...SunPower Afrique makes lemonade! This year's project started with an unpredicted and lengthy delay of our container's delivery to the Port of Lome. Ultimately the container arrived nearly a month late and missed our engineer, Dave Staller, in Togo completely. However, equipment has arrived and installations are currently going on!
Our ever-present Field Manager, Peace Corps Volunteer Ashley Lewis, continues to handle general operations and has now perfected the art of negotiating shipping containers through Togolese customs. Until next year of course. Our technicians Koffi and Aminou were well prepped by Dave and Ron Celentano, SunPower Afrique's lead system designer, and are handling project management and installation on their own. Ultimately, making lemonade Togo-style to me translates to real sustainability.
Although there was no equipment on the ground, Dave's time in Togo ended up being very well spent and his contribution to SunPower Afrique was invaluable. With Ron's assistance via email, Dave made some important adjustments to the settings of the inverter installed last year. Several things have taken place over the last year without our knowledge - including new electrical equipment installed at the utility interconnection, a lightning strike on Kpalime's main transformer and an additional AC unit installed on FECECAV's roof - and we continue to teach Koffi and Aminou how to troubleshoot the Outback Inverter and perfect the system's operation.
Dave prepared Aminou and Koffi for the 3 off-grid installations at the Wome, Kpadape and Amoussokope FECECAV office and constructed teak racking and other tasks possible with local materials/items not in the container.
Together with Ashley, Dave gained an important perspective into SunPower Afrique's mission and its implementation. Since his return, the 3 of us have had important conversations about the strengths and weaknesses of SunPower Afrique's operations. The result is a back-to-basics approach, a revisiting of the business plan and budget and exciting plans for partnerships that will finally bring about the launch of the Solar Loan Program. In addition to the technical/construction contributions Dave made to SunPower Afrique, his input on how-to-do-what-we-are-doing-better may be the most important thing he has given this organization.
Photos of completed projects and future plans to come. SunPower Afrique must also reiterate our thanks to SIDI and Emmanuel Beau, for the financial support that made these projects happen and their belief in our mission.
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