Changing Lives with Solar Microgrids

This case study describes EarthSpark International's implementation of a solar-powered microgrid in Les Anglais, Haiti, to provide reliable 24-hour electricity. It details the technical, logistical, and regulatory challenges overcome during the project, the development of the SparkMeter billing system, and the resulting economic benefits for local residents and businesses.

• EarthSpark International established a 93 kW solar-powered microgrid in Les Anglais, Haiti, which provides clean and reliable power to approximately 2,000 people in a town with a downtown population of 3,000.
• To address the lack of available low-cost, high-functionality meters for customizing tariffs and managing demand, EarthSpark developed SparkMeter. This technology allows for prepaid services, different tariffs for various customer classes, and time-of-use pricing, such as selling surplus electricity at a cheaper rate during the middle of the day when the 400 kWh battery system is fully charged.
• The microgrid has significantly reduced energy costs for the residents of Les Anglais. Residential customers, who previously spent $10 to $12 monthly on kerosene and $3 to $4 on phone charging, now pay about $2 to $3 per month, representing an 80 percent saving in their household energy budget. Business customers have seen a 50 percent saving compared to previous diesel expenditures.
• EarthSpark aims to build 80 microgrids over the next five years to provide power to more than 200,000 people in Haiti.
• RMI is working with the Rwandan government to increase the electrification rate from 24 percent to 70 percent by 2018, with a strategy to provide power to approximately 50 percent of the population via the grid and over 20 percent via off-grid systems.

APA

RMI (2016). Changing Lives with Solar Microgrids. https://rmi.org/resources/changing-lives-solar-microgrids/

Chicago

RMI. Changing Lives with Solar Microgrids. 2016. https://rmi.org/resources/changing-lives-solar-microgrids/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=RMI |title=Changing Lives with Solar Microgrids |date=18 August 2016 |url=https://rmi.org/resources/changing-lives-solar-microgrids/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rmi2016changing, author = {{RMI}}, title = {{Changing Lives with Solar Microgrids}}, institution = {RMI}, year = {2016}, month = aug, url = {https://rmi.org/resources/changing-lives-solar-microgrids/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }