Off-grid rural electrification project in Botswana
About the project |
SolaNetwork builds on progenitor work of SolaFin2Go to curate an integrated set of affordable solar energy access solutions for socioeconomically diverse sub-Saharan African rural communities. The project will develop and trial a network of stand-alone devices and a unified monitoring and control system to provide real-time business intelligence and customer interfaces for the DESCO.
The project aims to fill a significant market gap between inadequate small solar-home-system and costly centralised mini-grids which are uneconomic in sparsely populated areas.
A variety of simultaneous business models will address a diverse spectrum of customer circumstances and ownership preferences.
A variety of simultaneous business models will address a diverse spectrum of customer circumstances and ownership preferences.
The problem
More than 80% of Africa's electricity is fossil fuel generated leading to climate change effects which disproportionately affect the sub-Saharan region.
Around 588 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live without access to electricity and consequently struggle to escape poverty owing to a lack of basic services such as lighting, motive power, and access to media and communications.
The importance of providing modern energy to rural areas is a high priority. Electrical grid expansion is possible but suffers high up-front costs to government and individual households.
Around 588 million people in sub-Saharan Africa live without access to electricity and consequently struggle to escape poverty owing to a lack of basic services such as lighting, motive power, and access to media and communications.
The importance of providing modern energy to rural areas is a high priority. Electrical grid expansion is possible but suffers high up-front costs to government and individual households.
Market focused real-world validation of socially inclusive prosumer business models for sustainable off-grid community energy services based on interconnecting multiple SolaFin2Go units.
This scale-up project will trial a Distributed Energy Service Company (DESCO) approach for managing organically formed mini-grids and wireless grids which enable equitable and economic use of surplus solar power through energy trading & battery rental.
This scale-up project will trial a Distributed Energy Service Company (DESCO) approach for managing organically formed mini-grids and wireless grids which enable equitable and economic use of surplus solar power through energy trading & battery rental.
The project supports local capacity building and gender focused social inclusion through:
+ Knowledge
• Knowledge exchange and business development through engagement of local sub-contractors.
+ GENDER BALANCE
• Establishment of gender-balanced DESCO run by village stakeholders to maintain and manage the SolaNetwork and generate local community income.
+ TECHNICAL & BUSINESS TRAINING
• Technical and business training for villagers, with particular emphasis on engaging women, to enable ongoing operation of the DESCO business as well as the SolaFin2Go and SolaNetwork hardware.
+ LONG TERM PARTNERSHIPS
• Partnership with local academic institution for sociotechno-economic expertise and local insights.
PROJECT PARTNERS
ONE PROJECT LEADER
TWO ACADEMIC PARTNERS
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THREE INDUSTRIAL PARTNERS
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SPONSORED BY
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