Decarbonizing Kenya

Sustainable economic growth is key to improving the quality of life in Africa. Kenya is one of the fastest developing countries in East Africa, with a growth of 5,7% in 2019. Small and medium enterprises are at the heart of the country’s economy and growth as they account for about 98% of all businesses and create 80% of new jobs annually.

High electricity costs, as well as poor reliability in power supply from the national grid, are major problems for businesses. Numerous companies are thus opting for power supply from renewable energy sources against the use of diesel generators.

Based in Nairobi (Kenya), the Ariya Group addresses these issues by designing, financing, and implementing customized clean energy systems in Kenya, such as solar photovoltaic (PV) systems, smart integrated batteries, and power stabilization technologies. The group has been operating in the solar industry in the country since 2015 and has installed 25 solar systems so far.

Ariya Finergy Limited is one of the group’s subsidiaries and will use the funds raised to install five photovoltaic solar plants with a total capacity of 1,19 MWp. The end customers are established Kenyan small-medium enterprises in the agricultural, food and logistics sectors.

Kenya Nut Company Limited

Kenya Nut Company Limited is one of the leading nut processors in the world operating in Kenya for 46 years. The company employs more than 2.500 workers in macadamia and cashew nut processing.

Plant 1 

• Location: a factory in Thika, which processes Macadamia nuts.
• Total capacity: 162 kWp
• Clean energy: 238 MWh/year. At its peak, it will cover 100% of the factory’s electricity needs.
• Status: commissioned.

Plant 2 

• Location: floating system mounted on the water reservoir at Lelewshwa Winery in Naivasha.
• Total capacity: 66 kWp
• Clean energy: 96,4 MWh/year.
• Status: commissioned.

Plant 3 

• Total capacity: 170 kWp
• Location: on the roof of the Eco-Park in Thika.
• Clean energy: 240MWh/year. At its peak, it will cover 100% of the factory's electricity needs.
• Status: expected to start construction in Q1 2022.

Repayment of the plants: the solar plants will be purchased by Kenya Nut and paid in fixed monthly instalments over two years.

Mbogo Valley Tea Factory Limited

Mbogo Valley Tea Limited produces high-quality black tea for local and international markets. The company is Rainforest Alliance certified and maintains high standards for health and safety. It directly employs 300 people, 40% of whom are women. 12.500 farmers (out-growers, typically smallholder farmers) supply their tea to the Mbogo Valley Tea factory for processing. 

The PV systems will improve the factory’s overall profitability by reducing overhead costs, while contributing to long-term sustainability and thus their ability to grow, ensuring long-term benefits and job security for their employees and surrounding communities. In addition, it will have a positive environmental impact.

• Total capacity: 403.2 kWp
• Location: roof of the tea factory of the Mbogo Valley Tea Factory Limited (Mbogo Valley Tea) company in Kericho, Kenya.
• Clean energy: 624 MWh/year. During its peak, it will cover 90% of the tea factory's electricity needs.
• Status: commissioned.

Repayment: the plant will be purchased by Mbogo Valley Tea Limited and paid in fixed monthly instalments over five years.

Highland Drinks Limited

Based in Nyeri (a relatively small agricultural town), and founded 60 years ago, Highlands Drinks Limited is a supplier of water, carbonated soft drinks and energy drinks. It employs about 600 people. With very few other employment opportunities in the region, the company is essential to the livelihoods not only of its employees but also of the businesses in the area that supply them with services. The company supports many environmentally conscious projects such as the Rhino Charge, the Lewa Marathon and the 10 to 4 Mountain Bike Challenge.

Plant 

• Total capacity: 385.6 kWp
• Location: roof of the company in Nyeri
• Clean energy: 600 MWh/year. During its peak, it will cover approximately 70% of the company's electricity needs.
• Status: commissioned.

Repayment: AFL has entered into a 15-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Highland Drinks, which is a power supply agreement in which revenue is calculated based on the amount of electricity used by the customer.

About the five systems

All solar panels are both ISO and IEC certified. The inverters (model SUN2000) are sourced from Huawei. All components have guarantees (from 5 to 15 years). For all projects, a roof structural integrity report was prepared by an independent structural engineer to confirm that the proposed roofs have the required strength to support the solar structure.