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United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs Sustainable Development

Utilities 2.0

(
Non-governmental organization (NGO)
)
#SDGAction43161
    Description
    Description
    About Utilities 2.0:
    Power for All convened 30 leaders in both centralized and decentralized energy to create a framework for electrification success at the Utilities 2.0 Bellagio summit in July 2018. Together, these leaders from the Global North and Global South developed a vision to bring grid, mini-grids and solar rooftop systems together create sustainable energy businesses and accelerate access. Ranging from Italy’s ENEL to Ethiopia’s EEU and India’s Tata Power, Bellagio participants defined Utilities 2.0 as an integrated, intelligent and interactive energy network of public and private actors, that deliver customer-centric clean energy solutions to end energy poverty. This same group of leaders have committed advance the Utilities 2.0 vision and prove that centralized and decentralized energy technologies have important roles to play in achieving universal energy access—and that these roles are bolstered by working together.

    Objective:
    Demonstrate how centralized and decentralized energy integration can help achieve faster, cheaper, more reliable universal access while also supporting the objectives of Umeme (and its regulator).

    Theses:
    - The use of integrated planning, coordinated energy markets, and innovative finance can reduce connection cost, accelerate connection pace, and improve affordability for end-users.
    - The use of smart, integrated technologies can improve reliability of connections and reduce grid losses.
    - The use of data and finance innovations can drive demand stimulation for all energy companies’ bottom lines and customer benefit.

    Implementation
    - User segmentation: Based on an agreed criteria, Umeme and Utilities 2.0 research teams will categorize user groups (e.g., by types of loads) and develop detailed mapping.
    - Integrated Infrastructure: Based on customer research and site analysis, the consortia will work with Umeme to design integrated systems.
    - Demand Stimulation: With Umeme, the consortia will help design consumer finance and demand-stimulation programs for testing and uptake
    - Consumer Education: With Umeme, the consortia will assess consumer energy knowledge and coordinate energy literacy-building in an effort to grow support for integrated energy across Ugandan decision makers and end users.
    - Regulation and Policy: In coordination with Umeme, the consortia will engage donors and key government entities for pilot support, including identifying and developing contingency plan for regulatory challenges that may slow pilot itself, as well as successful pilot results.

    Follow-Up Mechanisms
    - Implementation: Ongoing task force for stakeholder engagement working groups—including Umeme stakeholders, donors and other entities needed to support the pilot—are established and will be regularly updated on (publically).
    - Communication: Utilities 2.0 will place a premium on sharing learnings in real-time (blogs, podcasts, videos), to build capacity and interest in the future pilots around the world--including placing Umeme on a global stage. This effort will begin by announcing the Umeme pilot.
    - Evaluation and measurement: Designed at the beginning of the project, studies will include a range of technical and development studies to evaluate success of the pilot activities (e.g., behaviors, aspirations, health).
    Expected Impact

    With an integrated approach, governments and utilities can make more informed decisions about how to invest scarce public resources, leveraging more private investment and thus maximize the total investment deployed in pursuit of energy access goals. In theory, the foundations of integrated planning—including comprehensive baseline studies and modeling based on GIS, population density, proximity to power infrastructure, and energy resource availability—should be able to produce the optimal technology mix to deliver least-cost, fastest-path energy access. And, given the dividends produced in education, health, and gender equality improvements (among other benefits) that result from accelerated connections to modern energy services, integrated energy planning and delivery has the potential to be one of the most powerful weapons to fight energy poverty.

    Umeme—one of the Africa’s most innovative energy companies—has created a uniquely successful private utility on the continent. While Umeme’s management, customer base and regulatory framework have helped deliver one of the few profitable African utilities, Uganda’s electrification rate is only 22 percent. Simultaneously, energy off-take has failed to keep pace with Uganda’s generation growth, leading to increased pressure to stimulate energy demand across the country, to ensure profitability and long-term sustainable demand growth.

