sef full ethiopia solar

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Ethiopia statistics 2006/7(UNDP/WRI)

GDP: US$319/year per person

CO2emission: 0.1 tonnes/year per person

78% o people live on less than US$2/day

85% o people lack grid electricity

Location

“The solar light is like gold. Beore,using frewood and kerosene, I’d haveto blow my nose all the time becausethe gas was suocating me. But now Ilive in peace and I’m happy.” Abere Kassegn

Contact

The Solar Energy Foundation (StitungSolarenergie)Samson Tsegaye

[email protected] www.stitung-solarenergie.org

The Solar Energy Foundation’s 2009 Ashden Awardrecognised the work it had done to bring aordable lighting tocommunities in Ethiopia through the use o solar homesystems.

In Ethiopia, the main sources o light in rural homes and small businesses are dimkerosene lamps and candles, which emit umes and can lead to health problems. The Solar

Energy Foundation has developed small photovoltaic (PV) solar-home systems (SHS) toreplace kerosene lamps and supply electricity or lighting and small appliances. The villageo Ream chose solar electrifcation in preerence to a diesel generator.

– Basic SHS includes 10 Wp PV module, 18 Ah battery, charge controller and up to our LEDlights. Most components are imported and assembled in Ethiopia.

– International Solar School established to train solar technicians in installation,maintenance and business skills, with our more Solar Centres set up in other parts oEthiopia.

– Households in Rema pay about US$1 per month, to cover maintenance and replacement oparts.

– Charge-controller can be disabled remotely i ees not paid.– 2,100 SHS installed to date in Rema and nearby areas.

– Reduction in greenhouse gas emissions has been about 650 tonnes/year CO2 .– Solar lighting avoids eye irritation rom kerosene smoke, and the risk o burns and housefres.

– Students now able to work at home in the evenings. Evening classes have been set up toimprove adult literacy.

– Better light allows shops and crat-workers to work later and increase their income.– PV-powered water pump and well also provided in Rema, supplying drinking water or a

small charge. Previously there was a two hour walk to collect drinking water.

The Solar Energy Foundation is a not-or-proft organisation established in Germany in2003. In 2008 it had 35 sta and an annual turnover o about US$1.2 million Funding ismainly through grants and donated profts rom an associated company.

Case study summary

Solar Energy Foundation (SEF),

Ethiopia

[email protected] www.ashdenawards.org/winners/SEF09Document last updated December 2009

Ashden Awards Case Study | Solar Energy Foundation (SEF), Ethiopia | Summary

2009 Ashden Award

A tailor can now work in the cool o the evening withsolar-powered lights.

Africa



Background

In Ethiopia reliable electricity supplies are unavailable to many rural and semi-urbandwellers. The main sources o light in homes and small businesses are kerosene lamps andcandles. These emit umes which can lead to eye and health problems or the users, andthe low levels o light cause eye strain.

The Solar Energy Foundation developed high-quality solar-home-systems and solarlanterns to replace kerosene lamps. In 2005, a small trial o 30 systems was started in theEthiopian village o Kechemober, 240 km north o Addis Ababa. Representatives rom Rema,about one hour’s drive away, came to see the systems. Rema had been oered a diesel

generator by an NGO, but villagers were reluctant to accept the oer because o their concernabout the running costs, particularly the cost o diesel uel. The visitors were very impressed with the solar systems, as a result o which the SEF drew up a programme to install,maintain and fnance SHS in the village o Rema.

The organisation

The Solar Energy Foundation is a not-or-proft organisation, ounded in Germany in 2003by the current director Dr Harald Schützeichel. The country representative Samson Tsegaye,manages operations in Ethiopia. In 2008 the SEF had a turnover o about US$1.2 million

and 35 sta. An associated company, SunTranser, sells solar products on a commercialbasis in the Philippines, Kenya, Uganda and elsewhere, and the profts rom this help tound the work in Ethiopia.

The technology

How does it work?

