The investment climate in Kenya for off-grid and grid-connected solar PV projects is still developing but shows potential for growth. The key factors include: - The regulatory framework provides guidelines for both local and foreign investors but the process can be bureaucratic at times. Simplifying regulations may help attract more investment. - Access to financing remains a challenge, especially for smaller projects. More financing options like microloans, venture capital, and government subsidies/tax incentives could help boost the sector. - Some successful PPP models exist but challenges remain around cost recovery, tariffs, land acquisition, and policy implementation. Strengthening PPP frameworks and capacity could help scale up projects. 2. What are some of

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The role of solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in
addressing crucial energy challenges in East African
communities.
By
Brian Mukeswe
Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of British Columbia

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TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3
1.0 ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….4
2.0 INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5
3.0 RESEARCH CONDUCTED……………………………………………………………………………………………………….6
4.0 DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION…………………………………………………………………………………………15
5.0 APPENDIX …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………19

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Supervising Professor: Dr. John Madden (http://ece.ubc.ca/faculty/john-madden)
Student Researcher: Brian Mukeswe
Research Funders
 International Undergraduate Research Award
 MasterCard Foundation Scholars Program
 Advanced Materials and Process Engineering Laboratory
Research Institution: University of British Columbia, Canada

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ABSTRACT
This report discusses the findings of a research study that was conducted over a period of four
months to obtain a comprehensive and contextualized understanding of the East African Solar
Photovoltaic (PV) market, as well as the existing challenges and opportunities therein. This study
assessed the evolution of the most prominent solar PV applications, and business innovations in
the solar PV industry that are changing how crucial energy demands are met around the world,
with a specific focus on East African communities. In addition, this report embarks on a critical
analysis of the potential stumbling blocks for potential players in the industry. It also takes a
forward facing approach in discussing potential opportunities for entrepreneurs looking to enter
the East African Solar PV market.

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INTRODUCTION
Solar PV is a well developed and commercialized technology that enables energy from the sun to
be converted directly into electrical energy for use in various applications across households and
businesses. The energy capacity of solar PV systems varries depending on the application, but
typical systems often consist of three main components: an array of PV cells that generate direct
current (dc) upon illumination by the sun, an energy storage system like a battery to store the
electrical energy generated, and an energy conversion system that converts direct current from
a battery to alternating current (ac) as required by most typical applications. Many solar PV
energy systems also consist of other sub-components like Solar Charge Controllers (SCC) and
Battery Management Systems (BMS) that usually have a significant impact on the efficiency and
longevity of the system.
This report conveys a detailed description of research work that was conducted to study solar PV
technology with a specific focus on its current and potential applications in East Africa. The study
was conducted over a four month period starting with six weeks at the Advanced Materials and
Process Engineering Laboratories (AMPEL) at the University of British Columbia (UBC), followed
by the one week Intersolar 2016 Conference in Germany, and then a two month field study in
Uganda and Kenya. Analysis of both the technical and stakeholder aspects of solar PV technology
in the context of the East African market is discussed in detail throughout the report.

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RESEARCH CONDUCTED
The research conducted at UBC and in Germany focused mostly on understanding the technical
and financial aspects of solar PV and energy storage. Some aspects of interest included: Solar PV
cell technology variations and specific manufacturing processes, the global supply chain and
market outlook, and critical business insights from more mature solar PV markets around the
world. On the other hand, Uganda and Kenya were strategically chosen to provide a regional
representation of the East African solar PV industry. Work in East Africa mainly focused on
understanding the nature of existing solar businesses and customers, identifying and studying
the most prominent solar PV applications, identifying opportunities for solar PV to meet
unsatisfied energy demand, and exploring potential for growth of existing markets. The following
paragraphs provide a detailed description of the research conducted as well as critical discussions
of the insights obtained. In addition, this report highlights outstanding opportunity areas for
leveraging solar PV in satisfying an existing and ever growing energy demand in the East African
region.
Work at AMPEL mainly involved doing literature reviews about global solar PV technological
advancements, designing a detailed work plan, and setting up informational interviews that were
to be conducted later on in the project. On the technical side, it involved performing
Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy (EIS) studies of different kinds of batteries (Lithium ion,
Nickel Cadmium and Lead acid) to gain more insight about electrical energy storage. As discussed
later on in this report, electrical energy storage is still a significant stumbling block for adopting
solar PV power systems across various markets, and therefore it was a good place to start. Figure
1 depicts one of the experimental set ups at AMPEL.

