Yorkshire firm behind major solar installation in Ghana

A Leeds-based solar power company is behind the largest privately owned off-grid system in Ghana.

With Ghana experiencing an erratic power supply and regular blackouts known as ‘Dumsor’, a local woman reached out to the Yorkshire OutBack specialist Xerogrid to help take the power into her community’s own hands.

Successful Ghanaian businesswoman Gloria Rego, who supports schools, churches, and community projects in the area, set out to find a solution to the regular power outages and price hikes that have blighted Ghana for years.

With plans to open a soft drinks factory in Kpong, employing more than 100 local people, Rego needed to overcome Dumsor and rectify her unreliable three-phase power grid which regularly lost phases, damaging electrical equipment.

Leeds-based Xerogrid, an OutBack distributor and authorised service centre in the UK and Spain, supported Rego to install a solar photovoltaic (PV) array of almost 400 panels to help run offices and staff accommodation at night time.

Rego said: “It has been my dream to support our local Kpong community in Ghana by employing local people in our drinks factory. Thanks for the support by Xerogrid, we have overcome Dumsor and our business is now producing fruit juice drinks and filtered water.”

Ian Emberton, founder and managing director of Xerogrid, added: “We’re passionate about giving the power back to the people and connecting people off-grid to create their own electricity and not be 100% reliant on power grids or generators. This was a huge project for us in an unknown country and massive investment for Gloria. The whole factory project relied on us getting this right. That meant choosing the best, robust equipment that we could monitor remotely. We made this happen and discovered a fantastic country that was so welcoming and we made many great friends along the way.”

Xerogrid formed as Ian E Energy in 2014 and, having experienced phenomenal growth, has recently re-branded to extend its services specialism across the globe.

Xerogrid is supported by business accelerator programme, Entrepreneurial Spark in Leeds where founder, Ian Emberton, has won a £3000 award for the fast-growth of his business.