- Off-grid solar EPC, Equatorial Power, is teaming up with the German International Development Cooperation Agency (GIZ) to provide solar energy to 27 rural health care centers in the West Nile region of Uganda.
The off-grid solar power plants will have a combined capacity of 150 kWp and will be connected to battery storage systems with a total capacity of 1.2 MWh. According to Equatorial Power, the solarization of these clinics is expected to have an impact on the health of 250 people in the West Nile region.
In January 2022, the company commissioned a hybrid solar mini-grid on Lolwe Island (Lake Victoria, Uganda) with ENGIE, ensuring energy access to more than 3800 households and businesses in the local fishing community. The Lolwe mini-grid generation unit consists of a 600 kWp solar plant coupled to a 360 kWh rated Li-ion batteries and a diesel generator to ensure high levels of reliability and availability.
ENGIE Equatorial’s business model is not only based on electricity sales, but also on supporting the development of local value chains and providing multiple complementary services to the local community. For this reason, the company has deployed an agro-processing productive hub with ice machines and fish drying machines for fish processing and preservation, and water purification systems to provide affordable clean drinking water to the inhabitants of the island. In addition, charging stations for electric fishing boats and electric motorcycles have also been installed for e-mobility applications. All these activities are mainly powered by clean renewable energy. Furthermore, the company is also developing comprehensive business incubation and microfinance programmes to support entrepreneurs in setting up new businesses to facilitate the productive use of energy in the local community.
Author: Bryan Groenendaal
