ASSESSING RENEWABLE ENERGY POTENTIAL IN PALESTINE

Tareq Abu Hamed Hannah Flamm The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies Dead Sea and Arava Science Center Kibbutz Ketura 88840 Israel Tareq@arava.org Lina Ismail Central European University Nador u. 9 1051 Budapest, Hungary The University of Manchester Oxford Road Manchester M13 9PL, UK

ABSTRACT The objective of this work is to discuss the challenges facing the Palestinian energy sector, and evaluate the renewable energy potential in meeting part of the energy demand. In Palestine 100% of the fossil fuels and 89% of the electricity supply come from Israel, resulting in a demand increase for both countries. This study shows that the main renewable energy sources in Palestine are solar, wind biomass and geothermal. Using these energy sources may significantly decrease the energy reliance on neighboring countries and improve the Palestinian populations access to energy. It is estimated that wind and solar energy sources have the potential to account for around 36% of electricity demand; the conversion of agricultural waste into biodiesel can reduce diesel imports by 5%; the conversion of animal waste into biogas has the potential to replace 1.6% of the imported LPG and the use of geothermal energy for heating and cooling can reduce the cost of conventional energy used for these applications by 70%. 1. INTRODUCTION Today the measure of development in any society is related with its energy consumption level. Technological and industrial development resulting in improvement in the standard of living, go hand in hand with higher energy demands in order to attain that quality of life. Energy consumption is therefore recognized as a critical input parameter for national economic development. Today's energy demands are still met largely from fossil fuels such as coal, oil and natural gas. If energy consumption continues to increase at current rates, energy supply will be a serious global challenge in the near future. The world total primary energy supply in 1973 and 2009 was 6,111 and 12,150 Mtoe respectively, indicating a growth rate of 199% [1]. Therefore, many countries have made enormous efforts to develop and utilize alternative sources of energy, particularly renewable ones, in order to meet

their growing energy demands, protect the environment from greenhouse gases emitted from conventional energy sources as well as achieve sustainability in the long term. Since Palestine is a developing nation, its access to considerable amounts of energy is essential to achieve economic growth and development. While most of Palestine has access to electricity [2] there are many challenges facing Palestine, arising mainly from its energy dependence. Its energy is not provided through domestic means but rather provided through Israel which controls the quantity and quality of energy imported [3]. With complete dependency on Israel for its energy needs, Palestine is put in a vulnerable position given its complex political and security situation. Such a threat has given rise to the importance of using renewable energy such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass [3]. Renewable energy can offer Palestine many benefits which will not only revolve around the reduction of conventional energy consumption and reducing harmful emissions, but most importantly will help achieve sustainable development for a Palestine that has little natural resources [4]. The motivation for this paper is to assess the renewable energy potential, to touch on the challenges of developing renewable energy technologies in Palestine, and to discuss the benefits of using renewable energy in Palestinian communities. 2. ENERGY SITUATION IN PALESTINE The vast majority of fossil fuels consumed in the Palestine are imported, with the majority originating in Israel and with marginal percentages from Egypt and Jordan. Fossil fuels are principally consumed by the transportation sector. Primary energy sources used in Palestine are mostly fossil fuels and renewable sources (Fig. 1). Fossil fuels constitute around 73% of the primary energy sources

(29,839 Terajoules), and are mainly diesel, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), and gasoline. They are used chiefly for transportation, heating, and generating electricity (diesel generators) in places where there is no electricity network or during the frequent electricity cuts.

dependency in the recent political context makes the Palestinian energy sector highly vulnerable to political manipulation and to volatility and shocks in prices and supply rates. As a result, the energy supply is less secure and stable, less affordable, less sustainable and more limited. These conditions impede economic development and the possibility of meeting the demands of a rapidly growing population.

Fig 1. Primary energy sources in Palestine [5]. In addition to fossil fuels, renewable energy sources in Palestine constitute about 27% (11,208 Terajoules), in the form of solar energy (43%) (mainly used for heating, in household solar water heaters), and biomass, such as wood (51%), and olive cake (6%), which are used in heating (Fig 2).

