Germany’s development agency, GIZ, and Kirchner Solar Group GmbH has started a pilot study to develop a marketing concept for solar power in the private sector, starting with Uganda. The partners said, “This could turn hundreds of radio masts in Uganda into lighthouses shining their light into remote villages.”
In Uganda, more than 27 million residents live in rural areas with only 3% of the households with access to electricity. The idea behind the project is to connect mobile carriers with solar power providers. The Airtel company is already onboard and more radio masts have been selected in a pilot project to serve as connection points for solar electrification.
The solar power provider will supply energy to the radio mast while at the same time selling solar power to surrounding households. The power is to be sold by a prepaid meter system: the customer only pays as many kilowatt-hours by his mobile phone that he can actually afford. GIZ Uganda builds on an approach already applied by Insensus in a cooperation project with GIZ to produce wind-solar energy in Senegal. The company, which has been awarded the “Climate and environment award 2010” by BMU and BDI, will develop the energy management system as an external service provider.
Kirchner will provide the entire technology for the solar system in turnkey mobile “energy containers” on site, making the company the first in East Africa to invest in such a project while providing operational management. This includes training local specialists to make sure the system can be operated and serviced by people from the village. It’s the declared goal of solar-powered electrification to create qualified employment in rural areas.
GIZ will establish the link with the mobile carrier and ensure its embedded into the political and legal framework of the country. The agency will provide support in companies obtaining the required permits to operate in isolated grids, train community members to maintain the technology, and help to create a business model for rural power supply with interested parties.
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