    Based on grid economics, Umeme and traditional grid extension can’t solve these pressures alone. By combining advantages of traditional utilities like Umeme (infrastructure, transmission lines and poles, access long-term low-cost financing, existing customer billing and collections systems) and decentralized renewables (lower cost connections, fast implementation, fewer regulatory challenges) with targeted interventions to drive demand (financing, training, bundled services etc), we believe profitable, affordable and accelerated universal access is possible in Uganda.

    By working with the Utilities 2.0 collaborative, Umeme can help demonstrate an economical model of integrated electricity access that stimulates demand, recruits future customers, and addresses energy poverty. With this pilot, decentralized and centralized energy together will catalyze the research, engineering, regulation and political will to realize faster, more affordable energy access for all. As a result of this pilot, not only will Umeme have an opportunity to pioneer the testing of such blended solutions, but Uganda itself will provide valuable vision and a path forward for all of Africa to follow.

    Partners
    Implementation partners working directly on the Utilities 2.0 demonstration in Uganda include Umeme (Private Sector), CLASP (NGO), East African Power (Private Sector), EnerGrow (Private Sector), Equatorial Power (Private Sector), Fenix International (Private Sector), Power for All (NGO), PowerGen (Private Sector), Rockefeller Foundation (Philanthropic Organization), Rocky Mountain Institute (NGO), Zola Electric/NXTGrid (Private Sector), the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (Academic Institution), Nithio (Private Sector), Cross Boundary (Private Sector), African Mini-Grid Developers Association (NGO), Uganda Off-Grid Market Accelerator (NGO). The broader Bellagio Coalition that helped to launch this initiative also includes ENGIE, ENEL (Private Sector), EDF (Private Sector), MIT (Academic Institution), Shell Foundation (Philanthropic Organization), Nigeria's Rural Electrification Agency (Government), Ethiopia Electrification Directorate/EEU (Government), Odyssey (Private Sector), Tata Power (Private Sector), Mlinda Sustainable Environment Private Limited (Private Sector), Smart Power India (NGO).

    Goal 7

    Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

    Goal 7

    7.1

    By 2030, ensure universal access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services

    7.1.1

    Proportion of population with access to electricity

    7.1.2

    Proportion of population with primary reliance on clean fuels and technology

    7.2

    By 2030, increase substantially the share of renewable energy in the global energy mix
    7.2.1

    Renewable energy share in the total final energy consumption

    7.3

    By 2030, double the global rate of improvement in energy efficiency
    7.3.1

    Energy intensity measured in terms of primary energy and GDP

    7.a

    By 2030, enhance international cooperation to facilitate access to clean energy research and technology, including renewable energy, energy efficiency and advanced and cleaner fossil-fuel technology, and promote investment in energy infrastructure and clean energy technology
    7.a.1

    International financial flows to developing countries in support of clean energy research and development and renewable energy production, including in hybrid systems

    7.b

    By 2030, expand infrastructure and upgrade technology for supplying modern and sustainable energy services for all in developing countries, in particular least developed countries, small island developing States, and land-locked developing countries, in accordance with their respective programmes of support

    7.b.1

    Installed renewable energy-generating capacity in developing countries (in watts per capita)

    Goal 9

    Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and foster innovation

    Goal 9

    9.1

    Develop quality, reliable, sustainable and resilient infrastructure, including regional and transborder infrastructure, to support economic development and human well-being, with a focus on affordable and equitable access for all
    9.1.1

    Proportion of the rural population who live within 2 km of an all-season road

    9.1.2

    Passenger and freight volumes, by mode of transport

    9.2

    Promote inclusive and sustainable industrialization and, by 2030, significantly raise industry’s share of employment and gross domestic product, in line with national circumstances, and double its share in least developed countries

    9.2.1

    Manufacturing value added as a proportion of GDP and per capita

    9.2.2

    Manufacturing employment as a proportion of total employment

    9.3

    Increase the access of small-scale industrial and other enterprises, in particular in developing countries, to financial services, including affordable credit, and their integration into value chains and markets
    9.3.1

    Proportion of small-scale industries in total industry value added

    9.3.2

    Proportion of small-scale industries with a loan or line of credit

    9.4

    By 2030, upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable, with increased resource-use efficiency and greater adoption of clean and environmentally sound technologies and industrial processes, with all countries taking action in accordance with their respective capabilities

