Addressing Challenges in Long-Term Strategic Energy Planning in LMICs: Learning Pathways in an Energy Planning Ecosystem

This paper presents an innovative approach to address global energy planning challenges in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). It proposes an integrated framework consisting of an international enabling environment, a delivery ecosystem, and a community of practice. The framework aims to enhance national agency and coordination, overcome limitations of outsourcing, and improve the accessibility and usability of consultant outputs. Five strategic principles for energy planning in LMICs are introduced, prioritizing national ownership, coherence, inclusivity, human capacity development, analysis robustness, transparency, and accessibility. Two key knowledge products, the Open-Source Energy Modelling System (OSeMOSYS) and the power system Flexibility Tool (IRENA FlexTool), are highlighted as examples from the delivery ecosystem. To ensure sustainability, a community of practice called OpTIMUS is introduced. Preliminary outcomes from the deployment of these pathways show promise and further investigation is needed to assess long-term impacts, scalability, replication, and deployment costs. (Full Abstract available in the manuscript)