Almost 1.2 billion people lack electricity

May 31. () –

At least 1.18 billion people are energy poor, while they do not reveal statistical evidence of electricity use from space.

It is the conclusion of a new study, which offers the first computational classifications of energy poverty in the developing world, combining high-resolution daytime and nighttime satellite images to assess the light emission signatures over up to 3,000 nights in all human settlements in the developing world.

That total is 60% higher than the official global estimate of 733 million people who lack access to electricity, indicating that much more work is needed to address energy justice and equity gaps, according to the research, led by Brian Min, of the University of Michigan, and that It is published in Joule magazine.

In a new analysis of settlement-level data in sub-Saharan Africa, most of the variation in energy poverty rates is explained by differences within countries in terms of population density, remoteness and terrain characteristics. However, many neighborhoods and villages are located near areas where electricity networks have already been established, indicating that there are opportunities to reduce energy poverty without substantial investments in new infrastructure.

Most of the energy poor live in areas that are more remote, less densely populated, and more rugged than energy-abundant areas. These methods provide new tracking and monitoring capabilities in the global effort to ensure affordable, reliable and sustainable energy for all, the authors maintain.