Electricity access challenges and opportunities in Papua New Guinea (PNG)

摘要: Electricity access is a key driver of socio-economic development of a nation, and a critical catalyst to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals. Unfortunately Papua New Guinea (PNG) faces an acute electrification challenge with the majority of the population, especially in rural communities living without basic access to electricity. This paper reviews current literature comprised mostly of development-partner reports, to establish the current electricity access context, identify high-level barriers and, given its key role for off-grid access, discuss opportunities for solar photovoltaic systems (Solar PV). Despite the country’s abundant energy resources, PNG is reported to have an electricity access of around 10-15% based on the binary access-metric system1. Including solar PV pico-lights, the rate of access increases to around 55%, which is still lower than the global average of 89% but demonstrates the already significant impact of PV technology. PNG now has the daunting task of achieving 70% electrification by 2030 and understanding the barriers is critical to driving future growth. The most prominent reported barriers relate to governance, lack of capacity, rugged terrain with sparsely distributed population, lack of finance and law and order issues which include land conflicts. Solar Photovoltaic systems have a huge potential and can assist with driving electrification but need appropriate policy and regulatory support, and financing-mechanisms.