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Figure 1.
Using a Solartron to do EIS studies at AMPEL
Thereafter were the Intersolar and Electrical Energy Storage (ESS) conferences that took place in
Munich, Germany. Both concurrent conferences were a summit for various solar PV and energy
storage experts to share key insights from diverse experiences obtained in various markets
around the world. The conference discussions encompassed a wide range of relevant topics like
solar PV project financing schemes, specific technological and business trends in PV and energy
storage, global market outlook analysis, as well as showcasing innovative applications of solar PV
technology in various contexts around the world. A detailed list of the particular conference
sections attended for the purpose of this research is included in the appendix.
Figure 2.
The Intersolar and
Electrical Energy Storage Conference

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Figure 3.
Solar PV cells of different types and
efficiencies on display at Intersolar
Figure 4.
Fused roof-solar panel design
on display at Intersolar
Figure 5.
Prototype for PV application in electric car
parking spaces and charge stations
Figure 6.
Automated Solar-tracking technologies on
at intersolar
Figure 7.
Roof mounted PV system at the BMW facility
in Munich, Germany

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Figure 8.
TESLA’s integrated solar home system on
display at intersolar
Figure 9.
Engaging industry professionals at Intersolar
Having gained a good understanding of the technical and business issues of solar PV technology
on the global scale, the next step was to contextualize this knowledge by studying the East African
market. The key objective was to first of all understand the existing solar PV market in this region
both on the demand and supply sides. This involved informational interviews with current and
prospective PV technology end users at various levels of scale. The study looked at off-grid and
grid connected markets in both urban and rural Kenya and Uganda. A notable example of a
potentially large scale solar PV user is the Kiira Motors Corporation (KMC), an upcoming
government funded hybrid and electric vehicle assembling company in Uganda. As part of the
market research, a detailed proposal to install a solar PV system to meet up to 30% of the energy
demand in its vehicle assembly plant was pitched to KMC with the purpose of gaging interest in

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larger scale adoption of this technology. This was a particularly interesting engagement
considering KMC’s unique position as a first entrant in the vehicle assembly industry in Uganda.
Already, KMC had made use of PV technology in the Kayoola electric bus, one of the company’s
flagship vehicle designs. Some of the interactions with the KMC’s electric bus prototypes are
depicted in figures 10 and 11.
Figure 10.
KMC’s Kayoola Bus with roof-mounted
solar PV modules
Figure 11.
Front view of KMC’s electric bus

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The low extent of grid connectivity and reliability in Uganda also builds a good case for solar
based solutions. These would basically range across Pico PV solutions, solar PV home systems,
and solar PV backed micro grids.
Figure 12.
The extent of grid connectivity in
Uganda.
------ planned extensions
Existing transmission grid
(Courtesy of Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited)
In addition to just end users and service providers, Kenya also has also actively engaged in
government backed research in solar energy technology. One notable engagement in Kenya was
with the Energy Research Center (ERC) at Strathmore University in Nairobi. The ERC has a capacity
of only 0.6MW installed at different locations all over the Strathmore University Campus and is
part of a subsidized Feed in Tariff (FIT) scheme by the Kenyan government. In addition, the ERC
offers specialized technical training programs for solar PV system installation and maintenance.
Clearly, subsidies and specialized human capital development initiatives of this nature signal a
growing market in the region. Some of the solar systems encountered in Kenya are depicted the
figures 13 to 16.

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Figure 13.
A Solar PV roof system intalled in a
Strathmore University parking lot
Figure 14.
An inverter system manufacturesd my SMA
and used in a Kenyan Solar home system
Figure 15.
Test solar PV modules at the Strathmore
University Energy Research Center
Figure 16.
A combination of power inverter systems
for a large building complex in Nairobi.
There are also remarkable examples of industry players that are mainly focussed on the solar
lighting sector like Mkopa and Dlight. They have leveraged existing mobile payment platforms in
the region to implement a hire purchase business model in order to tap into lower income

