Productive Use of DC Solar Power in Africa to Improve the Quality of Rural Life

经验表明，生活在农村地区的非洲人重视成果（例如，照明、电视、制冷、电力的生产性利用、抽水和灌溉、农业加工），而不仅仅是获得电力。由于非洲农村的高贫困率和文化上对储蓄的抑制，除非电器和设备包括在现收现付计划或租赁计划中，否则获得能源是没有价值的。该项目提供研发，以创建一个完整的高效率，电器（一般是直流）和设备，以匹配这些PAYG控制的太阳能/电池电力系统（SPS）。这个概念旨在创造就业机会，提高收入，扩大当地经济。这将侧重于电力的生产性使用，提高农村小农和微型企业的生产率和附加值。一种创新的租赁（无押金）经营理念——businesses -in-a- box （BinaB）。每个BinaB将包括3个方面：物理硬件，包括高效率的直流终端设备，以及模块化和可升级的PAYG太阳能发电系统，以满足所需的占空比和共享部件的通用性。展示非洲企业和分布式能源服务公司（非洲电力和SAfP） （DESCO）租赁系统的经济可行性的商业模式支持服务，包括适当的：培训，业务专业知识（例如滴灌农艺师），获得相关业务投入，完成持续维护和翻新。计划是采购、调整和/或开发符合规范和可行性测试的设备。将在坦桑尼亚部署原型，以测试业务模式，并与相关业务伙伴一起开发所需的服务包。这将涉及在大小和使用方式的多次迭代中运行设备测试和经济模型，产品改进，期望我们将为4-6个业务系统生产工作原型，并为客户和DESCO提供完整的业务模型评估。大约50-100个BETA测试单元将被制造和现场试验，并报告具有足够创新的设计，受到专利、设计权、版权和/或商标的保护。此外，太阳能发电系统（SPS）的范围也将扩大。这些系列的一个独特之处在于，系统可以通过添加多个光伏面板，扩大箱体尺寸，插入更大的电池，以及大约每秒钟升级一次添加子控制板来处理增加的功耗和电流来进行现场升级。这使小型系统保持低成本，同时在大型系统中具有充分的能力，最大限度地重用较小的系统组件。系统将设计和测试50-100 BETA试验系统为每个规模开发。此外，现收现付系统将有新的应用程序和软件包，并提供完整的规格和用户手册文件。除了BinaB系统，可升级的家用太阳能家庭系统，利用扩展的SPS范围，将通过采购高效，廉价但坚固的电器（小冰箱，风扇，灯，驱蚊剂），低维护电池和更密集的包装来降低运输成本，从而降低成本。原型将以不同的尺寸配置（100-200）制造，用于坦桑尼亚的BETA现场试验。上述所有新产品都将增加DESCO在非洲的收入和盈利能力（以及SSA的能源获取），包括非洲电力公司的子公司，包括增加其PAYG软件和支持服务的销售。非洲电力（英国）以适当的转移定价为子公司采购所有产品，从而增加了在英国的收入和利润。降低成本可以通过吸引较贫穷的人口来增加销售，或增加利润，或两者结合。

Experience shows Africans in rural settings value outcomes (e.g., light, TV, refrigeration, productive use of power, water pumping and irrigation, agri-processing) & not simply access to electricity. Because of the high rates of poverty in rural Africa and the cultural inhibition to saving, access to energy is of no value unless appliances and equipment are included in a PAYG or leasing plan. This project provides the R&D to create a complete range of high-efficiency, appliances (generally DC), and equipment that match these PAYG controlled Solar/battery Power Systems (SPS). The concept is design to create jobs, improve incomes, and expand the local economy. This will focus on the productive use of power that increases the productivity and value add for rural smallholders and micro-enterprises. An innovative business concept of leasing (with no deposit) Businesses-in-a-BoxTM (BinaB) has been developed. Each BinaB will comprise of 3 aspects:Physical hardware comprising high-efficiency DC end-use equipment coupled to a modular and upgradeable PAYG solar power system sized to meet the required duty cycle and sharing commonality of parts.A business model demonstrating economic viability both for African business and the Distributed Energy Services Company (Africa Power and SAfP) (DESCO) leasing the systemsSupport services including as appropriate: training, business expertise (e.g. agronomist for drip feed irrigation), access to relevant business inputs, complete on-going maintenance, and refurbishment.The plan is to source, adapt and/or develop equipment that meets the specification and test for viability. Prototypes will be deployed to Tanzania to test the business model and develop the required service packages in conjunction with relevant business partners. This will involve running equipment tests and economic models in multiple iterations of size and ways of use, product improvements, with the expectation that we will produce working PROTOTYPES for 4-6 businesses systems, with full business model evaluations for both customers and the DESCO. Around 50-100 BETA test units will be manufactured and field trialed and reported with sufficiently innovative designs be protected by patents, design rights, copyright, and/or trademarks.In addition, the range of solar power systems (SPS) will be extended. A unique feature of these series is that systems can be field upgraded by adding multiple PV panels, expanding the size of the box, inserting a larger battery, and approximately every second upgrade adding daughter control boards to handle the increased power draw and currents. This keeps the small systems low cost, whilst having full capability at larger systems with maximum re-use of the smaller systems components. Systems will be designed and tested with 50-100 BETA trial systems for each of the sizes developed. Furthermore, the PAYG system will have new apps and software packages delivered with full specification & user manual documents. As well as the BinaB systems, upgradable domestic solar home systems, making use of the extended range of SPS, will be developed with lower costs by sourcing efficient, cheap but robust appliances (small fridges, fans, lights, mosquito repellents), low maintenance batteries and denser packaging to reduce shipping costs. Prototypes will be manufactured in different size configurations (100-200) for BETA field trials in Tanzania.All the above new products will increase the revenue and profitability (and Energy Access in SSA) of the DESCO's in Africa including Africa Power's subsidiary companies including increased sales of its PAYG software and support services. Africa Power (UK) sources all the products for its subsidiaries with appropriate transfer pricing, thus increasing revenue and profits in UK. Cost reductions can be used to increase sales by attracting a poorer demographic or increase profits or a combination thereof.