When the sun rises over the building of the United Nations Environment Programme in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, it not only brings natural light into the offices of the almost 1,200 employees, via a brand-new 500-kW photovoltaic system on the roof, it also generates enough electricity to make the building energy-neutral. The installation of 4,000 modules is the result of cooperation between the Renewable Energy Export Initiative of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWI), the GIZ (the German Society for International Cooperation), the solar integrator Energiebau, who built the system and trained solar specialists in Kenya, the module supplier Schott Solar and the inverter manufacturer SMA.
When it comes to involvement in Africa these three companies are not alone. Many notable German solar companies have been active in sub-Saharan Africa for a long time now. 35 companies with businesses in the south have formed their own interest group, the Bundesverband Solarwirtschaft, which, for example, makes contacts with partners in the countries of the region. At the Intersolar trade fair in Munich in 2010 the group organized a special show on the theme of rural electrification. According to the OECD, some 585 million people in sub-Saharan Africa do not have electricity. They will largely have to be supplied without access to a grid. Currently, nationwide power grids are simply too expensive. Providing the poorest in the country with at least electric light means forging new paths. The initially installed photovoltaic home systems, Solar Home Systems (SHS), with batteries requiring a lot of care, turned out to be none too successful; they are more something for the wealthy, and are often out of order. “85% of the SHS in Africa are no longer functioning,” says Volker Wachenfels, Head of the Off Grid section of the German solar company SMA.
The best alternative for electrifying rural regions in Africa seem to be so-called pico systems, which produce just a few watts and are correspondingly cheap. The GIZ, for example, is opting for these – along with other solutions – in the framework of the Energizing Development project, which is being implemented with the Netherlands as their partner. Its aim is to supply ten million people within a few years with clean energy, for example, electricity produced by photovoltaics. The GIZ alone plans to help 3.1 million people in this way. This target was achieved ahead of schedule and has been increased by three million. Carsten Hellpap, responsible for the programme at the GIZ, reports: “We were successful because we demanded proof from all the applicants for sub-projects that they could supply electricity for one person at a maximum price of 20 euros.” This is only possible with pico systems, which in their early years were reputed to be unreliable and too pricey in relation to their output. Meanwhile, however, new developments have been made and there are certification mechanisms, such as those from the World Bank project “Lighting Africa”, which have improved their reputation.
Pico systems stimulate new start-ups. One example is the Thai-German joint company Fosera, which relies on robust and durable lithium batteries for storage: a small solar panel can supply several small loads, such as lamps, mobile phones or radios. For the moment, however, the solution cannot be certified because the tests were based on lead batteries. This indicates the limitations of the current procedure. The Fosera systems are being successfully distributed nonetheless in several African countries, including Mozambique. The distributor, Phaesun, who specializes in business in the south, also has a new kind of pico solution in its programme with Ultium by Sundaya. This is being offered in Africa with the help of partners.
Electricity supplies for complete villages are also a good approach. Implementing this usually depends on state or other third party support. Asantys, a solar integrator and distributor in Heidelberg that does about 90% of its business in Africa, has just supplied two villages in Mali with diesel hybrid solar plants and trained local specialists with funds, among others, from the Dutch FRES (Foundation Rural Energy Systems). What is more, the plants are supervised remotely from Germany for five years. Other projects have more to do with foreign currency. Solarworld and Partners for example supply comfortable lodges in the game parks of Botswana with photovoltaic plants. The government there wants to replace the current diesel generators, as they are simply becoming too expensive.
In Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, the local Asantys partner African Solar Design recently completed a 65 kWp plant on the roofs of an SOS Children’s Village. It is the first in Kenya to feed electricity into the notoriously badly supplied national grid. The director of the SOS Children’s Village, Ruth Okowa, believes that a whole wave of similar projects could follow. Kenya certainly has enough sun to replace diesel or oil.///
