Investigation of net metering as a tool for increasing electricity access in developing countries

Uncertainties associated with implementation of small scale energy projects in most developing countries limited the entrance for independent power producers (IPP) in their energy market. Due to the dismal performance of most utility grids largely owned and operated by governments, integration of IPPs in the energy mainstream is instructive. Net metering is one of the policy instruments used in developed countries to attract private electricity generators in power networks. Previous reports argued that its success is attributable to the large scale energy market, hence, success in developing countries is uncertain. Other policy instruments like renewable energy feed-in-tariff have been used to this end in South Africa, but failed due its lack of compliance with her public procurement laws. As a result, renewable energy independent power producer procurement (REIPPP) program is used instead. The use of net metering as an incentive to encourage private electricity generators has been blithely ignored by most governments in this region. This paper investigates the use of net metering policy as a means of improving electricity access in emerging economies. Our finding shows that it could improve power reliability, reduce economy, limit over dependence on monopolistic utility grid, and relief congestion in power networks.