Mahavelona – Our Pilot Project in Madagascar

The Mahavelona community is the location of our first ImpactSite® in Madagascar and was commissioned in July 2022. It differs from our previously implemented ImpactSites, as we installed a 120 kWp PV ground-mounted system here instead of a Solartainer®, due to the high demand and the location of the community. This pilot project is not only a milestone for us and our partner Polarstern Energie, but also for the country of Madagascar itself. This is because the solar farm with battery storage is the first mini-grid project in the whole of Madagascar to be powered 100% by renewable energy. This reliable and sustainable power supply empowers the local people to achieve more self-determination and economic growth.

Mahavelona is located in the region of Itasy in the heart of Madagascar

The community of Mahavelona is located in the highlands about 200 km west of the capital Antananarivo in the southwest of the Itasy region. This highland area is very fertile and especially known for its cultivation of various rice varieties. This also benefits Mahavelona, which is considered relatively prosperous and has, among other things, four schools, a police station and a health clinic. The fact that the community was not electrified earlier, despite the great need and potential, is mainly due to the poor roads to Mahavelona, which is why it takes about 3 hours by car for the last section of about 35 km.

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In the Village

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Our Team in Mahavelona

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Eddy

Centralist

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Nandrianina Anicet

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Heriniaina Stephan

Gardien

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Vonjiniaina

Gardien

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Outlook – What's Next for Mahavelona?

In addition to connecting as many private households as possible, a very important part of our work is to provide small entrepreneurs with a stable, cost-effective and sustainable power supply. Operators of rice husking machines for processing rice grown in Mahavelona play a significant economic role in the region. The machines require a relatively large amount of energy, which in the past was provided exclusively by diesel engines. Supplying the first plant of this kind with 100 % renewable energy from our mini-grid now is therefore a special milestone for us. We are currently planning to connect another four rice processing plants.

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