Cote d’Ivoire

The Programme National d'Electrification Rurale (PRONER) includes a subsidiary project named Le Projet d'Amélioration de l'Accès à l'Électricité en Milieu Rural (PAEMIR) (Project to Improve Access to Electricity in Rural Areas). Although it is intended that their targets for rural electrification will be largely achieved through extending the national grid, isolated solar mini-grids will be used to serve 94 remote communities.

The Programme Régional de Développement des Énergies Renouvelables et d'Efficacité Énergétique (PRODERE) (Regional Programme for the Development of Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency) has been supporting the sector with a first phase consisting of the private sector development of six 60 kW solar mini-grids. Four of these are being built by SagemCom Energy & Telecom and two by BETRAD. As of May 2020, a second phase is underway with feasibility studies for eight additional mini-grids with capacities ranging from 20 kW to 500 kW.

A number of other private sector players are active in the sector as well, including Aphelion Energy, CR Technology Systems (CRTS), and Warex SRL. The currently unfavourable regulatory environment is expected to improve in October 2020, when the Compagnie Ivoirienne d'Electricité (CIE) monopoly concession ends.

Law Nr. 2014-132 of 24 March 2014 (Electricity Code of 2014) replaces the Electricity Law of 1985. The code allows for private participation in generation, transmission, distribution and retailing of electricity, thereby ending the state monopoly. It also allows for private generation for self-consumption, subject to the issuing of a licence by the state. Self-generated power can be fed into the grid. Despite private distribution being permitted under given conditions, very few mini-grid companies have been able to set up operations to date. This is because of a CIE concession agreement for electricity distribution that is in place until 2020. Decree Nr. 2016-787 of 12 October 2016 stipulates the conditions and arrangements for carrying out the activity of generation, distribution and marketing of electrical energy by means of mini-grid or standalone systems. The decree stipulates that companies wishing to operate mini-grids and standalone systems have to obtain a concession agreement under specific terms and conditions provided by CI-Energies. The decree elaborates on the obligations of concession holders, including quality of service. It refers to the detailed terms and conditions to be found in an annex, but this annex remains unavailable. Decree Nr. 2016-782 of 12 October 2016 on the conclusion of concession agreements for the generation, transmission, dispatching, import, export, distribution and marketing of electricity stipulates that selection of concessionaires will be conducted by means of an open invitation to tender. The decree also elaborates on the information to be contained in an agreement. However, no concessions have been granted to private developers. This is expected to change when CIE's concession ends in 2020. Decree Nr. 2016-786 stipulating the rules for the determination and revision of tariffs for the sale and purchase of electricity, and rules on access to the grid states that tariffs charged by concessionaires will be fixed and revised by an inter-ministerial order. Tariffs are set to allow reasonable revenues, while optimising consumption. Tariffs will apply across the geography to which the concession pertains, except for isolated mini-grids. They are set according to voltage and power levels and if appropriate, the period and time of consumption. For relevant customer categories, a social tariff must be implemented. It further states that MPEER launches calls for the selection of renewable energy IPPs, captive power operators and cogeneration facilities once every two years. Electricity from grid connected projects between 0.5 MW and 1 MW and isolated mini-grids between 20 kW and 500 kW must be procured at tariffs that are set for 5 to 10 year timeframes. The decree also outlines tariff setting guidelines for wheeling over the main grid.
Decree Nr. 2016-1152 of 28 December 2016 on mandatory quality standards states that electrical and renewable energy products are subject to national quality standards. The decree lists the various applicable standards.
Order Nr. 104 of 13 December 2019 stipulates the penalties for non-compliance to performance indicators for concessionnaires involved in the generation, distribution and retailing of electricity by means of mini-grids and/or standalone systems. The order is formulated as per article 8 of Decree Nr. 2016-787. It elaborates on requirements relating to continuous operations and customer service and outlines penalties associated with different types of transgressions. Order Nr. 103 of 13 December 2019 determining the typology of installations, subscriptions, operations, invoicing and payment of electricity supplied by mini-grids and standalone systems provides the distinctions between pico-grids, microgrids and mini-grids in Cote D'Ivoire. It also elaborates on different standalone PV systems. The order also specifies responsibilities of mini-grid and SHS/pico-solar concessionaires towards their customers specifically.