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markets for Pico PV systems. The main customer segment for this business model includes
households that spend less than $2 daily to meet their lighting needs. And so the hire purchase
contract usually aims to model this cash flow such that the households obtain a Pico PV system,
and then pay a daily amount that is less or comparable to their daily energy spend. The biggest
enabler of this model has mainly been mobile payment technology that lets users activate the
Pico PV system just by clearing their daily amount due. The existence of such local innovative
models that are continuously growing the existing solar PV markets demonstrates just how much
business and technology innovation will contribute to sustainable energy access.
In addition to service delivery focussed solar companies, there were also some notable examples
like SolarInc that is aiming to crack the local challenge to manufacturing solar panels, and related
equipment. Located in Naivasha, Kenya, SolarInc is taking a forward looking approach in
manufacturing PV technologies that are built for the region. This strategy is of course in
anticipation of the already growing regional market, and hence will put them in a unique position
because they will be geographically closer to the market than current imported PV products that
have to navigate ambiguous import regulations and often long lead times that negatively impact
project development. Also being a first entrant in regional PV manufacturing, SolarInc will be
further down the learning curve when the regional market matures, and local competitors
emerge.
One could also observe that most of the companies involved in the East African solar PV industry
were mostly vertically integrated, in that they had a noticeable presence in each part of the value
chain. It would not be out of order to infer a potent and rapidly growing industry with gaps that
can be looked at as windows of opportunity for new entrants. Data from Solargis, a global solar

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resource database, illustrates the vast solar power resource that Kenya is endowed with. Over
90% of the country’s land area receives irradiation of over 1900kWh/m2
as shown in Figure 17.
Figure 17. Horizontal Irradiation date for Kenya (https://solargis.info)

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DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION
The East African industry can be described on a size spectrum as demonstrated in Figure 18.
Figure 18. The relative sizes of the activated East African solar PV market segments in terms of
number of project developers, service providers, and customers
The Pico PV segment is the largest active market segment in the region. Pico PV systems consist
of small modularized PV systems, usually with a power output less than 10W peak capacity. In
East Africa, they are utilized mostly in household lighting and mobile phone charging applications,
which are remarkable sources of crucial energy demand among many households and small
businesses. This happens to be the most established market segment mainly because of the
relatively lower level of investment required by entrants, and the lower level of real and
perceived risk both on the demand and supply sides. One way to put it is that Pico PV is “small
and simple” and hence has been a good fit for penetrating and growing new markets with flexible
and innovative business models like micro solar hire purchase. Even though Pico PV is the largest
PV market segment in the region, it is far from mature and hence there still exist lucrative
business opportunities for new entrants.
Solar Home Systems (SHS) is the second largest market segment and it is mostly undercut by
prohibitive installation and maintenance costs to end users. This is mainly because of the
comparison between average income levels of majority households in the region and the average
cost of installing and owning a relatively large solar home systems. Based on market surveys
Pico PV
Solar Home Systems
(SHS)
solar PV
micro-grids
Utility
scale
solar PV

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conducted in Uganda, the initial cost of a 1kwh SHS is at least $600. Innovative business models
could certainly be the way to navigate this barrier, and these will emerge from a more insightful
understanding of the typical energy expenditures by larger households and businesses. It is
important to re-echo that energy storage is the main stumbling block, and it this is evident from
the fact that a battery pack will contribute a significant part of the total cost of a SHS. Most solar
home systems in East Africa utilize Lead acid batteries for energy storage. Although lithium ion
batteries maybe better suited for this application, their cost is still prohibitively high for this
market. Correct maintenance also plays a significant role in the efficiency and longevity of SHSs,
but this aspect is seen to be lacking among many early adopters mostly because of cost
minimizing incentives, and limited exposure to best practices. Cheaper, modularized, and easy to
maintain solutions therefore have great potential to disrupt and grow the SHS market in East
Africa.
Before proceeding to the even smaller segment of solar PV backed micro-grids, the discussion
will explore a very niche application of solar PV that presents very unique strengths and
enormous potential. A very compelling case can certainly be forwarded for Solar PV powered
irrigation systems. Data from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) indicates that
over 90% of agricultural land in East Africa is rain irrigated, which means planting activities can
only happen in accordance to the rain seasons that are currently being threatened by climate
change. Moreover, agriculture is the economic backbone of most of East Africa, implying that
improved productivity in this sector has the potential to set the region on a path of accelerated
growth. First of all, there is clearly an abundant solar energy resource throughout the region.
More importantly, Solar PV irrigation systems do not require electrical energy storage, a very

