USTDA Supports Minigrid Solar Power Project in Tanzania
July 29, 2015
(USTDA)
DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania– Today, the U.S. Trade
and Development Agency provided a grant to Rex
Energy, one of Tanzania’s largest renewable
energy solutions providers, for a minigrid
project in the Lake Victoria Islands, where
only one percent of the population has access
to electricity. The grant supports the
development of a full-scale business model and
financing plan necessary to implement a hybrid
solar photovoltaic (PV) minigrid with a
cumulative capacity of 2 megawatts.
“In support of the goals of President Obama’s
Power Africa initiative, which seeks to
increase energy access and promote private
sector investment in sub-Saharan Africa, USTDA
is pleased to formalize our partnership with
Rex Energy,” said USTDA Director Leocadia I.
Zak, who signed the grant agreement along with
Rex Energy Managing Director, Mr. Francis
Kibhisa. “This project is a great example of
USTDA’s work to link U.S. industry expertise
with the advancement of clean energy in
Tanzania.”
“With this grant and technical support from
MRIGlobal, Rex Energy once again assumes the
leadership to complement government efforts to
transform rural Tanzania through solar powered
electrification,” said Mr. Kibhisa. “The
minigrid system is certainly the future of
rural electrification in Tanzania, and this
grant from USTDA has added the required
impetus, at the right time, to achieve that
future: the pre-paid solar solution to the
marginalized rural majority.”
Rex Energy has selected MRIGlobal (Kansas City,
Mo.) to carry out the feasibility study and
pilot project. The project will also include
participation from additional U.S. companies,
including Homer Energy (Boulder, Colo.),
Enphase Energy (Petaluma, Calif.) and SunEdison
(Belmont, Calif.), a major U.S. solar PV
producer and official Power Africa private
sector partner. The U.S. Department of Energy’s
National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
will also provide expertise on renewable energy
resource assessments, as well as analysis and
optimization of the minigrid design.
“We are excited to join Rex Energy on this
opportunity to provide electrical access to
rural populations in Africa,” said Thomas M.
Sack, Ph.D., President and Chief Executive
Officer of MRIGlobal. “MRIGlobal has installed
and operated minigrids around the world for
more than 10 years. This new program fills a
critical need for rural electrification in
Tanzania and will ultimately improve lives and
help grow the local economy.”
“We are very happy to participate in this
minigrid project. Solar hybrid minigrids are
the most cost-effective way to bring clean,
reliable and affordable electricity to rural
communities in Africa,” Cathy Zoi, CEO of
SunEdison’s Rural Electric Utility Company
commented. “Most importantly, electricity will
help them transform their lives and accelerate
their socio-economic development.”
This effort supports Power Africa by helping to
increase access to energy in sub-Saharan
Africa. Implementation of the project would
help to electrify an estimated 5,900 households
and businesses, delivering power to more than
37,000 Tanzanians in the Lake Victoria region.
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