The Ivorian standalone solar market is experiencing noticeable growth. In 2019, 63,204 solar home systems and pico-solar products were sold by companies affiliated with GOGLA and Lighting Global, up from 40,367 in 2018. In 2019, 93% of these products were sold on a PAYGO basis, down from 96% in 2018. The remainder represents cash sales. This correlates with the high penetration rate of mobile money accounts (162%), which is the highest in West Africa. Before 2014, there were only two off-grid solar companies operational in Côte d'Ivoire. Since then, the number has increased rapidly. As of 2020, operational companies include AD Solar, Aphelion Energy, Baobab+, BBOXX, Entreprise Ivoirienne d'Intégration Energétique (E2iE), Fenix, LIFI-LED, Lumos, Orange Energie, PEG Africa, Phaesun, Schneider Electric, S-Tel, Yandalux CIV and ZECI (ZOLA Electric & EDF).

The government does not have regulations, targets or strategies dedicated to off-grid solar. In 2020, the gov was developing an off-grid strategy. The Plan Directeur d'Electrification Rurale (PDER) (Rural Electrification Master Plan) favours grid extension and plans that only 2% of the population will have access to electricity by means of standalone systems powered by renewable energy in 2030, down from 3% in 2020. It is noteworthy, however, that the plan only considers villages with populations of more than 500, consisting of brick buildings and solid roofs and with a school and a health centre (called "Lottie"). There are about 80,000 villages that do not meet these criteria, representing a population of about 5 million. To date, they have only been served with solar home systems (SHS). The Bas-Sassandra, Montagnes, Ssandra-Marahoué and Zanzan districts are attractive regions for off-grid solar providers, as they account for more than 50% of the unelectrified population.

The market is unregulated. Generally, Law Nr. 2014-132 of 24 March 2014 (Electricity Code of 2014) replaces the Electricity Law of 1985. The code allows for private participation in generation, transmission, distribution and retailing of electricity, thereby ending the state monopoly. It also allows for private generation for self-consumption, subject to the issuing of a licence by the state. Self-generated power can be fed into the grid. Decree Nr. 2016-787 of 12 October 2016 stipulating the conditions and arrangements for carrying out the activity of generation, distribution and marketing of electrical energy by means of mini-grid or standalone systems: The decree stipulates that companies wishing to operate mini-grids and standalone systems have to obtain a concession agreement under specific terms and conditions provided by CI-Energies. The decree elaborates on the obligations of concession holders, including quality of service. It refers to the detailed terms and conditions to be found in an annex, but this remains unavailable. Decree Nr. 2016-1152 of 28 December 2016 on mandatory quality standards states that electrical and renewable energy products are subject to national quality standards. The decree lists the various applicable standards. Order Nr. 104 of 13 December 2019 stipulating the penalties for non-compliance to performance indicators for concessionnaires involved in generation, distribution and retailing of electricity by means of mini-grids and/or standalone systems: This order is formulated as per article 8 of Decree Nr. 2016-787. It elaborates on requirements relating to continuous operations and customer service and outlines penalties associated with different types of transgressions. Order Nr. 103 of 13 December 2019 determining the typology of installations, subscriptions, operations, invoicing and payment of electricity supplied by mini-grids and standalone systems provide the distinctions between pico-grids, microgrids and mini-grids in Cote D'Ivoire. It also elaborates on different standalone PV systems. The order also specifies the responsibilities of mini-grid and SHS/pico-solar concessionaires towards their customers specifically. Order Nr. 105 of 13 December 2019 on the thresholds of installed capacity applicable to self-generation, and the conditions for obtaining authorisation states that renewable energy systems below 500 W are exempted from any form authorisation or declaration.

