Hybrid micro-hydro and solar electrification system

An important component of CIREG is the implementation of a pilot study with the aim to electrify a village with about 120 households (~10kW) in Togo at the Mono River. The envisaged village has not yet had access to electricity. To recharge mobile phones for instance, the people have to travel about 18 km to the closest village with electricity supply. In a recently conducted field visit, we identified the main electricity use cases as lighting, recharging mobile phones, and cooling of agricultural and fishery products.

Concerning the business model: The pilot study is not expected to generate revenues for an external operator. The system should be rather operated by the community itself and the revenues from selling electricity services should enable the community to pay for maintenance and possibly broken parts.