Sacko 1

Mohamed Sacko
Debra Dagher
Writing and Inquiry Academic Context II
11 June 2015
SolarCity in Mali
My brother had his Bachelor degree four months ago. When I asked him what he wanted
to do next, he told me that he wanted to do a Master in Risk Management. I simply asked
Why? and he remained silent. He didnt know why he wanted to do that particular formation.
According to Eric Thomas, everybody got a dream, everybody got a goal, what separates them is
their "Why? One should always ask himself: Why do I want this? Why do I wake up in the
morning? I have been wondering about those questions for a while and I finally realized their
true meanings. In order to know what I really wanted in my life, I had to find a reason to wake
up every morning and go get it. Most important, I must be determined that no matter what it
takes, I am not going to stop, I am not going to give up, I am not going to quit until my dream
becomes a reality (Eric Thomas). I was born in West Africa, one of the most underprivileged part
of the world. Most people see that as a disadvantage, but I see it as a blessing. My life could only
get better. I was lucky enough to have satellite TV home and whenever I watched TV I could
have a glance of what the outside world was and looking around me made me realize that there
was lot to be done. But, how? That was the question.
As a child, people would always say that I was smart and whenever they had any problem
that requires some engineering, they would call upon me and I would fix it most of the time for
free. The expression on their face was priceless. One particularity about Africa is that everybody
considers their neighbors children as their own. The community has always seen me with pride

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and they have considered me as their way out of poverty. Receiving such high expectations from
people affected my view of the world immensely. Making them proud has always been my
driving force. I remember every Friday my parents used to cook food and bring to the Friday
prayer for the needed. My and brothers and I would help distribute the food. I believe thats what
built into this high sense of responsibilities and belonging. I have to make the gift I have received
count for as many people as possible.
I remember one Sunday afternoon, it was 120 degrees outside and my room was hotter
than a sauna because there wasnt enough energy to keep the AC on. The next day, I have
ordered a solar system and used the alternative energy to power the AC. Everybody seems
amazed and that was probably the best day in my life. I had actually created something truly
useful for my community. Nicola Sarkozy, former president of the republic of France once said
that Africa had missed history and that it should get more involved into the future. I have never
been fond of Mr. Sarkozy, but what he said on that day got stuck my mind since. It made me
wonder about the only thing that Africa has for granted: nature and more almost 300 days of
sunshine in most areas every year.
The first book that I have read about Solar Energy was How to Design, Build and Set up
Photovoltaic Components and Solar Electric Systems by Hurley. It introduced me to the design
and set up of a basic photovoltaic solar system. In the book, he presents a step by step process to
calculate the daily electrical usage and needs, plan and size the solar electric system, mount and
orient PV panels, wire solar panel arrays, make a ventilated battery box and wire battery arrays
for solar panels. I have own that book for the past five pays and it is probably one of the catalysts
to my obsession with solar energy systems. I have used it to install my first ever solar panel and
it was a huge success.

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In Mali, electricity is produced using tidal energy. During summer, lake tends to dry and
cities are faced with prolonged power cuts that can last hours. In addition, air conditioning
requires a lot of electrical energy and only a small fraction of the population can afford it. Most
people use their air conditioning when it is hot, and this usually occurs with high solar radiation
during daytime. In a solar energy system such as solar collectors, solar radiation is the main
energy source, and it is therefore, appropriate for use in a cooling system. The completion of the
SolarCity project would have a tremendous impact in Malians lives. I have decided to target the
cities rather than the villages where most people are concerned. Thus the name SolarCity. Not
only will it provide a path to energy independence, it will also allow Malians to save money
compared to conventional energy source. On top of that, it will raise awareness for the potential
of solar energy and help protect the environment.
We live in a society that heavily relies on fossil and biomass energies and those wont last
forever. Since the early 90s, alternative energies have experienced a strong growth due to the
willingness of some countries to acknowledge the depletion of fossil resources and
environmental problems caused by the conventional means of energy production. Thus, most are
focusing their effort into researching clean alternative energies for the future. Solar and wind
energy are the main topics people are talking about. The sun and wind energy are free and
inexhaustible and they are the future when it comes to energy consumption. As a result, the
production and installation of photovoltaic modules have increased tenfold in a dozen years
(Golusin 2). As of today, Germany, considered as the biggest energy consumer in Europe, is
leading the way when it comes to solar energy production (Golusin Mirjana 7-57). The sun
energy collection process consist of converting the sun radiation to electricity via a photovoltaic
panel. With the constant innovation in the domain of solar energy, it has become easier to power

