveyed were small outstations consisting of between oneand ®ve houses; perhaps with a workshop and almost always with a bore watersupply. The average number of inhabitants was 12 within a range from three toaround 50. The sites were remote; the average distance to a regional centre was340 km (70 km to nearly 1000 km). The total installed PV surveyed was 143 kWcoming from nearly 2000 panels. The average number of panels per house (for PVpowered houses) was 10 giving around 0.75 kWp per house. A total of 1415batteries were examined potentially storing around 2500 kWh. In terms of break-up of battery types it was found that 68% of systems used ¯ooded cells and 32%gel cells. Seven communities surveyed had a wind component as part of therenewable energy system and two communities had a genset battery system withno renewables. The largest system examined was the one at Watarru in the APlands. This system had 12.8 kW of PV, two 2.8 kW wind turbines and 26 kW ofdiesel capacity. A slightly larger system is in place at Jilkminggan (east ofMataranka in the ``Top End'') with 17.3 kW of PV installed. This system has notbeen surveyed but is monitored (and reported on) separately by the Power andWater Authority (PAWA) of the NT [1].

5.2. Operational status

The age of the renewable energy systems surveyed ranged from around 10 yearsto new systems. In many cases, however, it was not possible to accurately date theage of the systems. Table 1 summarises the operational status of the systemsexamined. The survey showed that a little over two thirds (69%) of the systemswere operational at the time of the visit. The percentage is about the same as thatfor small petrol gen-sets (67%) and somewhat worse than for small diesel gen-sets(84%). Table 2 shows the situation for solar powered bores; here it can be seenthat nearly 90% of systems were found to be operational.

Table 1

System status: power supply systems

System type Number surveyed Number working Percentage working

Solar stand alone 69 49 71

Solar/gen-set 12 7 58

Solar/wind 1 1 100

Solar/wind/gen-set 5 3 60

Wind/gen-set 1 0 0

Gen-set/battery 2 2 100

Total (renewable) 90 62 69

Diesel gen-set 25 21 84

Petrol gen-set 6 4 67

Gas gen-set 1 0 0


5.3. System faults

A site by site analysis found that 30% of the batteries had failed, 9% of theinverters had failed, 11% of the control system had failed and 23% of systemshad other (determined) failures. In some cases no access could be had to controlboxes or battery packs making determination of failures di�cult or impossible. Inaddition it was ascertained that some 62% of systems (including ones operationalat the time of the visit) had experienced recent problems with the renewablecomponent of the system. The number of systems that had problems due to eithervandalism or theft was found to be fairly low at 9%.

5.4. Attitudes to the system

Overall, 45% of householders said that they were happy with their renewableenergy system, 36% complained of insu�cient power being available, 39%complained of recurrent problems and 35% suggested that the maintenancesituation was not satisfactory. It was noted on this latter point that only 32% ofthe systems looked at were under some form of maintenance contract. It was alsofound that local persons were trained in the care of the systems in only 8% ofcases.

5.5. Attitudes to renewable energy

In general awareness of energy conservation as a reason for having a renewableenergy system was low with only 11% of householders or resource peoplesuggesting that energy conservation was important. Similar numbers (9%) thoughtthat environmental issues were not important in choosing the system. There was astrong feeling relayed that communities wanted a reliable electricity supply thatcould cope with any appliance that could be connected to it. In terms of feedbackprovided for electricity consumed it was found that only 7% of consumers

Table 2

Operational status: water supply systems

System type Number surveyed Number working Percentage working

Solar bore 41 36 88

Solar surface pump 3 3 100

Windmill 13 12 92

Artesian bore 1 1 100

Hand pump 1 1 100

Total (renewable) 59 53 90

Diesel bore 18 18 100

Grid bore 3 3 100

Town water 2 2 100


actually paid for energy from renewable energy systems, with only 4% of systemsbeing metered.

6. Discussion

First a disclaimer: the market survey is only about half way through. Fieldstudies need to be undertaken in both WA and QLD before ®nal conclusions canbe made. The following indications must therefore be taken as tentative only. Inaddition the results are biased towards the situation in indigenous communities.Although some visits have been made to both the pastoral and tourist sectors,detail needs to be added.