Fig. 3. Quantity of Electricity Purchases (MWh) in Palestine by Source [5] The energy situation in the Gaza Strip is far more severe. The vast majority of the population has experienced blackouts for two-thirds of the day for over two years. For over five years, the Gaza Power Plant has been functioning at no more than half-capacity. The siege and prohibitions, since 2006, on the trade or transport of supplies to repair or maintain infrastructure have devastated the energy sector. Without a stable, reliable, and sufficient energy supply, storage and distribution system, the local and national development of the Palestinian economy is curtailed, from the isolated villages of South Mount Hebron to the major industries. Total energy consumption in Palestine is the lowest in the region, costs more than anywhere else in the region and constitutes a higher proportion of household expenditures. 3. RENEWABLE ENERGY IN PALESTINE Renewable energy is important for Palestine, both for energy security reasons as well as for improving economic conditions. There is high potential for solar energy in the Palestine, with a daily average solar radiation of 5.4 kWh/m2. The high values of solar radiation encourage the use of solar energy for different applications such as water heating, drying of crops, vegetables and fruits, water desalination, water pumping and electrification of remote locations isolated from the electrical networks [3]. Palestine has moderate wind speeds. The hilly regions of the West Bank Nablus, Ramallah, Jerusalem and 2

Fig 2. Breakdown of renewable energy sources in Palestine [5]. With regard to power generation in Palestine, as illustrated in Fig. 3 below, there is extreme dependence on Israel, given that Palestine Electric Company produces only 7% of the total electricity (using diesel imported from Israel). A much smaller proportion comes from Egypt and Jordan, respectively 3% and 1%. The problems in the Palestinian energy sector are numerous and intertwined with each other and with the broader political and national conditions. The Palestinian power supply is almost entirely dependent on Israel: with 3.97 Terawatts-hour (TWh) supplied by Israel; 41.0 TWh supplied by Egypt, 0.05 TWh by Jordan and 0.3 TWh by the Gaza Power Plant. This

Hebron have an annual average wind speed of 4-8 m/s [3]. Prospects for wind energy in the West Bank are reasonable in the mountainous regions above 1,000 m, where the average wind speed may exceed 5 m/s, but the resource is limited. Prospects are technically better in Gaza, but the area is very heavily populated, and the large areas of land required for wind energy development is not available [6]. Were it not for present political obstacles, wind energy could be utilized offshore to provide the Gaza Strip with electricity. As an agricultural society, Palestine has a viable amount of animal products and agricultural waste that may be used as energy sources [3]. 3.1 Challenges and Benefits of Increased Renewable Energy Use Given Palestines present political situation, the idea of successfully addressing anything but basic needs may seem implausible. Yet its energy situation is in desperate need for improvement as it is the cornerstone of development and prosperity, and renewable energy may present fewer obstacles than the conventional energy sector to achieve these goals. Evidently, a number of the challenges that would arise in attempting to increase renewable energy use in Palestine are the same challenges that the energy sector faces regardless of the type of energy: the political impediments, embodied in the status of Palestine as an occupied territory by Israel and the lack of full Palestinian control over its areas, which hinders the development of institutions, the implementation of policies and the construction of physical infrastructure. Another challenge would be the discouraging climate for potential investors, in addition to the challenges inherent in the geographic isolation between the Gaza Strip and West Bank and East Jerusalem, as well as the politically imposed internal divisions. However, a subset of these challenges would be less problematic with renewable energy than with conventional energy. For example, renewable energy systems and applications can be built, at least initially, on a local level (family, village, municipality or region) and do not require interconnection with other locations, across geographic, political or security bounds. An additional benefit of being able to produce and distribute power independently on a local and small-scale level is that energy may be provided to populations before political changes are achieved. As off-grid communities, in particular in the West Bank, establish a local capacity to generate energy, be it through solar panels, wind turbines or bio-digesters, they strengthen their future local and national state infrastructure from the bottom-up. On a macro level, the generation of energy from renewable sources would reduce Palestines reliance on Israel, decreasing its vulnerability to political, economic and security shocks.

