Okra – Steung Chrov Project (Cambodia)

The Okra – Steung Chrov Project deployed a 50 kWp / 300 kWh mesh-grid system to electrify 140 households across three remote Cambodian villages. The project, supported by the UNDP and the Cambodian government, utilized a plug-and-play hardware and software solution to overcome the impracticality of national grid extension and the commercial failure of conventional mini-grids. While the levelised cost of energy is USD 0.45/kWh, the system is sustainable on ongoing operations and maintenance costs under full utilization, with users paying a subsidized tariff of approximately $0.16/kWh.

• The project utilized Okra Solar's mesh-grid system, consisting of hardware (Pod) and software (Harvest), to electrify 140 households in the villages of Steung Chrov, Ta Daok, and Prek Spean in less than eight weeks.
• The total cost of the project was approximately USD 120,000, which covered shipping, installation, and two years of SaaS fees for remote management via the Harvest platform.
• The system's levelised cost of energy (LCOE) is USD 0.45/kWh over seven years, but the grid is sustainable regarding ongoing operations and maintenance costs if fully utilized, as upfront costs were grant-funded by the UNDP.
• Community members pay a subsidized tariff averaging 640 Riel/kWh ($0.16/kWh) and use mobile money financing to pay for appliances, using energy access as collateral.
• The Cambodian government is considering scaling out Okra technology because extending the national grid to remote, low-density areas is neither practical nor viable, and traditional diesel or solar-diesel hybrid mini-grids have lacked commercial viability.

APA

Alliance for Renewable Electrification (2021). Okra – Steung Chrov Project (Cambodia). https://renewelec.org/case-study/okra-steung-chrov-project-cambodia/

Chicago

Alliance for Renewable Electrification. Okra – Steung Chrov Project (Cambodia). 2021. https://renewelec.org/case-study/okra-steung-chrov-project-cambodia/.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Alliance for Renewable Electrification |title=Okra – Steung Chrov Project (Cambodia) |date=18 May 2021 |url=https://renewelec.org/case-study/okra-steung-chrov-project-cambodia/ |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{allianceforrenewableelectrification2021okra, author = {{Alliance for Renewable Electrification}}, title = {{Okra – Steung Chrov Project (Cambodia)}}, institution = {Alliance for Renewable Electrification}, year = {2021}, month = may, url = {https://renewelec.org/case-study/okra-steung-chrov-project-cambodia/}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }