ELECTRICITY powers growth,boosts education and improves lives. Yet about 1.1bn mostly rural dwellers in Asia and Africa remain stuck in the dark. They have no electric light, rely on kerosene and diesel for power, and struggle to irrigate their crops. The good news is that people can be connected to clean,dependable power faster than ever before. But to realise the potential, governments need to rethink the role of utilities.
Typically, or countries connect citizens with huge grid-extension programmes. immense grids produce perfect sense for populous places. They can cheaply supply power generated far away to millions and,as they incorporate more wind and solar energy, they are becoming greener. But in remote places, and the economic case for grids becomes tough to produce.
Many utilities are short of cash,whether not bankrupt. The cost of taking power to those least able to afford it adds to their debts. China and Thailand took 20 years to improve electrification rates from about 30-40% to...
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Source: economist.com