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cities using primarily solar energy. In this regard, companies have their vision set into making the
technology efficient enough to gather interest for commercial use.
Nowadays, there are solar collectors capable of computing the exact position of the sun at
any moment of the day. Those values are used to orient the solar panels in a way that they are
facing the sun at all time for maximum irradiation (Camacho 25-47). One of the most recent
breakthroughs is probably the Enphase Microinverter System replacing the central inverter
system. The central inverter system known as the method of installing modules in series on a
roof has always been the norm when it comes to solar energy (Rajgor 1). While relatively easy to
implement, this method is very inefficient and require training and certification to operate
according to Paul Nahi director of Enphase Energy. Founded in 2006, the company built the
Enphase Microinverter System which allows each panel to work independently and provides an
automated process for all operations and maintenance. In a glance, the Microinverter system
provides an intelligent energy collection process by using a specialized software. The output
direct current is then converted to alternative current for maximum efficiently. As a result, the
Enphase M215 known as the most efficient Microinverter is capable of delivering 96%
efficiency which is 25% more than traditional solar systems (Rajgor 2).
I was particularly focused on the success and failure stories of similar projects in China,
Brazil, India, the US and Europe. Why some succeed while other fail? In the past years advances
in energy production was undeniable despite poor management process. We are now in the era of
implementation and better management practices are required. Putting solar panels on roofs is
not enough anymore, we need oprimization. Energy management can be defined as the means of
minimizing, controlling and optimizing energy usage. In the first four chapters of Sustainable
Energy Management, Golusin discusses the planning, analysis, development and optimization

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of sustainable energy production projects. According to her, implementing those factors correctly
could be the difference between saving as much as 25% energy cost and total failure (Golusin).
After analyzing my findings, I have realized that I should focus more on affordability
than effectiveness. Company such as Enphase Energy are investing huge amount of resources
into the development of more efficient energy production. As a result, we are seeing plug and
play solar panels that require no particular skill or training. I should focus more on analyzing and
better understanding the current situation of photovoltaic systems in Mali; identify the best
practices on photovoltaic technologies to be applied in the context of Mali, and finally set up a
financial model that will develop the use of photovoltaic energy in the cities. Solar city is totally
possible in Africa, but require a huge initial investment.
This inquiry project showed me that anything is possible when you set your goal towards
it. It has be done before and there was no magic involved. The sun is free and for the taking. All
that is needed is a bold project that will allow people to grab a slice of it. In most of the examples
that I have come across, some households dont use all the energy their rooftop collects and the
excess is stored for after sun use. The good thing about solar batteries is that the stored energy
cumulates over the days so a few days of cloudy skies wont affect the household. I am still
wondering about ways to share those surplus of energies with households needing more than
what they produce. Thinking further, I can envision households selling their own extra stored
energy for profit. Looking back at this inquiry, I was able to have an understanding of what it
takes to gather energy form the sun, store it and use it to produce electricity. My dream would be
to put that knowledge into practice in Mali and pioneer the first solar city in Africa.
Unfortunately, due to time constraints, I was not able to look into what others have done wrong
and right when it comes to the specific case of Africa. For projects like this, hands on experience

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is the best practice. I will definitely be visiting some facilities in Africa in the near future to
further my knowledge.

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Work Cited
Camacho, E. F. Control of Solar Energy Systems. London: Springer, 2012. Print.
Golussin, Mirjana, Sinissa Dodic, and Stevan Popov. Sustainable Energy Management. N.p.: n.p.,
n.d. Print.
Hurley, Phillip. Solar II: How to Design, Build and Set up Photovoltaic Components and Solar
Electric Systems. Wheelock, VT: Wheelock Mountain Publications, 2012. Print.
Rajgor, Gail. "Microinverters a Solar Game Changer." Renewable Energy Focus 14.3 (2013):
16-17. Web.
Rajgor, Gail. "Solar City Showcase." Refocus 7.5 (2006): 60-61. Web.