A multi-disciplinary group of experts from Ghana and Switzerland are undertaking a study to develop new methods to address gaps in energy system models for developing countries and cities.
Developing
countries, like Ghana, grapple with socio-technical and economic factors rarely
represented in conventional energy modeling approaches, which are often
developed by and for industrialized nations. Such factors include the impacts
of the informal economy, suppressed energy demand, power sector failures, and
climate change on urban energy resilience and planning. Researchers in this
project are working together to represent these issues in energy planning models,
and to apply them to the case study city of Accra, supporting its sustainable
development.
Accra
is committed to sustainable urban planning as a signatory city within the C40
Cities and Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy frameworks. As the
focal case study city within this project, the municipality can directly
benefit from this work in developing their climate strategy.
However,
the outcomes of this study can also help other cities around the world to apply
demonstrated models and methods to their own sustainable energy strategy
development.
The
project, titled, “Energy System Modeling for the Real World: Transforming
Modeling Approaches for Sustainable and Resilient Urban Development
(MEASURES)”, is funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF) and is running
from 2020 until the end of 2023.
The
project is being led by Dr. Mashael Yazdanie, a research scientist at the Urban
Energy Systems Laboratory at Empa in Switzerland. Ghanaian project partners
include the Department of Economics and The Brew-Hammond Energy Center at the
Kwame Nkrumah
University of Science and Technology (KNUST), as well as the University of
Energy and Natural Resources (UENR).
“One
of the interesting things about the MEASURES project is its goal of advancing
modeling methods for resilient and sustainable energy planning through
international and interdisciplinary collaboration,” said Prof. George Yaw
Obeng, Dean of Faculty of Mechanical and Chemical Engineering, KNUST.
The
first conference and workshop of the Swiss-Ghanaian MEASURES project was held
at the KNUST in October 2022. The event brought together researchers,
practitioners and experts across a wide range of fields. In addition to the
partner institutes (Empa, KNUST and UENR), local attendees included the Accra
Metropolitan Assembly, Ministry of Environment Science Technology and
Innovation, Environmental Protection Agency, Electricity Company of Ghana, and
Digital Earth Africa, amongst others, enabling valuable exchanges and learning
opportunities.
"This
project presents a unique opportunity to collaborate across disciplines,
professions, and boundaries in order to collectively tackle one of the most urgent
challenges facing humanity – that of mitigating climate change impacts on
society and our planet," said Dr. Yazdanie.
The importance of energy
system models
Energy
system planning models are vital decision support tools. Developing cities,
like Accra, are particularly vulnerable to climate change impacts, such as
increased heatwaves, flooding events and rising sea levels, compared to cities
in industrialized nations. Thus, maximizing their resilience is essential, and
modeling tools can play a pivotal role in evaluating and developing resilient urban
energy plans.
"Our
aim is to improve energy planning models and related decision-making processes
in order to support cities and nations in developing more effective sustainable
and resilient energy system plans, particularly under the threat of climate
change," said Dr. Yazdanie.
Multiple
experts, including economists, climate change scientists, engineers, and energy
system modelers are working together to identify synergies and integration
opportunities between modeling methods.
“We
will build upon existing open-source optimization/simulation models and
demonstrate developed methods using Accra as a case study city. We aim to
ensure knowledge transfer, especially to urban energy planners, modelers and
researchers by sharing models, data, methods, and findings on open-access, digital
platforms and through workshops,” said Dr. Yazdanie.
The
research and knowledge generation on modeling approaches for resilient and
sustainable energy planning are relevant to the development of decision-support
systems that will help build resilient and sustainable energy planning
practices in Ghana and beyond.
By
Kofi Adu Domfeh
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