Northern Lights A By Mariano Arriaga, Claudio A. Cañizares, and Mehrdad Kazerani Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MPE.2014.2317963 Date of publication: 17 June 2014 50 ieee power & energy magazine Access to energy in mAny of the world's remote communities is still restricted; these locations only have access to simple and inexpensive local energy sources, such as biomass for cooking and kerosene lamps or candles for lighting. the world Bank and the international energy Agency (ieA) perceive this energy deficit as a major obstacle to achieving community economic development as well as to obtaining adequate access to health services and clean water. electricity is a flexible, modern source of energy that is considered to be one of the principal driving forces that stimulate community development and access to basic services in remote locations. governments, private institutions, and nongovernmental organizations have gradually 1540-7977/14©2014IEEE july/august 2014