For Palestine to develop a strong renewable energy market, the following obstacles would need to be overcome: Absence of sufficient political will for the development of renewable resources; Absence of regulations and provisions to control the quality in the market; Absence of qualified testing labs and bodies; Heavy tax system and high cost of clean/efficient technologies; Lack of incentives and proper financing schemes; and High political and financial risk in implementing renewable energy systems. The high taxes imposed by Israel on imported products by Palestinians raise the total cost of investments, making a Palestinian investment uncompetitive compared to an Israeli one. Hence it is clear that renewable technologies are a preferred innovation or solution, regardless of which renewable technology is employed, as local products and capacities are more likely to help local residents overcome poverty. Increased renewable energy use could help alleviate some other adverse effects of the current energy situation of Palestine by reducing demands on the existing energy system, the Israel Electric Company electrical services, which do not meet the current demand in addition to subjecting the Palestinians to monopolistic Israeli practices, either through direct supply or energy pricing [7]. The use of renewable energy would also reduce pressure on the existing energy infrastructure, which has been largely neglected or destroyed by the occupation and lack of a functional government. With greater energy supply, preferably from renewable energy sources, there would be fewer limitations on Palestines economic development that is currently hindered due to lack of access to local grids and high energy prices. Energy insecurity due to the few domestic natural resources, fluctuations in oil prices, and total dependence on neighboring countries would be reduced. High energy prices, which hinder commercial activities and village access to sufficient energy supply, would be lowered. 3.2 Solar energy Solar energy can be a major contributor to the future Palestinian energy supply, with its high potential in the area. Palestine receives about 3,000 hours of sunshine per year and has an average solar radiation of 5.4 kWh/m2 daily [8]. The average solar radiation varies by season: it reaches as low as 2.63 kWh/m2 per day in December and as high as 8.4 kWh/m2 per day in June. These levels of solar radiation are encouraging to harness solar energy for various applications. Palestine is one of the leading countries worldwide in usage of solar water heaters for domestic applications, according to the Palestine Central

Bureau of Statistics (PCBS)[3], approximately 67% of Palestinian homes use solar water heaters. They are used in hotels and some hospitals as well as homes and apartments. More than 90% of these solar water heaters are manufactured locally and cost between $250 and $350 [3]. The Jordan valley in Palestine receives high solar radiation levels of 5.4-6.0 kWh/m2 per day annually. These are excellent conditions for harnessing solar energy for both large-scale and stand-alone applications. The Jordan Valley is conducive to hosting a solar field for another reason: it is the least densely populated region in Palestine. Two photovoltaic power plants (polycrystalline silicon with an efficiency of 11%) with an area of 8 km2 each can generate 1 GW of electricity. These field could cover 2.7% of the land in the Jordan Valley and could generate around 1.2 TWh per year (approximating 5 sun hours, 300 days and a performance ratio of 0.8). Such fields could account for 27% of current Palestinian electricity needs. Similar photovoltaic or solar thermal power plants could be installed in the northern regions of the West Bank as well, such as Jenin and Nablus, where the average solar radiation ranges from 5.4 to 5.9 kW/m2 per day [9]. Rooftop photovoltaic installations can play a small role in providing electricity to the Palestinian grid as well. The houses in Palestine have an average area of 150 m2 each. Using only 10% of the rooftop area for photovoltaic installation would generate around 146 GWh per year. Such rooftop installations would cover approximately 2.7% of the Palestinian electricity needs. 3.3 Wind Energy Wind energy is a mature electricity production technology, that is not only the economically attractive option in meeting the constantly increasing global energy demand, but it also constitutes a major part of the renewable clean energy solution for the sustainable development of nations.. The detailed knowledge of the wind characteristics is very important for an effective utilization of wind energy. The long-term wind velocity measurements, the energy of the wind, the generator type and the results of the feasibility study are the most important factors that have to be taken into account when designing a wind farm. Also the longer the period of collected wind data, the more reliable the estimated wind potentials. In Palestine, there are no such long-term measurements. At 100 meters in height, the wind speed will be 5.7 and 6 m/s in the northern and southern West Bank, respectively. Using a 100-meter wind turbine with blade length of 52 meters and power coefficient of 0.4, the annual power that can be generated is 3.3 and 3.8 GWh for the northern and southern West Bank, respectively. Using a wind farm of

