The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin

Summary: When investigating access to electricity in Sub-Saharan African countries such as Kenya and Benin, which have access rates of 71% and 42% respectively (2020), modelers are faced with limited computational resources, poor data availability, and energy systems undergoing dramatic changes in t...

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Main Authors: Nandi Moksnes, William Usher
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-02-01
Series:iScience
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004225000513
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author Nandi Moksnes
William Usher
author_facet Nandi Moksnes
William Usher
author_sort Nandi Moksnes
collection DOAJ
description Summary: When investigating access to electricity in Sub-Saharan African countries such as Kenya and Benin, which have access rates of 71% and 42% respectively (2020), modelers are faced with limited computational resources, poor data availability, and energy systems undergoing dramatic changes in the supply, transmission and distribution, and demand sides. This paper explores the relative importance of path-dependent modeling decisions, such as spatial and temporal resolution, and parametric uncertainties, such as final energy demand, discount rate, and capital costs. We use global sensitivity analysis to find that electricity demand, discount rate, and temporal and spatial resolution significantly influence the assessed results parameters. Results differ between countries showing that the model setup must use spatial and technological parameter values appropriate for the context. The results show that especially when modeling the expansion of the network, spatial and temporal resolution should be customizable and changed, even between scenarios, depending on the research question.
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spelling doaj-art-49de5619f35f452b87f79d4b703b429a2025-02-07T04:48:01ZengElsevieriScience2589-00422025-02-01282111792The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and BeninNandi Moksnes0William Usher1Department of Energy Technology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, Brinellv. 68, Stockholm, Sweden; Corresponding authorDepartment of Energy Technology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology Stockholm, Brinellv. 68, Stockholm, SwedenSummary: When investigating access to electricity in Sub-Saharan African countries such as Kenya and Benin, which have access rates of 71% and 42% respectively (2020), modelers are faced with limited computational resources, poor data availability, and energy systems undergoing dramatic changes in the supply, transmission and distribution, and demand sides. This paper explores the relative importance of path-dependent modeling decisions, such as spatial and temporal resolution, and parametric uncertainties, such as final energy demand, discount rate, and capital costs. We use global sensitivity analysis to find that electricity demand, discount rate, and temporal and spatial resolution significantly influence the assessed results parameters. Results differ between countries showing that the model setup must use spatial and technological parameter values appropriate for the context. The results show that especially when modeling the expansion of the network, spatial and temporal resolution should be customizable and changed, even between scenarios, depending on the research question.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004225000513Energy sustainabilityEnergy systemsEnergy ModellingSocial sciences
spellingShingle Nandi Moksnes
William Usher
The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
iScience
Energy sustainability
Energy systems
Energy Modelling
Social sciences
title The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
title_full The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
title_fullStr The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
title_full_unstemmed The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
title_short The relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in Kenya and Benin
title_sort relative importance of uncertain parameters and structural formulation for electricity systems planning in kenya and benin
topic Energy sustainability
Energy systems
Energy Modelling
Social sciences
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2589004225000513
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