A 858 kWp photovoltaic system will be installed on the uppermost storey of a car park at Garden City, a 32 acre development with residential, retail, hotel and office space. As well as providing much needed shade, the 3,300 solar panels will supply retail tenants with 1256 MWh of solar energy per year and cut carbon emissions by around 745 tonnes per year, according to a company statement.

A dual-mode system that can operate in parallel with the grid as well as with diesel generators will be used. This solution “provides solar energy in the daytime meaning less is used from the grid; and when the grid is down, the system also reduces the consumption of costly diesel back up”, says the statement. The result will be a cheaper energy bill.

“The system was developed by SMA, but we pushed the envelope to ensure the solar contribution is exploited to the maximum without damaging the generators. These are operated during the frequent power cuts occurring in the country”, explains Dan Davies, Director for Solarcentury in East Africa and one of the company founders. “The unique dual-mode technology system we have developed is perfect for urban areas where land is at a premium yet energy needs to be supplied near to demand. Installing the panels on the roof of a car park makes use of otherwise functionless roof space. We worked with architects to overcome all concerns related to the aesthetics of the project.”

The solar installation, whose cost was not disclosed, will be financed under NVI Energy’s Solar4Africa. “The developer is taking the responsibility of 30 % of the upfront costs and will gradually gain ownership over 12 years depending on the performance”, Davies adds.

Garden City is a 250 million US$ project and includes 420 apartments and houses, 50,000 square metres of shopping mall, 20,000 square metres of office space and a 3-acre central park.

Led by Actis Ltd, a London-based private equity firm focusing on emerging markets, the development has also CDC (the UK development finance institution) and the International Finance Corporation as investors. The project is endorsed by Kenya’s Vision 2030, the national blueprint aiming to industrialize the country, transforming it in a middle-income economy “in a clean and secure environment” by 2030.

Supportive environment for solar in Kenya

This is the second dual-mode solar technology system Solarcentury installs in Kenya, the first being for Williamson Tea’s tea farm. Launched in May 2014, the 1MWp solar PV project is East Africa’s largest ground mount system and is expected to reduce the company’s energy bill by around a third. For this project, Solarcentury has worked with local developers East African Solar and Azimuth Power.

“The two projects have different structures but the principles of integration and the economic justification are very similar”, says Davies, who relocated to East Africa to harness the business opportunities offered by African countries. He says there is a relatively supportive environment for renewable energy in Kenya: “There is a more supportive environment today in Kenya than 20 years ago in the UK, where the resistance from utilities was very high”.

Besides power outages that still disrupt businesses, however, a specific feature of the Kenyan market is the high cost of energy. In September 2014, the average cost of electricity for commercial activities was 0.18 US$ per kWh and the cost of diesel was 1,13 US$ per liter.

“The need to cut the energy bill, rather than other incentives, is creating market conditions that make solar power a strong economic proposition”, he says.

Claudia Delpero