China’s Sinosoar signed an agreement on 12 March with the state Ethiopian Electric Utility (EEU) to design, build and operate a solar-diesel mini-grid in Bokolomayo Village in the south of Somali Regional State. The mini-grid will have a combined 2MWp of solar PV capacity, 5.5MWh of battery storage, 450kW of diesel generator back-up and a Scada system supplied by Sinosoar that allows for remote management. The development has been funded by the African Development Bank and is also supported by the World Bank Group’s $375m Ethiopia Electrification Programme. Launched in March 2018, this aims to electrify 250 rural villages by July 2023.
