Challenges, Opportunities and Profitability in Virtual Power Plant Business Models in Sub Saharan Africa - Botswana

• Main Authors: Sampath Kumar Venkatachary, Jagdish Prasad, Ravi Samikannu
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EconJournals 2017-09-01
• Series: International Journal of Energy Economics and Policy
• Online Access: https://www.econjournals.com/index.php/ijeep/article/view/4973

<p class="Pa7">The growing awareness among the various communities on dramatic climate change in the recent years and impact of fossil fuels as a source of energy which is depleting fast, has got researcher thinking on alternate sources of energy with an aim for sustainable living for the livelihood of many countries. In this context, VPP turns out to be a promising solution as a sustainable future with renewables feeding the plant. VPP is congregation of distributed resources pooled together. Not only is this system efficient with updated digital technologies in the form of Smart solutions, but also capable of providing immense benefits to consumers/prosumers. Immense benefits in the form of sustainable renewable power as a source of income makes VPP attractive to consumers, who turn as prosumers and arguably become one of the most value creators in the energy market. The plethora of R and D in VPP grid adds value to energy business while maintaining and bringing down the ill effects of CO₂emissions. This paper focuses on various aspects and business models, value propositions and the challenges in context to Sub Saharan African region - Botswana.</p><p><strong>Keywords: </strong>Virtual Power Plant, Demand Response, Demand Side Management, Time of Use, Critical Peak Pricing</p><p><strong>JEL Classifications: </strong>A12, M29</p>