With continuing research and investment from different sectors, solar technology continues to become more accessible and affordable. This has created an opportunity for SunCulture to work on a project to help create sustainable resources to aid the poorest areas with food production and management.
Co-founders Samir Ibrahim and Charlie Nichols aim to help solve the problems of food access, waste, and land hydration in Africa by developing solar-powered water pumps. These renewably powered pumps would help solve the lack of irrigation on the continent and make much of the unused land usable for agricultural ventures.
The company joins many other businesses trying to expand solar-powered products into Africa. The competitive pricing means equipment that used to cost around $5,000 when first introduced in the region is closer to one-tenth that cost now, making it tenable for the poorer, more rural areas to start taking advantage of the tech. SunCulture's business plan involves a "pay-as-you-grow" model which allows for irrigation to be accessible for smaller farmers while still making it profitable so the company can expand. TechCrunch reports:
Initially, the company sold its integrated energy generation and water-pumping systems to the middle income farmers who hold jobs in cities like Nairobi and cultivate crops on land they own in rural areas. These “telephone farmers” were willing to spend the $5,000 required to install SunCulture’s initial systems.
Now, the cost of a system is somewhere between $500 and $1,000 and is more accessible for the 570 million farming households across the word — with the company’s “pay-as-you-grow” model.
It’s a spin on what’s become a popular business model for the distribution of solar systems of all types across Africa. Investors have poured nearly $1 billion into the development of off-grid solar energy and retail technology companies like M-kopa, Greenlight Planet, d.light design, ZOLA Electric and SolarHome, according to Ibrahim. In some ways, SunCulture just extends that model to agricultural applications.
“We have had to bundle services and financing. The reason this particularly works is because our customers are increasing their incomes four or five times,” said Ibrahim. “Most of the money has been going to consuming power. This is the first time there has been productive power.”
SunCulture’s hardware consists of 300-watt solar panels and a 440-watt-hour battery system. The batteries can support up to four lights, two phones and a plug-in submersible water pump.
The company’s best-selling product line can support irrigation for a two-and-a-half acre farm, Ibrahim said. “We see ourselves as an entry point for other types of appliances. We’re growing to be the largest solar company for Africa.”
