Tapping into Africa's renewable energy could transform living standards across the continent, according to a report of the European Commission Joint Research Centre that has mapped the potential of renewables in the region. 

The report aims to help African governments set up renewable energy plans, and has called for the urgent transfer of relevant knowledge to research and technology partners in Africa. "Only if much of the research, prototyping, demonstration and large-scale deployment are done by African people, one can accelerate the uptake of renewable energy," says the report, published by the European Commission Joint Research Centre. 

Renewable energy has particular relevance in remote and rural areas, where around 600 million people live without electricity, and where renewables would be cheaper than extending national grid services, the report says. The authors used geographical data to map out regions that could generate electricity from the sun, wind, biomass and water. They then identified those regions where using renewables might be cheaper than existing sources such as diesel or electricity grids.