World Bank seminar on energy in developing countries

On Tuesday I attended a roundtable discussion at the World Bank office in Sydney on energy in developing countries of the Asia-Pacific region. The discussion was closely linked to my own research as a PhD student at RMAP, which focuses on the electricity sector in Fiji and the potential for renewable energy technologies to improve energy security in both urban and rural areas.

The televised roundtable discussion was part of the praxis discussion series held by the World Bank Sydney office. Speakers included:

 Dr Mark Diesendorf – a well-known commentator on energy futures in Australia, Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies at the University of New South Wales, and author of Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy (2007) and Climate Action: A Campaign Manual for Greenhouse Solutions (forthcoming).
 Jack Wheelan – Head of Private Sector Engagement at the Foundation for Development Cooperation and COO at Environment Business Australia (EBA), a coalition of companies representing the interests of the environment industry.
 Tendai Gregan – Energy Specialist for the World Bank’s Pacific Department, with approximately ten years experience in the Australian energy sector.

The roundtable discussion was chaired by Ian Gerrard, the editor of The Diplomat.

A wide-range of topics were covered in the discussion, but what was striking was the number of issues on which all three speakers agreed. Modern forms of energy were recognised as essential for economic development and corresponding increases in per capita income, and were also seen as important to improving the sustainability of livelihoods in areas where overpopulation is leading to deforestation.

Mark Disendorf said that generally speaking the (modern) energy sector can be divided into two parts in developing countries – notwithstanding differences between regions and countries. These include urban areas, where electricity networks and fossil fuel consumption to some extent follow the example set in industrialised economies, and rural areas, where access to modern energy is often limited and inefficient forms of lighting such as kerosene prevail. Renewable energy technologies are promising in both sectors: in the rural areas due to their small scale and modularity, and in urban areas due to their environmental, health and energy security benefits.

Jack Wheelan focused more on the practicalities of widening access to modern forms of energy among the rural poor. Where energy provision is linked to income generating activities, micro-finance provides poor households the potential to purchase modern energy systems. These systems can be used for a range of income generating activities – for example electricity systems (whether renewable or conventional) can be used to power refrigerators that allow produce to be frozen and transported to distant markets.

Tendai Gregan’s main focus was the activities of the World Bank in the Pacific islands. He emphasized that there was ample scope for improving efficiencies and thereby lowering costs in the electricity sectors of many Pacific island nations – both through regulatory reform and technological change. This would help lower electricity prices and reduce the need for government subsidisation. He also stated that coordinated donor activities would inevitably be important in widening access to modern energy among rural communities, due to the budget constraints faced by many Pacific island countries.

The roundtable will be aired in full on the new Sky/Foxtel/AUSTAR channel, A-Pac, and can also be viewed on the webpages of the World Bank and The Diplomat magazine.