    9.4.1

    COemission per unit of value added

    9.5

    Enhance scientific research, upgrade the technological capabilities of industrial sectors in all countries, in particular developing countries, including, by 2030, encouraging innovation and substantially increasing the number of research and development workers per 1 million people and public and private research and development spending
    9.5.1

    Research and development expenditure as a proportion of GDP

    9.5.2

    Researchers (in full-time equivalent) per million inhabitants

    9.a

    Facilitate sustainable and resilient infrastructure development in developing countries through enhanced financial, technological and technical support to African countries, least developed countries, landlocked developing countries and small island developing States
    9.a.1

    Total official international support (official development assistance plus other official flows) to infrastructure

    9.b

    Support domestic technology development, research and innovation in developing countries, including by ensuring a conducive policy environment for, inter alia, industrial diversification and value addition to commodities
    9.b.1

    Proportion of medium and high-tech industry value added in total value added

    9.c

    Significantly increase access to information and communications technology and strive to provide universal and affordable access to the Internet in least developed countries by 2020

    9.c.1

    Proportion of population covered by a mobile network, by technology

    Goal 17

    Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalize the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development

    Goal 17

    17.1

    Strengthen domestic resource mobilization, including through international support to developing countries, to improve domestic capacity for tax and other revenue collection

    17.1.1
    Total government revenue as a proportion of GDP, by source
    17.1.2
    Proportion of domestic budget funded by domestic taxes

    17.2

    Developed countries to implement fully their official development assistance commitments, including the commitment by many developed countries to achieve the target of 0.7 per cent of ODA/GNI to developing countries and 0.15 to 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to least developed countries; ODA providers are encouraged to consider setting a target to provide at least 0.20 per cent of ODA/GNI to least developed countries

    17.2.1
    Net official development assistance, total and to least developed countries, as a proportion of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Development Assistance Committee donors’ gross national income (GNI)

    17.3

    Mobilize additional financial resources for developing countries from multiple sources

    17.3.1

    Additional financial resources mobilized for developing countries from multiple sources 

    17.3.2
    Volume of remittances (in United States dollars) as a proportion of total GDP

    17.4

    Assist developing countries in attaining long-term debt sustainability through coordinated policies aimed at fostering debt financing, debt relief and debt restructuring, as appropriate, and address the external debt of highly indebted poor countries to reduce debt distress

    17.4.1
    Debt service as a proportion of exports of goods and services

    17.5

    Adopt and implement investment promotion regimes for least developed countries

    17.5.1

    Number of countries that adopt and implement investment promotion regimes for developing countries, including the least developed countries

    17.6

    Enhance North-South, South-South and triangular regional and international cooperation on and access to science, technology and innovation and enhance knowledge sharing on mutually agreed terms, including through improved coordination among existing mechanisms, in particular at the United Nations level, and through a global technology facilitation mechanism

    17.6.1

     Fixed Internet broadband subscriptions per 100 inhabitants, by speed

    17.7

    Promote the development, transfer, dissemination and diffusion of environmentally sound technologies to developing countries on favourable terms, including on concessional and preferential terms, as mutually agreed

    17.7.1

    Total amount of funding for developing countries to promote the development, transfer, dissemination and diffusion of environmentally sound technologies

    17.8

    Fully operationalize the technology bank and science, technology and innovation capacity-building mechanism for least developed countries by 2017 and enhance the use of enabling technology, in particular information and communications technology

    17.8.1
    Proportion of individuals using the Internet

    17.9

    Enhance international support for implementing effective and targeted capacity-building in developing countries to support national plans to implement all the Sustainable Development Goals, including through North-South, South-South and triangular cooperation

    17.9.1

    Dollar value of financial and technical assistance (including through North-South, South‑South and triangular cooperation) committed to developing countries

    17.10

    Promote a universal, rules-based, open, non-discriminatory and equitable multilateral trading system under the World Trade Organization, including through the conclusion of negotiations under its Doha Development Agenda