50 turbines, each would generate 355 GWh/year, which could account for 6.6% of the electricity need in Palestine. Wind energy could make an important contribution to meeting the energy needs for Palestinians who reside in rural areas (17% of the population). The low speed winds in Palestine may encourage using wind energy in standalone systems to provide small electricity loads, such as for water pumping, grain grinding and other purposes. Successful examples of small scale wind turbines include providing basic electricity services to about 500 people living in small rural communities in the area of south Hebron, with the addition of solar panels. Another successful example is the installation of a large scale wind turbine in Palestine, at the Al-Ahli hospital in Hebron, that provides about 40% of all the hospitals energy needs [10]. This is, however, the only such case. With regard to Gaza, as mentioned earlier the potential for using wind energy is lower than in the West Bank, due to lower wind speed; scarcity of open lands; obstruction of equipment and material transport into Gaza by Israel and the difficulty in setting up offshore wind farms because of Israels control over Gazas sea [2]. 3.4 Biomass Biomass is considered a strategic energy resource since it may be grown almost anywhere, since it contributes to environmental protection and since it is a source of fuel for motor vehicles. Biomass is of great importance both for developed and developing countries [11]. Biomass, if utilized properly, could become one of Palestines major energy resources. Currently, biomass energy constitutes approximately 15% of Palestinian energy supply; it is used mainly for heating purposes. Palestine is known, historically, for its agriculture and trading. Agriculture is still a predominant economic activity [12]. As a result, Palestine has a strong potential for biomass energy. People living in rural areas may benefit from producing biomass energy in various forms, including wood, crop residues and biogas. Presently, no crops are grown in Palestine specifically for use as fuel. Abu Hamed et al. [2] calculated the potential energy production from the agricultural waste in Palestine according to the methodology suggested by Unal and Alibas [11]. The result showed that about 2 TJ can be extracted in energy through the biomass gasification method, while producing 22,800 tons of biodiesel through a biomass-to-liquid (BTL) thermochemical process, which would account for about 5% of the national diesel consumption. 3.4.1 Biogas Biogas is a clean source of energy, with a high calorific value. It can be used for heating purposes, can be

converted to electricity and fed to the grid, can be used as fuel in vehicles, and can substitute natural gas after upgrading (gas cleaning). Biogas can be produced from various agricultural, industrial and municipal organic wastes [13]. The anaerobic biogas production processes have many advantages: low energy requirement for operation, low initial investment cost and low sludge production [14]. In Palestine there is a vast number of animals, agricultural and food-related wastes. The use of organic wastes in biogas production would not only provide energy but it would also eliminate the harmful effects of this type of waste on the environment and public health when disposed of without treatment. The total recoverable biogas potential in Palestine from cattle, sheep and goats was estimated to be around 12,416 m3 of biogas per day or approximately 4.5 million m3 per year [2]. Biogas consists of approximately 55% methane (CH4), 45% carbon dioxide (CO2) and a small amount of other contaminants. Methane has an energy value of 37.78 MJ/m3; thus, biogas at 55% CH4 has an energy value of 21 MJ/m3. So the annual 4.5 million m3 biogas production in Palestine has the potential to replace 1.7% of the imported LPG. 3.5 Geothermal Although little is mentioned in literature about geothermal energy potential in Palestine compared to other renewable sources, it has been proven that it has enormous potential as a source of energy for heating and cooling. A pilot project on a residential building in the West Bank city of Ramallah by a company named MENA Geothermal provided evidence of the major reduction in energy costs paid for heating and cooling by more than 70% with a payback period of 4.5 years [15]. The geothermal system essentially uses the stable temperature of the ground at a specific depth for heating in winter and cooling in summer, providing clean energy and reducing energy costs [16]. 4. CONCLUSION The relationship between energy and socio-economic development is clear. It would be in the Palestinian interest to increase its access to energy and to reduce the effects of external shocks and energy price volatility. The current reliance on Israel for most electricity and fossil fuels leads only to minimal economic growth and development. Using the available renewable energy sources, such as solar, wind and biomass, could replace more than 36% of the current Palestinian electricity demand. However, any activity in the energy sector, traditional or alternative, would encounter a number of challenges, including: political impediments to developing institutions,