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significant advantage considering the cost burden of energy storage on solar PV systems. This is
true because the Solar PV system need only store water that is pumped whenever the sun is
available, instead of storing electrical energy in a battery. The water storage is elevated so that
it is gravity tapped upon use. With minimal adjustments, this application can also extend beyond
irrigation to meet clean water access needs of households. This application really demonstrates
the potential impact of solar PV even beyond equitable energy access.
Solar PV micro-grid projects have mostly been relatively new ventures with players like
SteamaCo, a micro grid payment-technology company with operations in Kisumu Kenya, and Off-
grid Electric which has operations mainly in Tanzania but is looking to expand into Kenya. The
biggest issues that have arisen at this level are associated with government regulation. In Uganda,
the Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Ltd (UETCL) is the sole purchaser of all the
electricity generated at grid level in the country. This poses many risks even for private ventures
that look to set up in off grid areas, especially in areas that are part of the government’s grid
extension plans. Although Private Public Partnerships are lucrative tools to mitigate such risks,
the processes involved only drive up the cost of doing business. The UETCL, a profit seeking
organization, sets both the Feed in Tariffs (FITs) and the power price levels, making it prohibitively
unprofitable for private entrepreneurs seeking to meet existing energy demands for a profit.
Many of the stumbling blocks for entry into the micro-grids segment also extend to the Utility
scale level. In addition, utility scale projects necessitate a large command of start-up capital,
sometimes in the order of millions of dollars. Real and perceived risks stemming from political
uncertainty and instability are often prohibitory to such potentially high return projects. The
financial resources required also make it inherently cumbersome for individuals or governments

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to embark on such projects. Despite the challenges, there are a couple of government backed
utility scale solar PV projects under development both in Kenya and in Uganda. Figure 19 shows
one of such projects, which is a strong demonstration that the existing challenges can be
overcome in order to leverage the enormous solar resource to address the alarming issue of
unequitable energy access in the region.
Figure 19. A government backed utility scale solar PV project in Soroti, Uganda

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APPENDIX
Research questionnaire for East Africa
1. Briefly describe the investment climate in Kenya for off-grid and/or grid-connected solar
PV projects in terms of:
 The regulatory framework for local and foreign investors,
 Access to financial resources; debt/equity financing opportunities, potential
government subsidies (if any)
 The nature of existing Private Public Partnerships (PPPs) in such projects.
2. With regards to demand and supply, what is the status quo of the solar PV market in the
following contexts:
 Off-grid and rural settings
 Grid connected and Urban settings
3. Outline the most significant barriers to entry, and key success factors for the Solar PV market
in Kenya. (Please use 3 point scale to rate significance of factors)
4. Briefly describe and identify key players (if any) in the typical value chain for solar PV in
Kenya with regard to the following:
 Manufacturers and suppliers of solar PV technologies
 Project developers and service providers
 Solar PV project clients.
5. Are there any outstanding market growth prospects for the solar PV industry in Kenya/ the
East African region? If so, please elaborate.
6. What crucial insights have you obtained from your experience in creating a bankable
renewable energy project in Kenya/East Africa?

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Intersolar Europe 2016 Conference sessions attended
Intersolar Europe takes place annually at Messe München It is the world’s leading exhibition for
the solar industry and its partners. The Intersolar is considered to be the place for gaining access
to new markets and offers the opportunity to cultivate business contacts. I attended the
following events on the program for the purposes of this research:
Day 1: Tuesday, June 21
 Global Market Outlook
 Off-Grid: Opening Addresses & Business Models for Dissemination of Solar Systems
 Off-Grid: Storage Systems
 Off-Grid: Innovative Systems and Applications
Day 2: Wednesday, June 22
 Smart Renewable Energy: Residential, Commercial and Industrial Buildings
 PV Financing Project: Changing Markets and Innovative Financial Schemes
 Smart Renewable Energy: The Digitalization of Energy
 Smart Renewable Energy: New Business Models
 PV Financing: Improving the Bankability and Invest ability of Solar
Day 3: Thursday, June 23
 Innovation & Application Forum: Joint Forces for Solar
 Workshop: Solar Energy in Developing and Emerging Countries - How to Finance Projects