The captive power market in Côte d'Ivoire is limited to a few scattered projects. Distributed Power Africa (DPA) has been installing rooftop solar systems at three Ecobank branches in Abidjan (30.8 kW at Marseille, 30.8 kW at Dokui and 30.8 kW at Rue de la Jardin). Cogeneration takes place at the major sugar plantations. Sucrivoire operates a 9 MW biomass plant at its Borotou facility and a 12 MW biomass plant at its Zuenoula facility. Sania operates a 1.2 MW biomass cogeneration plant at its facility in Abidjan.

Given that a clear and relatively favourable regulatory framework is in place, it can be deduced that regulation is not a major barrier to captive power uptake in Côte d'Ivoire. The country has some of the lowest electricity tariffs in West Africa, so it could be that residential, commercial and industrial consumers are not financially incentivised to have systems installed at their households or facilities. Other factors such as the lack of financing packages and limited consumer awareness could also be playing a role.

Law Nr. 2014-132 of 24 March 2014 (Electricity Code of 2014) replaces the Electricity Law of 1985. The code allows for private participation in generation, transmission, distribution and commercialisation of electricity, thereby ending the state monopoly. It also allows for private generation for self-consumption, subject to the issuing of a licence by the state. Self-generated power can be fed into the grid. The law stipulates that the conditions for grid connection will be stipulated in a decree. The decree has not been issued yet. Decree Nr. 2016-783 stipulating the conditions for the sale of electricity produced by an IPP or surplus electricity produced by a self-producer state that captive power plants wishing to sell to third parties ("eligible customers") or the state must obtain authorisation first and enter into an agreement that stipulates the terms and conditions of the sale of electricity to the state or the third party. In addition, captive power plants wishing to sell to third parties must obtain permission from the regulator. A captive plant that sells excess power can only sell up to 50% of its annual generation. Adherence to the technical standards and codes is mandatory. Decree Nr. 2016-786 stipulating the rules for the determination and revision of tariffs for the sale and purchase of electricity, and rules on access to the grid states that tariffs charged by concessionaires will be fixed and revised by an interministerial order. It further states that MPEER launches calls for the selection of renewable energy IPPs, captive power operators and cogeneration facilities once every two years. Electricity from grid connected projects between 0.5 MW and 1 MW and isolated mini-grids between 20 kW and 500 kW must be procured at tariffs that are set for 5 to 10 year timeframes. The decree also outlines tariff setting guidelines for wheeling over the main grid. Decree Nr. 2016-1152 of 28 December 2016 on mandatory quality standards states that electrical and renewable energy products are subject to national quality standards. The decree lists the various applicable standards. Order Nr. 105 of 13 December 2019 on the thresholds of installed capacity applicable to self-generation, and the conditions for obtaining authorisation states that renewable energy systems below 500 W are exempted from any form authorisation or declaration. RE systems between 500 W and 20 kW must be declared. The process of declaring a system is outlined in the order. RE systems above 20 kW (isolated and grid connected) must obtain authorisation from the ministry. The process for applying for authorisation is outlined in the order.

Approximately 30% of the Ivorian population has access to clean cooking. Wood is consumed by 64% of the population, making it the dominant cooking fuel in Côte d'Ivoire. Other cooking fuels include charcoal (consumed by 20% of the population) and liquid petroleum gas (LPG) (consumed by 14% of the population). Soutra Fourneau markets a cookstove that reduces the consumption of charcoal by up to 60% and Man and Man Enterprise produces and sells efficient biomass cookstoves that save 40% of charcoal. Green Ker creates, produces, and distributes improved clay and metal cookstoves and Oryx Energies sells LPG to households. Novis is also operational in Côte d'Ivoire, having implemented nine biogas systems for cooking purposes in Bouaké. The government's Plan National des Energies Renouvelables (PANER) (National Plan for Renewable Energies) sets a target of 10% access to improved cookstoves and 90% access to modern cooking fuels (electricity and LPG) by 2030.