implementing the policies and building the physical infrastructure. A majority of the renewable energy sources is found in land under the Israeli control. The political situation and conflict generally discourage investment in the energy field, given the high political and financial risks. These circumstances also lead to a higher rate of project abandonment. With its high potential to generate energy from renewable sources, Palestine could reduce its vulnerability to political, economic and security shocks. Renewable energy could lay a foundation both for a future, sustainable state and for future energy relations with Israel and elsewhere based on interdependence instead of dependence. 5. REFERENCES (1) Key World Energy Statistics. 2011. www.iea.org (2) Abu Hamed, T., Flamm, H. and Azraq, M. Renewable Energy in the Palestinian Territories: Opportunities and Challenges. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews. 10821088. 2011 (3) Ibrik, E. Energy Profile and the Potential of Renewable Energy Sources in Palestine. In Renewable Energy in the Middle East, ed. M. Mason and A. Mor, 7189. Dordrecht: Springer. 2009. (4) Abualkhair, A. Electricity Sector in the Palestinian Territories: Which Priorities for Development and Peace? Energy Policy 35: 2209-2230. 2007. (5) Palestine Central Bureau of Statistics, 2009, accessed March 2012, http://www.pcbs.gov.ps (6) Country Report Palestine: Provision of Technical Support/Services for an Economical, Technological and Environmental Impact Assessment of National Regulations and Incentives for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, Regional Center for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency, December 2009, (7) Ayman Abu Alkhair, The Current Status of the Energy Sector in Palestine, with a Special Focus on the Electricity Sector, Rapports de recherche du CUEPE no. 9, Centre Universitaire DEtude des Problemes de LEnergie, Universite de Geneve, p. 5. 2006. (8) Mahmoud, M. Ibrik, I. Field Experience on Solar Electric Power Systems and Their Potential in Palestine, Renew. Sust. Energ. Rev.7. 531-543. 2003 (9) Surface Meteorology and Solar Energy (SSE): A Renewable Energy Resource web site, sponsored by NASAs Earth Science Enterprise Program, accessed July 2011, http://eosweb.larc.nasa.gov/sse 910) Ahli Hospital Wind Energy Project, accessed July 2011, http://www.awep.ps/ (11) Unal, H. Alibas, K. Agricultural Residues as Biomass Energy, Energ. Source. Part B. 2 . 123-140. 2007. (12) Sector Report: Agriculture in West Bank/Gaza, 2002, accessed July 2011, http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/PNACU074.pdf

(13) Xinshan Qi, Zhang S, Wang Y, Wang R. Advantages of the Integrated Pig-Biogas-Vegetable Greenhouse System in North China, Ecol. Eng. 24. pp. 177185. 2005 (14) Kim JK, Oh BR, Chun YN, Kim SW. Effects Of Temperature And Hydraulic Retention Time On Anaerobic Digestion Of Food Waste, J. Biosci. Bioengineering, The Society For Biotechnol., Vol. 102, No. 4, pp.328332. 2006. (15) Yaseen. B. Renewable Energy Applications in Palestine. 2nd International Conference on the Palestinian Environment. Ramallah. Palestine. 2009. (16)MENA .2011. MENA geothermal: how it works. URL: http://www.menageothermal.com/Hiw.htm (Accessed December 13, 2011)