Kenya Power’s inefficiencies give an advantage to alternative energy sources. Can solar energy save customers who are out to embrace it?
By John Seko and Felix Owino
More Kenyans, especially rural ones, now prefer solar power to connecting to the grid. Solar energy has several applications among rural populations, from generating electricity to lighting, heating, and drying.
The latest data from the World Bank on Kenya shows that 78% of the country’s population lives in rural areas and far-flung regions, which are usually beyond the reach of the regular power lines served by the national grid. As a result, alternative energy sources are now the focus of both the public and private sector players.
The figures also indicate that nearly 90% of rural communities use solar power. What is pushing up the use of solar power over the last few years, and why is it the better option?
Several factors have played a critical role in promoting the use of solar power. Policy frameworks by the government, for example, have been vital in promoting access to solar products. The continued growth is attributed to the several challenges faced in making connections to the national grid, such as the poor infrastructure in the remote parts of the country, inefficiencies associated with the electricity distributor – Kenya Power Limited Company (KPLC), high costs of setting up and installing power, and the ever-escalating charges of electricity bills from KPLC.
In 2014, effective May 30, the government removed the Value-Added Tax (VAT) initially imposed on solar products. The removal of the VAT saw an increase in demand for stand-alone photovoltaic systems, especially in rural areas that are sparsely populated, as people opted for the plans to electrify their homes.
In addition, the government has consistently enacted regulations to protect consumers from low-quality solar products and unqualified technicians by requiring them, alongside distributors and vendors, to be licensed by the Energy Regulatory Commission. Guided by the National Renewable Energy Master Plan in the country’s Vision 2030, the state has continued to promote access to solar energy as an alternative energy source in its contribution to the global sustainable energy goals.
Secondly, through initiatives such as the Solar Home Systems (SHS), the private sector has seen an estimated 200,000 rural households have access to solar power connections – the SHS allows people in the rural areas to purchase solar power products that fit their spending power. The products are always available to the communities and households within 40 kilometres. The existence of over 800 outlets that sell solar products justifies the need and importance of the SHS in promoting the accessibility and affordability of solar products to rural households.
The emergence of innovative and technology-based companies has also played a critical role in enabling rural households to find solar power more preferable to other alternative energy sources, especially in connection to the national grid.
Indeed, M-KOPA Solar, a privately owned company, has leveraged technology application in its business model to innovatively provide solar power products to households based on pay-per-use installations. Such arrangements have made solar a darling for many rural communities increasingly embracing the energy source.
Several non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are also critical in promoting solar energy adoption. The NGOs are responsible for disseminating and exchanging information on the essential ideas of promoting solar power as a renewable energy source, capacity building; funding of specific projects related to the promotion of solar energy consumption; and promoting access to sustainable energy among rural communities.
The German-based GIZ, through its project GIZ ProSolar, is an excellent example of an independent organisation that has critically promoted the mini-grid electrification programs in most parts of rural Kenya. With its vision set on increasing the levels of cost-effective, highly affordable, and sustainable sources of electricity in the rural communities, the organisation, through partnerships with county governments, has connected households in Narok County to its mini-grids powered by solar power; provided practical handbooks on mini-grids, and assisted the counties of Marsabit and Turkana in developing energy plans for their citizens.
On the other hand, independent and non-profit based organisations such as the Kenya Renewable Energy Association (KEREA) and the World Vision play a critical role in capacity building on the need for the government to develop policies and frameworks aimed at promoting the harnessing of solar power as a renewable energy source.
The successful rise in solar power energy has, however, been faced with a myriad of challenges. Political interests have negatively resulted in an un-enabling environment for both players in the sector and in policy formulation, such as the need to limit competition to the state-owned KPLC, which has seen limited policy and fiscal support and goodwill from the Kenyan government.
It cannot escape notice that someone wants Kenya Power to remain that way so that they can continue to draw some obvious economic benefits. Access to finance and affordability, coupled with the risks of investing in Kenya, a developing country, has also made it challenging for investors to invest in the sector.
For solar, inaccessibility to technical services has been the main issue because most households live far apart. Therefore, accessing them to install, repair, and maintain solar power equipment becomes a challenge to the fewer technicians in the sector.
Despite the challenges the solar power adoption and use have faced recently, there is still something to write home about. Solar energy in rural areas has recorded a remarkable growth through which noticeable benefits have accrued to rural households.
Through solar-powered pumps and lighting equipment, rural communities have been provided with clean water for domestic use, lighting, charging of mobile phones, eliminating various health hazards, pollution, and accessibility to the internet. Solar power has therefore been a critical factor in promoting socio-economic development in the rural communities in Kenya.