An SHS consists o a PV module, which generates electricity rom sunlight; a rechargeablebattery, which stores electricity so that it can be used during both day and night; a chargecontroller, which prevents the battery rom being over-charged or deep-discharged; lights; wiring and fxtures. The basic ‘SunTranser 10’ system developed by the Solar EnergyFoundation uses a 10 Wp PV module and an 18 Ah maintenance-ree gel type lead-acidbattery. This combination is designed to provide light or a minimum o our hours per

day, with the possibility o connecting a radio or music system or short periods as well.The battery is expected to last or fve years i used careully. The PV module and chargecontroller are expected to last more than 10 years.

SEF has also installed a solar powered water pump in Rema, to provide resh drinking waterto the village. Previously the only supply was rom a source about two hours’ walk away.There are two sets o taps in the village where people can collect water twice a day, or asmall charge.

Ashden Awards Case Study | Solar Energy Foundation (SEF), Ethiopia

The technology in more detail

The current Sun Transer 10 systemhas up to our light-emitting-diode(LED) lamps, although some earlierunits used compact uorescent lamps. A much brighter LED (80 lumens ratherthan 25) has recently becomeavailable, and this will be used inuture systems.

The battery and charge controller arehoused in a sealed box, which needs aspecial tool to open it. An innovativecharge controller was designed toallow the systems to be disabledremotely by a local technician, as a lastresort i the user does not pay the rentalcosts. The SEF has also developed a very small solar lantern with phone-charging acilities, as well as larger PVsystems which can run a TV or musicsystem, or even a rerigerator

Payment in uture

In uture, households will also pay orthe capital cost o the system, eitherdirectly or through a loan over one tothree years. A revolving capital und isbeing set up to cover the purchase ourther SHS units and allow theprogramme to become sel supporting.Loan repayments will be set at aboutUS$7 to US$13 (80-150 ETB) permonth, which is similar to the energycosts avoided by having an SHS.

Surveys by the Foundation suggestthat amilies in rural areas o Ethiopiaspend about US$5 to $8 (60-90 ETB)on kerosene, and US$2 to $7 (20-80ETB) on dry cell batteries, each month.

Case study

Solar Energy Foundation (SEF),

Ethiopia



How much does it cost and how do users pay?US$1= 11 ETB (Ethiopian Birr) [April 2009]

Each SHS costs about US$260 (3,000 ETB), including manuacture and installation. The

capital cost o the systems installed in and around Rema were fnanced by donor unds.Households must pay a monthly ee o about US$1 (12 ETB), to cover the cost o service bylocal technicians and replacement parts such as the battery and LEDs. An outlineagreement on charges and conditions was set up between the village administration andthe SEF, and each household has its own contract.

Payment is managed by a village committee. Households have a period o three days in which to pay their monthly ee to a ee collector. I they do not pay within this time, then thesystem will be shut down remotely by a technician and reactivated only when the ees arepaid, although in practice this rarely happens.

The ee collectors are responsible or recording the ees received and passing the money toone o the village administrators or banking. Fee collectors are paid US$3 (30 ETB) per

month.

How is it manuactured, promoted and maintained?Individual SHS components are imported and then assembled in the locally-made boxEthiopia, where quality checks are carried out. Each system has a reerence number, whichis recorded both on the box and over the door o the house where it is installed. There havebeen only minor problems with the units installed to date, and these have been easilyrectifed by the technicians in the village.

SEF has set up an International Solar School in Rema in order to provide a supply o well-trained solar technicians to maintain the systems. The six-month training course coverssolar theory, business management and work experience.

Householders are shown how to use their systems when they are installed and, as part o

the contract, they have to confrm that they understand the instructions and the rules oruse. Instructions are also painted on the battery box both in written and picture orm. At theend o the installation work, each amily receives their own user manual and record book tokeep details o the equipment, repairs and payments.

Benefts

By the end o 2008, about 2,130 SHS had been installed by SEF: 30 in the originaldemonstration, and 2,100 in the village o Rema and nearby areas. With an average o fvepeople in each amily, it is estimated that over 10,000 people are now beneftting romthese systems.

