ENGIE announced June 19 that, in line with its focus on off-grid energy provision in Africa, it was launching a number of mini-grid projects in Zambia with ENGIE PowerCorner, and starting commercial sales of their solar home system (SHS) in Ivory Coast with its subsidiary Fenix. ENGIE has stated a goal of providing 20 million people around the world with access to decarbonised, decentralised energy provision by 2020, using the latest digital technologies.
PowerCorner, launched in 2015, provides electricity to rural areas via sustainable mini-grids. ENGIE plans to launch the construction of its first mini-grid in Zambia after the demonstration of its model in Tanzania, where it has 8 mini-grids currently in operation or in final construction stage.
As part of its decentralised energy solutions, ENGIE also provides pay-go SHS through its subsidiary Fenix, which joined ENGIE in 2017. SHS also play a key role in electricity access and are complementary to mini-grids. Fenix has started commercial pay-go SHS sales in Ivory Coast in partnership with MTN mobile money, after a successful pilot conducted in 2017. Overall, Fenix has sold over 220,000 pay-go energy solutions across multiple African countries.