10 / 2013 | www.pv-magazine.com Ray of light Egypt: Times are tumultuous in Egypt. Amidst the political and social unrest, one domestic company is trudging forward to bring solar power to those who need it the most in the country. A look at KarmSolar S.A.Es journey and ambition in Egypt. Egypt is the largest non-OPEC oil pro- ducer, and the second largest dry natural gas producer in Africa. Tis is according to the U.S. Energy Information Adminis- tration. According to the same sources, in 2010, almost all of the energy consump- tion was met by oil and natural gas at 41% and 46% respectively. Te remainder was supplied by coal and renewable energy sources. Te domestic power demand has also steadily increased, with natural gas exports having fallen since 2009 thanks to increasing Egyptian consumption. Te electricity consumption rates are increas- ing much quicker than capacity expan- sion and the government has plans to invest in the power sector. Egypt has decided that its aim is to derive 12 to 20% of its electricity from renewable energy by 2020. Financing should come from the private sector, international orga- nizations, and renewable energy funds. However, this promise amidst political tumult and foreseeable red tape, seems to point to a pipe dream. Tis is where Ahmed Zahran, CEO and cofounder of Egyptian solar company KarmSolar, decided to take the bull by the horns. Zahran, with his team, decided to take the interest in solar energy solu- tions and turn it into a reality in Egypt for those in need of clean and reliable elec- tricity. For starters the country has the most basic condition for successful solar power generation: plentiful sunshine (see Direct Normal Irradiation map, p. 35). It is one of the best countries in the world for solar resources, but it is also one of the countries where solar investment is minimal. But you can imagine the poten- tial, Zahran tells pv magazine. The limited grid Te whole idea behind KarmSolar was to form a company that would work in an of-grid environment. Zahran explains that geographically around 92% of Egypt is of-grid. A vast majority of Egyptians The KarmSolar team (seen above) aims to bring solar power to those who live away from the electricity grid in Egypt. Despite the state of politics and social unrest in the country, the company is growing and moving forward. P h o t o s :
K a r m S o l a r Ad v e r t i s e me nt M a p :
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s . r . o . Markets & Trends are reliant on the power grid which is limited to 8% of the space. Many agri- cultural and industrial processes are tak- ing place in regions that are of the grid. Tis means the economic potential of the country lies in the geographic areas that are of the grid. Hence KarmSolar ventures to provide energy solutions for these geographical regions. If you want to undertake any indus- trial or agricultural activities that are away from the grid, then you have to ensure that diesel trucks can access these areas. In the current environ- ment, energy is becoming more expen- sive. Diesel is becoming more of a hassle. Te government provides an 80% subsidy on the price of diesel, but you never buy it at the subsidized price and there is a black market that creates a scarcity, Zah- ran explains. Tis leads to people having to pay higher prices for diesel despite subsidies. Under these circumstances, KarmSo- lars ambition is to provide products that resolve three issues: insecure prices of power; unreliable power; and unavailable power. Pricing as previously mentioned is insecure when it comes to diesel. In terms of reliability for example, Zahran tells pv magazine, diesel is ofen mixed with water or other additives, hence afecting the energy derivation potential and the generators that use them. Diesel is also sometimes simply not available, even if customers are willing to pay the high price. KarmSolar, with its solar solutions is able to provide end customers with a source of renewable energy that solves these three problems. A business model without grants Egypt has its own New and Renewable Energy Authority (NREA), established in the 1970s. On the authoritys website its strategy target is stated as: to satisfy 20% of the electric energy demand from renewable energy resources by 2020, 12% from wind power and 8% from others, including solar. Te NREA also claims that the total capacity of PV systems in the country is now about 5.2MW, mainly used for lighting, water pumping, wire- less communications, cooling and com- mercial advertisements on highways. Te NREA also completed a PV project in December 2010 in cooperation with the Italian Ministry of Environment to elec- trify two remote settlements in Matrouh Governorate. Domestic feed-in tarifs and subsidies for renewable energy are nonexistent at the moment. Zahran however does not believe in the system of subsidies and grants. We have taken a position against subsidies and grants because they have corrupted the market. Look at Italy and Spain and the afermath of these subsidies. Te renew- Egypt has optimal conditions for the generation of solar power. 36 Markets & Trends 10 / 2013 | www.pv-magazine.com
PROJECTS AND SOLUTIONS BY KARMSOLAR Solar water pumping: KarmSolar part- nered up with WorldWater & Solar Tech- nologies to develop the MENA regions frst battery-free of-grid solar water pumping solution. This project was designed to oper- ate motor pumps reaching up to 600 horse- power. The project is a standalone hybrid solution that relies only on solar power. The solar energy management services and support are done via the Solar Man- agement Interface, a data-driven software application that is powered by KarmSolar. The solar aspect is also custom-designed to adapt to the power needs of submersible pumps and can be scaled easily to meet changing energy demands, which in turn allow the drawing of water at increasing depths. Solar building solution: KarmSolar has teamed up with Atelier Kafrawi to introduce a fully integrated solar building solution. This solution allows symbiosis with local architecture developed with natural earth materials. It is thus integrated into local buildings. A battery system is also included for storage of solar power to meet energy needs in the nighttime. The design also includes access to the Solar Management Interface that is a data driven software application which extends energy manage- ment services and support to the client enabling optimum energy