SAO Energy & Okra Solar – Sustainable energy to healthcare center & surrounding households (Nigeria)

This case study describes a pilot project by SAO Energy and Okra Solar to deploy Nigeria's first fully fledged mesh-grid in Omolege, Ondo State. The project energises a Primary Health Centre (PHC) and surrounding households using a "keymaker" business model where productive hubs offset residential tariffs.

• SAO Energy implemented a "keymaker" business model in Omolege, where the higher energy consumption of productive hubs, such as Primary Healthcare Centres (PHCs), offsets the tariffs for nearby residential users. This is enabled by mesh-grid power-sharing, allowing a 1.2kW output from the PHC to be shared with households.
• The project has improved healthcare delivery at the local PHC, specifically increasing the number of patients treated due to reliable day and night lighting, which has enabled the delivery of babies at night.
• Financial projections for 200 households include a CAPEX cost per connection of $494.22 (pre-OBF subsidy), an average revenue per user (ARPU) of $8/month (₦5000/month), and a 12-year IRR of 13%. Total costs for 200 Okra Kits including shipping are $98,844.51.
• Project economics have been challenged by low energy consumption, with 52% of users consuming less than 150Wh/day, which is below the designed average daily load of 220Wh/day. This is attributed to a decrease in community income, leading SAO to consider lowering tariffs to boost utility and long-term revenue.
• Deployment faced operational and logistical hurdles, including fuel shortages and significant shipping delays. Because it was Okra's first shipment to Nigeria, sea freight and customs clearance took nearly 6 months.

APA

Alliance for Renewable Electrification (2023). SAO Energy & Okra Solar – Sustainable energy to healthcare center & surrounding households (Nigeria). https://renewelec.org/case-study/sao-energy-okra-solar-sustainable-energy-healthcare-center-surrounding/

Chicago

Alliance for Renewable Electrification. SAO Energy & Okra Solar – Sustainable energy to healthcare center & surrounding households (Nigeria). 2023. https://renewelec.org/case-study/sao-energy-okra-solar-sustainable-energy-healthcare-center-surrounding/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Alliance for Renewable Electrification |title=SAO Energy & Okra Solar – Sustainable energy to healthcare center & surrounding households (Nigeria) |date=1 March 2023 |url=https://renewelec.org/case-study/sao-energy-okra-solar-sustainable-energy-healthcare-center-surrounding/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{allianceforrenewableelectrification2023sao, author = {{Alliance for Renewable Electrification}}, title = {{SAO Energy \& Okra Solar – Sustainable energy to healthcare center \& surrounding households (Nigeria)}}, institution = {Alliance for Renewable Electrification}, year = {2023}, month = mar, url = {https://renewelec.org/case-study/sao-energy-okra-solar-sustainable-energy-healthcare-center-surrounding/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }