A fast-growing energy solution is springing up in Nigeria, Africa's largest country, where three-quarters of people still have little or no access to electricity. Off-grid solar-powered kits, consisting of a single rooftop solar panel and a suitcase-sized battery, are beginning to electrify rural homes, powering small appliances, mobile phones and fans using the nation's abundant sunshine.
The do-it-yourself kits are replacing candles, kerosene lighting and diesel generators that are costly and have health and safety risks. But what is making them increasingly popular is how easy they are to pay for.
The systems—already prevalent in Kenya, Rwanda and India—are being sold in Nigeria by Lumos, a five-year-old startup based in the Netherlands. They cost about $75 upfront and then customers pay for the electricity they plan to use through pre-paid cash mobile phones, which have been revolutionizing commerce across Africa. No bank accounts or credit cards are required.
Lumos, which works with mobile giant MTN, announced in December it raised $90 million, with $50 million coming from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation, a U.S. government agency. The investment doubled the world's previous largest investment in off-grid solar energy sector, to Off Grid Electric.
source: https://insideclimatenews.org
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