Environmental beneftsReplacement o kerosene lamps or lighting saves about 70 litres/year o kerosene per lamp,equivalent to about 0.19 tonnes/year CO

2. A survey in Rema suggested that households

were using about 1.6 kerosene lamps on average. Thus or the 2,130 SHS installed by theend o 2008, the total saving o greenhouse gases is over 650 tonnes CO

2 /year.

Previously dry cell batteries were used to power radios and music players. The disposal othe spent batteries is a problem, since they are oten simply thrown into the streets. Radiosand, to a limited extent, other equipment can now be powered by the SHS, which reducesthe problem o disposal.

Social beneftsThere is a real sense o pride in the Rema communities that they have rejected the option o

a diesel generator, going instead or a more modern approach with solar lighting.


“They (the children) get everythingthey need through solar energy. They

do their homework, they can meet upwith their amilies in the evening andthey have ree time to play and relax.Because o solar energy, the number oeducated people here is increasing.”Mulugeta Desalegn, teacher

A home in the village o Rema with a solar module

mounted on the roo to power the lights inside.

Tiruwork Tasew, local bar owner and one o the collectors

o the ees or the solar committee standing under her solar

light.



Health benefts arise rom eliminating the smoke and umes rom kerosene lamps andcandles, that previously caused eye and other problems. In addition the low level o lightrom the lamps made close work difcult. Now there is no risk o burns rom touchingkerosene lamps (a particular problem or children) or rom house fres when lamps or

candles are knocked over.

Having adequate lighting in the homes now allows children to study and complete theirhomework in the evenings, and school grades have improved. A night school has been setup by the Women’s Association in Rema to tutor adults who received little or no schooling,thus improving literacy.

The solar-powered water pump has also given villagers easy access to clean drinking water, without the need or a long walk to collect it.

Economic and employment beneftsThe programme has provided a range o employment or both men and women. Thirtytechnicians, including fve women, have now been trained in the Solar School and areemployed by the Foundation. There are nine ee collectors in Rema, including one woman.

The monthly payment they receive is similar to the daily wage or a labourer, and is a useuladdition to earnings rom other work, such as running a shop. Three administrators handlethe money. In addition, many people in the village beneft rom increased working hours,including shopkeepers, tailors and crat-workers.

Potential or growth and replicationThe SEF estimates that out o approximately 13 million households without electricity inEthiopia, about 10 million have sufcient income to pay back a loan on an SHS. Many othem live in closely-knit communities where the approach used in Rema is replicable. The2,100 installations in Rema and the surrounding area could orm the starting point or anational programme to install SHS.

By mid-2009, our new Solar Centres had been set up by technicians trained by the Solar

School in dierent parts o Ethiopia. Each centre will operate as an independent ranchisedbusiness, with initial capital to set up a revolving und or purchasing equipment providedby the SEF. More Solar Centres and local manuacturing o components are planned.

Contact details

The Solar Energy Foundation (Stitung Solarenergie)Samson Tsegaye or Harald SchützeichelNamibia StreetPO Box 22734/10000 Addis [email protected] www. stitung-solarenergie.org

This report is based on inormation provided to the Ashden Awards judges by the Solar Energy Foundation, fndings rom a

visit by members o the judging team to see its work in Ethiopia, and presentations by Samson Tsegaye at Ashden Awards

events in London.

The Ashden Awards have taken all reasonable care to ensure that the inormation contained in this report is ull and

accurate. However, no warranty or representation is given by The Ashden Awards that the inormation contained in this

report is ree rom errors or inaccuracies. To the extent permitted by applicable laws, The Ashden Awards accept no liability

or any direct, indirect or consequential damages however caused resulting rom reliance on the inormation contained in

this report.


“Old ladies, pregnant women andwomen with new babies can all getwater on their doorsteps. Previouslywe had to etch water rom ar away atthe river and wait in line. But now thatwe get water right here, it’s a hugebeneft.”Endazen Seteye, village chairman

Water is pumped to a tank in the village by a solar waterpump which eeds two main areas with taps in the centre

o the village.

Last updated: December 2009

Samson Tsegaye, the SEF country representative in

Ethiopia, with a solar lantern.

sef full ethiopia solar

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