    17.10.1
    Worldwide weighted tariff-average

    17.11

    Significantly increase the exports of developing countries, in particular with a view to doubling the least developed countries’ share of global exports by 2020

    17.11.1

    Developing countries’ and least developed countries’ share of global exports

    17.12

    Realize timely implementation of duty-free and quota-free market access on a lasting basis for all least developed countries, consistent with World Trade Organization decisions, including by ensuring that preferential rules of origin applicable to imports from least developed countries are transparent and simple, and contribute to facilitating market access

    17.12.1

    Weighted average tariffs faced by developing countries, least developed countries and small island developing States

    17.13

    Enhance global macroeconomic stability, including through policy coordination and policy coherence

    17.13.1
    Macroeconomic Dashboard

    17.14

    Enhance policy coherence for sustainable development

    17.14.1
    Number of countries with mechanisms in place to enhance policy coherence of sustainable development

    17.15

    Respect each country’s policy space and leadership to establish and implement policies for poverty eradication and sustainable development 

    17.15.1
    Extent of use of country-owned results frameworks and planning tools by providers of development cooperation

    17.16

    Enhance the Global Partnership for Sustainable Development, complemented by multi-stakeholder partnerships that mobilize and share knowledge, expertise, technology and financial resources, to support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals in all countries, in particular developing countries

    17.16.1

    Number of countries reporting progress in multi-stakeholder development effectiveness monitoring frameworks that support the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals

    17.17

    Encourage and promote effective public, public-private and civil society partnerships, building on the experience and resourcing strategies of partnerships 

    17.17.1

    Amount in United States dollars committed to public-private partnerships for infrastructure

    17.18

    By 2020, enhance capacity-building support to developing countries, including for least developed countries and small island developing States, to increase significantly the availability of high-quality, timely and reliable data disaggregated by income, gender, age, race, ethnicity, migratory status, disability, geographic location and other characteristics relevant in national contexts

    17.18.1

    Statistical capacity indicator for Sustainable Development Goal monitoring

    17.18.2
    Number of countries that have national statistical legislation that complies with the Fundamental Principles of Official Statistics
    17.18.3

    Number of countries with a national statistical plan that is fully funded and under implementation, by source of funding

    17.19

    By 2030, build on existing initiatives to develop measurements of progress on sustainable development that complement gross domestic product, and support statistical capacity-building in developing countries

    17.19.1
    Dollar value of all resources made available to strengthen statistical capacity in developing countries
    17.19.2

    Proportion of countries that (a) have conducted at least one population and housing census in the last 10 years; and (b) have achieved 100 per cent birth registration and 80 per cent death registration

    Name Description
    Launch Utilities 2.0 Call to Action at African Utility Week
    Launch Utilities 2.0 Integrated Energy Demonstration in Uganda
    Report: Integrated Energy Phase 1 Results (Technology + Business Models)
    Report: Integrated Energy Plan for Replication and Scale
    Financing (in USD)
    Direct contribution from the Rockefeller Foundation to support the pilot launch
    In-kind contribution
    Contribution of several DRE companies' technology and team to pilot site
    Staff / Technical expertise
    Senior-level utility staff assigned to support pilot ranging from the executive suite and Board of Directors to District Managers
    Other, please specify
    Access to Umeme grid and data
    No progress reports have been submitted. Please sign in and click here to submit one.
    False
    Action Network
    SDG Acceleration Actions
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    Timeline
    14 May 2019 (start date)
    31 May 2020 (date of completion)
    Entity
    Power for All
    SDGs
    Region
    1. Africa
    2. Asia and Pacific
    3. Global
    Geographical coverage
    San Francisco, CA USA
    Other beneficiaries
    Neither centralized nor decentralized energy is purpose-built to end energy poverty at scale, alone. Creating an energy system based on the optimal mix of service levels and technologies for a given area has the potential to radically transform the future for the energy poor. To this end, while Utilities 2.0 begins with Uganda, the vision to expand the Utilities 2.0 approach at least 10 additional countries in the next decade, seeking to cut universal access timelines by 25-50 percent in target countries.
    More information
    Countries
    Uganda
    Uganda
    Contact Information

    Kristina Skierka, CEO