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through renewables-based mini-grids (usually powered by microhydro),
and 0.8 million households through small-scale wind
turbines. 17 (p See DRE Dashboard i .) Markets for DRE systems
continue to grow rapidly. In some countries, DRE systems already
have comparatively high market penetration. 18 (p See Figure 28.)
Globally, some 44 million off-grid pico-solar products had been
sold by mid-2015, representing a market of USD 300 million
annually. 19 As of end-2015, approximately 70 countries worldwide
had some off-grid solar capacity installed or programmes in
place to support off-grid solar applications. 20 The largest market
for off-grid solar products was sub-Saharan Africa (1.37 million
units sold), followed by South Asia (1.28 million units sold). 21
The smallest distributed solar PV systems are pico-PV systems
(1–10 W P ), which can power small lights, low-power appliances
or mobile phone charging stations. These systems typically
decrease in size as the efficiency of appliances that utilise the
generated power improves. They replace kerosene lamps,
candles and battery-powered flashlights and are the most widely
used DRE technologies by far. Worldwide, some 20 million
branded pico-solar products (mainly portable lights) had been
sold by mid-2015, most of which are concentrated in India and
sub-Saharan Africa. 22 (p See Figure 29.) In sub-Saharan Africa
the market for solar portable lights has grown by 90% annually for
the last four years. 23 In India, 3.2 million solar lanterns had been
sold or distributed by the end of 2015. 24 In Pakistan, women are
putting solar lanterns to productive use to start new businesses
and become entrepreneurs. 25
Solar home systems (SHS) (10–500 W) generally consist of a
solar module and a battery, along with a charge control device,
so that direct current (DC) power is available during dark and
cloudy periods. SHS provide electricity to off-grid households for
lighting, radios, television, refrigeration and access to the Internet.
This sized system also can be used for non-domestic applications
such as telecommunications, water pumping, navigational aids,
health clinics, educational facilities and community centres. For
higher power demands (e.g., 500–1,000 W), larger solar panels,
additional battery capacity and inverters to supply alternating
current (AC) power may be needed; the advantages of such
systems lie in their ability to power more-sophisticated electric
appliances. 26
As of early 2015, more than 6 million SHS and kits were estimated
to be in operation worldwide, with Asia being the largest market
by far. 27 (p See Figure 30.) The SHS market in Bangladesh – the
largest worldwide – has grown at an astounding average of 60%
annually over the past decade, with 60,000 households being
connected to a SHS every month. 28 As of early 2015, India, China
and Nepal had installed over 2 million systems collectively. 29
In Latin America, some 13,600 SHS (884 kW) were installed in
Guyana. 30 The SHS market also has started to boom in Africa,
particularly in East Africa. In 2014–2015, M-KOPA sold about
300,000 SHS in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania, and the company
targets a total of 1 million households by end-2016. 31
Micro- and pico-hydropower stations as small as 1 kW continue
to be constructed, providing local communities with affordable
electricity. Typically, such hydro systems can be built on existing
dams and operate reliably for at least 20 years, requiring minimal
maintenance. 32 It is estimated that in 2015, more than 600 microhydro
plants were providing electricity off-grid to rural areas of
Indonesia, while in Nepal, around 1,300 micro-hydro plants and
1,600 pico-hydro systems were in operation for a combined
capacity of 27.7 MW. 33
Biogas systems continued to be adopted for electricity supply
in 2015, with Asia leading in total installations. 34 (p See Figure
31 and Bioenergy section in Market and Industry Trends chapter.)
Vegetable oil, jatropha and animal waste may be used as biogas
feedstocks to substitute for diesel fuel in power generation in
small-scale applications, while agricultural residues (e.g., rice
husks, straw, coconut husks, shell, corn stover, etc.) may be used
for commercial-scale power generation.
Small-scale wind turbines (≤ 100 kW) often are used to produce
electricity for farms, homes and small businesses; off-grid
applications include rural electrification, telecommunication and
hybrid systems with diesel and solar PV. 35 Total installed capacity
reached 343.6 MW in China by the end of 2014, almost 6 MW in
03
i The DRE Dashboard of the REN21 Renewables Interactive Map (www.ren21.net/dre) presents all DRE market data collected for 2014 and 2015.
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