Mini-Grids on the Trajectory of Rural Electrification in Africa

A decade ago, the emergence of mobile phones and mobile data services made the introduction of
traditional cable-bound phone and data networks in Africa obsolete. The rapid evolution in distributed
energy technologies and services is showing us that, Smart Grids will similarly soon overtake outdated
electrification approaches based solely on hub-and-spoke main-grid extension. In this evolution, mini-grids are already playing an important role as nuclei and test centers for Smart Grid development.