Pumulani: working with existing solar businesses in Zambia

In a bush clearing, just off the main road from Lusaka to Chirundu, in the Mafue Hills of Zambia, the steel frame and roof of a large half-finished building stands proudly amongst the trees. What currently looks like a large barn will, in the coming months, become Zambia's first centre devoted to the practical education and training of renewable energy technology.

The 'Pumulani' Renewable Energy Centre ('Pumulani' means 'rest well') is the idea of Gerde and Laureijs Smulders, co-founders and directors of Suntech Appropriate Technology Ltd, a renewable energy company established in Zambia since 1993.

Gerde (left) and Lawrence Smulders of Suntech, stand beneath the steel frame and roof that will be the 'Pumulani Renewable Energy Training Centre'. Photo: Andy Bodycombe

Over the past year, Suntech have been working with SolarAid in Zambia on the design and installation of solar installations on schools, community centres and clinics as part of SolarAid's Global Cool funded macrosolar programme.

Suntech's experience of working in Zambia is extremely valuable to SolarAid and highlights one of the key challenges we face that all too often, solar power systems installed in developing countries by donor organisations can be perceived as unreliable. According to Gerde 'every solar system which doesn't work is bad for us even if it wasn't from us. We just want to save costs for the people'.

Suntech hope to address these problems by tackling them head on and, at the same time, addressing some of the root causes.

More about this in our next blog