management. The solar building solution was also applied on the companys workshop ofce in the Bahariya Oasis. The earthen building is con- nected to a 7.5kW solar power source. KarmSolar is also currently working on Egypts frst solar village designed to host around 500workers (see photo above). It is set to run completely on solar energy. The construction phase has begun and the vil- lage is expected to be completed in March 2014. Al Tayebat farm project: KarmSolar and WorldWater & Solar Technologies implemented a 50kW of-grid solar water pumping facility on Al Tayebat farm in the Bahariya Oasis in Egypt. The 50kW solar farm powers a 30kW submersible pump that has an average fow rate of 120cubic meters per hour. The well which is powered by solar serves a pivot irrigation area of around 120acres. Mobile MaxPure solar purifcation and desalination: KarmSolar has also in its ofering the Mobile MaxPure solar desalina- tion system. This is a standalone solar pow- ered system that is designed to pump, flter purify and desalinate water. The company says the system is ideal for use in of-grid locations in regions where solar resources are plentiful. WorldWater & Solar Technolo- gies were involved in the design and devel- opment. This solution can provide an aver- age of 113,000liters of clean drinking water per day from wells, rivers, lakes and other freshwater sources 24 hours, 7days a week. From seawater and brackish water sources which are purifed and desalinated via reverse osmosis, the system can provide a reliable supply of an average of 15,000liters of clean drinking water, says the company. A 3.3kW folding solar array powers the sys- tem and a 31kWh gel battery bank provides power at night. able energy market existed because they were paying hefy subsidies. Now with the economic crisis they cannot aford it, he explains. Egypt has been provided with grants though to undertake renewable energy projects. Tis year in May, news agency Reuters reported on a solar power pro- duction scheme across North Africa and the Middle East. Te Climate Investment Funds (CIF) expressed support for such a scheme to the tune of $660million. Egypt KarmSolar takes a position against the provision of grants and subsidies. Zahran believes strongly that the message sent with such subsidies and grants is that renewable energy projects are only possible with such aid and otherwise, not economical. 4 GWp worldwide rely on skytron www.skytron-energy.com PLANT CONDITION MONITORING for real-time data acquisition and fault diagnostics POWER PLANT CONTROL for stable and secure grid integration LIFE-CYCLE DATA HOSTING for accurate and reliable performance analysis SMART CONTROL INTERFACES for flexible electricity trading, direct or tariff based SKYTRON OPERATIONS & MAINTENANCE SERVICE for worldwide support of customers PV plant SKYTRON SYSTEM MIGRATION ENGINEERING for professional upgrade of legacy PV plant Benet from our system approach to utility-scale photovoltaic power plants MAXIMIZE YOUR PV YIELD SECURE YOUR INVESTMENT MEET US: SPI 13 | 21 - 24 October 2013 Chicago, Illinois USA | Booth 3727 A d v e r t i s e m e n t 10 / 2013 | www.pv-magazine.com is also included in this scheme. An additional $5billion from donors and private fnancing is also expected to fow into this region, with concentrated solar power plants in the plans in Egypt as well. Zahran believes strongly that the message sent with such subsidies and grants is that renewable energy proj- ects are only possible with such aid and otherwise, not econom- ical. In addition, it implies that such projects can only be imple- mented via the government because that is where the money is. Our business model is based on a totally diferent assumption. We are providing a product that is cheaper, easier to use and sustainable. We had to hence take a position against grants and subsidies. We do not accept grants or subsidies, he explains. Know-how and supply PV know-how is also something that is important, especially in newer markets. Our frst project was commissioned in April this year: a 50kW solar farm. But believe it or not, this is the big- gest solar energy transaction in the private sector in Egypt, Zah- ran says. Te company decided to acquire the know-how and is now developing their own methods. Te KarmSolar CEO argues that since the general perception in Egypt about solar is that it is expensive and depends on aid, nobody has been trying it out. So far, there have been two types of players in the Egyptian market: those who represent the PV manufacturers and their products as agents in Egypt, and those who undertake small proj- ects like solar power for mobile towers. Zahran says that these are not exactly the companies you would want to work with in terms of know-how. PV requires specifc know-how and Karm- Solar thus decided to acquire and develop this knowledge them- selves. Currently the company is getting its solar components from global suppliers. Domestic manufacturing China, Europe and the U.S. are currently the main hubs where most of the manufacturing is occurring. Te market is domi- nated by these manufacturers. Zahran sees the possibility for a solar manufacturing hub in Egypt. Currently we do not have proper PV manufacturers, Zahran says, adding, Without R&D investment, the technology quickly becomes obsolete. Tat is what we are missing in Egypt: PV manufacturers who invest strongly in R&D. Currently we have two factories that assemble panels. Tere is no production. Hence there is a need to have development in the manufacturing segment. Zahran says that in order for solar manufacturing to get of its feet in Egypt, the old money out, new smart money in concept has to be implemented. We have thousands of big businessmen who control the economy at the moment, the Mubaraks and the Mursis who channel the money into so-called risk-free ven- tures. What we need is new smart money that goes into com- panies like KarmSolar and other startups that are working on technology development. It is about moving the economy to more value-added processes, Zahran adds. When asked if the company would be interested in ventur- ing into PV manufacturing, Zahran tells pv magazine that KarmSolar is very focused at the moment on providing of-grid energy solutions. We are a solar integrator and I do not know if we will venture into manufacturing. But we will defnitely encourage those who want to manufacture in Egypt because that will increase our competitiveness. S Habib Ali