6.1. User expectations

As mentioned, one of the clearest messages to emerge so far has been thatindigenous communities generally place a higher priority on function than on thefact that a supply system uses renewable energy. Overloading of systems wasfound to be common due to frequent population changes within households and ahigh expectation of systems once installed. The demand pattern seen was oneconsistent with people's aspirations, being towards a non-indigenous urbanlifestyle and not one that may be appropriate for living in a remote area. Asremarked in the introduction, this tendency for communities in remote areas toaspire towards an energy intensive lifestyle does not seem to be limited toindigenous people. In terms of system maintenance, it was common to ®nd thatusers were not aware of the real maintenance costs. The idea of free energy, whichwas often suggested before installation of renewable energy systems (includinghybrids), conjured the picture of no recurrent costs, therefore it was a big surprisewhen a battery bank had to be replaced. Finally it was found that social andcultural issues generally dominated over concerns with environmental issues.These ®ndings suggest that much more e�ort is needed in working through viableenergy options for remote communities as well as information (in an appropriateformat) on the energy use of particular appliances. In addition the renewableenergy industry needs to portray a more realistic picture of the maintenance andrecurrent costs needed to keep systems operational and sustainable.

6.2. Hardware problems

Indications to date suggest that failures in the electronic control systems andinverters dominate recurrent maintenance problems while battery failures werefound to be the most common ®nal reason for system failure. The observedelectronic control/inverter systems tended to have high component counts, often inseveral discrete boxes from di�erent original manufacturers. Even from a singlemanufacturer, we found a considerable variety of systems; presumably as theywere changed (improved) over the years. The very great number of di�erent


systems that were observed during the ®eld studies would probably lead to a lowlevel of both operator and maintenance technician familiarity. For the largersystems maintenance and problem solving had to be referred to the originalmanufacturer or a regional supplier. One conclusion, which is becoming clear, isthat there is a need for the renewable energy industry to produce standardised,reliable, user-friendly designs. Others, including Watt and Watt in 1997, havemade this point, although more so with regards to improving manufacturinge�ciency [2].

6.3. Transport costs

Much of the economic analysis of the remote systems is yet to be completed butit has become obvious from the discussions with people concerned with themaintenance of the systems that transport costs dominate. Often failures in cheap,relatively minor components lead to costly maintenance calls by suppliers fromregional centres. One example comes to mind when a failed $15.00 backup batterycharger failed causing problems for a remote system. The very high transportcosts mean that reliability is much more important to remote users than e�ciency;a 94% e�cient system is not much use if it is not working. A further point is thatusers generally had little access to information on the reliability of componentsand systems, whereas e�ciency and capacity was usually well documented.

6.4. Case studies

The site visits have provided a broad sweep at the market, the third stage is toselect interesting examples from the sites surveyed and turn them into case studies.So far some four of these case studies have been completed and another ®ve are indraft form. One of the studies looks at an area just north of Alice Springs (theUtopia region) where A$3±A$4 million is earmarked for energy provision; some(or all) of which may be renewable based. The large 100 kW PV system atWilpena pound has been visited and will end up as a case study for a touristventure. The ®ndings so far have been consistent with the ®eld visits but showinggreater detail in speci®c problem areas.

6.5. Future work

The un®nished part of the project has already been alluded to. As soon as thewet ®nishes in the tropical north and the temperature subsides in the arid centrethe other two states WA and QLD will be visited to look at existing systems.More case studies will be developed and the tourist and pastoral sectors examinedin greater detail. Finally, of course, a detailed report will be put together.


Acknowledgements

This paper has been researched as part of work undertaken for the AustralianCooperative Research Centre for Renewable Energy (ACRE). The support fromthis key organisation has included full time funding for one of the authors. Theproject has a formal project management group, which has provided valuableadvice and assistance to the project team. The project management group iscomprised of ACRE members. Survey work in remote areas is di�cult and timeconsuming; it would not be possible without the considerable support obtainedfrom the remote communities themselves. This support included participating inthe interviews as well as giving logistical support to ®nd the remote outstations,which were often not located on any map. We would also like to acknowledge thecooperation received from the suppliers and installers of renewable energy systemsthat have so far been contacted. In addition to the ACRE members, the people atEco Energy and Suntec in Alice Springs and Delta Engineering in Darwin wereparticularly helpful with information on their own systems.

References

[1] Meike W. Hot climate performance between polycrystalline and amorphous silicon cells connected

to a utility minigrid. In: Proceedings of Solar 98 Ð Australian and New Zealand Solar Energy

Society, November, 1998.

[2] Watt G, Watt M. Photovoltaics in Australia, ERDC Report No. 295, April 1997.


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