Solar Battery Power in Kenya
Staff of the International Center of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE) don’t worry too much about the frequent power outages at their campuses. A bank of diesel generators ensure that when power from the national grid goes off, the center's research into insects, food and health is not disrupted.
But the five generators at ICIPE’s Homa Bay center, on the shore of Lake Victoria in south-west Kenya, cost about $4,000 a year to fuel and maintain – and they contribute to climate change.
Now the campus is set to bid farewell to two of its five generators by the end of the year as a solar battery system comes into operation to provide electric power to the center at night.
Jeroen Kransen