University of Delaware Office of Public Relations The Messenger Vol. 5, No. 2/1996 More power to the people Sheepherders and farmers in rural China don't want much by American standards. They'd like to have running water, electric lights, some sort of refrigeration and, maybe, black-and-white televisions in their homes. Rural schools, hospitals and other institutions have the same modest requests. But, even though China is experiencing a burgeoning prosperity, what has been described as "cowboy capitalism," rural areas have been slow to receive the coveted trappings of modernity-largely due to the problem of supplying electricity. Much of rural China consists of vast land masses with populations scattered throughout in small villages. The government, the supplier of electricity, has said it realizes that electrification is the key to progress. But, it's reported, the government also is aware that the cost would be prohibitive for running and maintaining electrical wires over miles of grass and farmland to villages of only a few hundred people. That's where the University's Center for Energy and Environmental Policy (CEEP) comes in. In 1994, the U.S. Department of Energy contracted with CEEP to do a national assessment of China's resources and economy to determine how and where renewable energy generation is feasible. Renewable energy includes both solar- and wind-generated power and may be more cost-effective than extending the electric grid to these areas, according to CEEP director John Byrne. The first part of the study will be completed next month, Byrne says. "We now know there are three areas that have the best resources and economic characteristics for solar and wind power-Tibet, Qinghai and Inner Mongolia," he says. Byrne, a professor in the College of Urban Affairs and Public Policy, his research assistant Bo Shen and other researchers working on the project, say they decided to begin information-gathering in Inner Mongolia because it has the most aggressive renewable energy program and the region typifies rural China. According to the CEEP study, Inner Mongolia has a land mass of more than 463,000 square miles, nearly twice the size of Texas. Because most of the area is flat grassland, there is little to interfere with the intensity of the wind or the sun. Its 22 million people, mostly farmers and herders, are among the poorest of China. Approximately 300,000 households are still without electricity. CEEP's figures show that, in the 38 years that the rural electrification program has existed, 110,000 wind turbines and 3,800 solar panel systems have been installed, bringing electricity to 100,000 households. At that rate, it will take 114 years to electrify the rest of the region. Another problem is that the devices now used produce only about 300 kilowatt hours of electricity per household per year. In contrast, the average U.S. household uses 7,200 kilowatt hours annually. The inefficiency of some of the devices also has diminished the benefit. CEEP's job has been to find a way to improve the efficiency of the individual and community units, as well as a way to help individuals and communities pay for the devices. Byrne says that, up until now, they've been using only one type of generator-either solar or wind. But, according to Shen, strong winds experienced in some seasons diminish when the sun is intense. If only one system is being used, efficiency falls off when the other system would be more effective. Another stumbling block is money. According to Byrne, devices now are purchased for cash. The Inner Mongolia government provides cash incentives of between $30 and $40 per device, but the money must be paid up front. With the average Mongolian earning $12.50 per month and a 300-watt wind device selling for around $600 and a 100-watt solar system for nearly $800, the problem is clear. "We'll have to come up with a financing plan so they will be able to buy the machines sooner," Byrne says. One of the ideas the Delaware researchers have considered is to calculate the money saved by the utility by not running wire to these villages and then deducting those costs from the purchase price of the wind and solar devices. Byrne says Inner Mongolia's goal is to have the entire region electrified with renewables by the year 2000. CEEP, the government of China, the U.S. Department of Energy and solar and wind device manufacturers in both countries say they hope the study will lead to a brighter future for rural China and a new and vigorous market for solar and wind technologies. -Barbara Garrison