Abstract
Access to affordable electricity supply is crucial to help achieve the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. However, there are several unelectrified rural areas in developing countries. These locations are primarily distant from the central grid and best suited for decentralized mini-grids. However, these systems are capital-intensive and require meticulous planning to ensure their sustainability. The situation is exacerbated when they are deployed using intermittent renewable energy resources. Using the Political, Economic, Social, Technical (PESTLE) framework, the authors analyzed the key factors that can drive the sustainable implementation of such systems in developing countries using Ghana as a case study. The results indicated that economic and technical drivers played a significant role in adopting the technology, while social-cultural drivers were the least impactful. The authors made recommendations that can inform policy and decision-makers on the areas that need improvement when planning and implementing future mini-grids in Ghana.
