Our Partners
Meet the dedicated Partners
University of Hertfordshire
Alphagenesis Consultancy Limited
Powerbox Energy Systems Ltd
Locally made Solar Home System for affordable mini off-grid solutions
Nigeria is the most populous country and the largest economy in Africa with 92 million persons out of its 200 million population lacking access to grid power (Energy Progress Report -- June 2022).
Power supplies are very limited in Nigeria: electricity from the grid is available to only around 50 percent of the population, and even then, it is erratic. This has been at the core of early renewable-energy development in Nigeria. It has provided a strong incentive to find something more stable that does not result in the constant drain of cash associated with the high costs of power from the 'stand-by' generators which have become the main power source for many rural, peri-urban, and urban communities in Nigeria.
There is relatively little agreed data on household and business energy needs in Nigeria but there is at least consensus that the scale of the issue is substantial. To examine the scale of divergence, we need to look only at estimates of suppressed demand for grid electricity. Taking an end-point for aspirations of around 1KW demand per person---around what is found in many developed countries--- Nigeria has a theoretical level of demand of around 160,000MW of generation, against the comparatively tiny level of under 5000MW presently being generated. The fact that the transmission infrastructure for this 5000MW regularly collapses has shown power access in Nigeria is a multifaceted problem, and the use of solar mini grids may be plagued with transmission issues (Punch Nigeria Newspaper, 2023).
The high cost of importation and capital costs of imported renewable energy systems are restricting the products that would give consumers the options they need to adopt affordable solutions that suit their needs. There is thus a need for lowering costs of such systems through local innovation and production, for example.
This project aims to develop a solar+wind powered PowerBox that can power basic appliances in the homes of low and medium class and micro and small businesses. A key challenge of this project is the product’s affordability to the targeted group. This project builds on the result of engagement on an existing prototype we created from past research developments works. Feedback from engagement includes need for increased power output without losing its affordability factor, more practical body design among others.
Meet the dedicated Partners
We would love to hear from you! Please fill out the form below and we will get in touch with you shortly.