The recent announcement of a partnership between Greenlight Planet and Orange Telecommunications which aims to provide the latter’s customers with access to clean energy solutions is bound to help Africa tackle climate change and some of its economic issues. The partnership agreement states that both companies will be deploying Greenlight Planet’s Sun King range of off-grid energy systems available to the hardest-to-reach regions in the country, especially to the households who live off-the-grid; without electricity.

Greenlight Planet is the largest solar pay-as-you-go provider in Africa. Through this partnership, the company will provide equipment and support to expand Orange’s value proposition in energy. The company also aims to service Orange customers in African countries where the telecoms company operate. The countries include Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Liberia, Mali and Sierra Leone but the first beneficiary would be it’s eight million customers in Burkina Faso starting this month.

The Director of Orange Energy, Nat-Sy Missamou, expressed his delight in the partnership stating that it allows an energy player to evolve into a digital energy operator, using Orange’s telco operator assets. He added that the “African populations will thus be able to access energy via simple mobile pre-payment, wherever they are and regardless of their total energy needs.” Missamou further stated that was the company’s ambition and contribution to the African energy transition.

The telecoms company has been a key player in Africa’s energy transition with serious commitments to fight climate change through efficient delivery of clean energy solutions. Currently, Africa lags behind in the global fight against climate change as little or no efforts were taken to reduce carbon emissions on the continent. Consequently, the continent has suffered the impacts of climate change in the last few years, which includes the release and concentration of gas emissions in the atmosphere, higher temperatures, drought, and changing rainfall patterns. 

The service that this partnership offers will place Africa on a good pedestal with global leaders with regards to the fight against climate change as it would mean a massive reduction in carbon emissions in the countries where Orange telecom is situated.  

Also, with the supply of reliable alternative power, this initiative will also increase the number of Small and Medium Entrepreneurs(SMEs) and consequently create a boost in the African economy. The problem with power cuts in Africa has been an economy-crippler for decades. It has brought about the death of many SMEs within their first year of establishments, driven foreign investors away from the continent and limited the amount of information that could have improved the quality of service and delivery of many African entrepreneurs. 

Apart from combating climate change and providing alternative energy to create an economic boost, this new initiative will create a cleaner, healthier environment with less emission of toxic gas in the atmosphere. 

Orange Telecommunications has been instrumental in helping Africa combat climate change by providing clean energy solutions through various partnerships and has been a key player in Africa’s energy transition move after announcing its interest in 2018.

By Ishioma Emi

Elsewhere on Ventures

Triangle arrow