In 2017, Joyeuse Umutoni, a resident of Nyaruguru district subscribed to a local solar company to connect her cattle farm house to a solar energy grid to light up her animals.
In her pre-service agreement, she requested solar gadget (panels) that can light up the farm house, a solar TV and also received a radio for entertainment purposes for the herdsmen.
After three years of repaying Rwf15,000 per month, Umutoni says that the solar system failed to function effectively and it would only light up the farm for one hour.
“When I contacted the supplier, they told me that it is an issue of battery failure and they don’t have spare parts to replace,” Umutoni said.
“The whole discussion was hectic and I gave up, but decided to take the TV at home and subscribed to another supplier. I have not experienced any shortfalls yet,” she added.
This is just one case of failed solar systems in Nyaruguru where a district report (2024) shows that of the 81.6% households connected to electricity 38.1% are off grid (solar) and 4,274 gadgets have failed but maintenance was delayed due to lack of a maintenance company nearby.
A woman in rural Rwanda tries out a new solar power kit – one of the renewable energy sources which the government is encouraging its use
Similar experiences have been recorded across the country where 6.3million households are connected to solar energy that contributes 22% of the 62% renewable energy source in Rwanda to date.
This is one of the key issues that will be addressed at the on-going three day Africa Energy Expo 2024 that kicked off November 4, 2024 in Kigali.
The event, organized by Informa Markets is a Pan-African event that features more than 150 exhibitors including renewable and clean energy providers, transmission and distribution, energy consumption and management, backup generators and critical power, and smart solutions.
Even though in 2023, the ministry of Infrastructure (Mininfra) has asked end-users to return the solar system for replacement, the ministry says it is an issue that has to be addressed.
“This is why we are hosting this conference to be exposed to state of the art solar technology and equipment. This will improve awareness on reliable market products,” Olivier Kabera, Minister of State at Mininfra said in an exclusive interview.
Olivier Kabera, Minister of State at Mininfra (left) and his Malawi counterpart , Minister Ibrahim Matola (center), discuss ‘Powering Africa’s future’
Explanations, Solutions at Hand:
To understand why solar products end up failing, KTPress spoke to some renewable energy exhibitors -most of them showcasing products made in China that are distributed across Africa.
JA Solar, a manufacturer of high-performance PV products, and a Global Top 500 New Energy Enterprise- which has a local market in Rwanda says that the infiltration of cheap and substandard products in Rwanda has affected their market performance.
“I think, in Rwanda, we need to put a regulation that prohibits low standard products. So that will be a solution to solve this problem,” said Brayson Hilary Kisamo, the Sales Manager, JA Solar East Africa.
Patrick Osiemo, the Technical Pre-Sales Engineer at GoodWe, a photovoltaic (PV) inverter and battery manufacturer says that this could be caused by two things:
One is the pre-sale installation oriented issues where the product doesn’t operate under warranty and not used for the requested power need; and second is quality of the products especially if it doesn’t meet international certification standards which require third-party testing and warranty assurance.
“There are many substandard products entering the market, (in Africa). Therefore, it is necessary for countries, especially Rwanda, to put up a policy on product standards. For example, standards that are used in German, European and American markets which are stringent,” Osiemo said.
Patrick Osiemo, the Technical Pre-Sales Engineer at GoodWe
To address this challenge Osiemo said that at GoodWe, they ensure that free service availed before a product sale, suppliers must offer pre-sale education for end-user, training using manuals and software demos, avail after-sale maintenance but end-users must crosscheck if a product is certified.
Eng. Sosthene Mubera, the Chief Executive Officer Kolmena Group and Chairman of Solar Sub-Sector at Rwanda Energy Private Developers (EPD) confirmed that there are substandard products entering the local market thus a call for action.
Mubera said that the action needed in Rwanda is setting up regulation on engineering with minimum quality standards but also EPD is pushing for only high quality standards to enter the market.
Eng. Sosthene Mubera, the Chief Executive Officer Kolmena Group
While some Africans believe that products from China are ‘fake’ or not long-lasting, Lillian Yao, the General Manager Sun Master Solar company said that just like cars, buying cheap quality solar panels, without assured warranty is one of the causes of the current reported gadget failure in Africa.
“Many buyers want low quality but we sell high quality products and these are expensive. Therefore, we are trying to balance these two aspects to have countries set up standards that can meet quality,” Yao said.
Lillian Yao (right), the General Manager Sun Master Solar company
Kenneth Kirabo, the Team Leader at SRNE Solar Ltd in Uganda on one major solution of training Rwandans and Africans about the purpose, use and requirements of using solar energy, but also build after sales teams where most challenges lie.
“The reason why we are having these issues is some citizens think that since solar energy is free, they can use it to power many things. Customers want to buy price not quality, provided they have a panel, they don’t mind. That is why we have to focus on education, sensitization,” Kirabo said.
Kenneth Kirabo shows why end-users must know how solar systems function
Ade Yesufu, Exhibition Director – Energy, Informa Markets said the event represents a significant milestone for Africa’s energy sector and will provide collaboration on transformative strategies for Africa’s energy future, encouraging investment in renewable energy projects and accelerating the adoption of cutting-edge technologies.
ATESS. Chinese solar company with Small Commercial Solutions for Africa
Chinese exibitors were majority and willing to share solar energy tech and knowledge with Africans
