Sopowerful Foundation

For our 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗷𝗲𝗰𝘁𝘀, we often need to drill a borehole. This can be up to 60, 70 meters, or even beyond. 💧 We start with a 𝗵𝘆𝗱𝗿𝗼𝗴𝗲𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲𝘆, to detect where the most suitable underground water sources are and what kind of soil we will come across. A professional contractor operates the drills. 🔍 We dig up the 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗶𝗹 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀, as can be seen in these photos, and sometimes encounter rocks that don't allow us to go further. A process which requires patience and often different trials before we can proceed to the casing of the borehole and installation of the pump...

Today we introduce Antoine Desforges! He is one of our Project Managers and lives with his wife and children in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. Antoine has a background and experience in Wind energy 🌬, which he now applies to driving the implementation of our projects all over Malawi. His calm and organized personality helps us to bring more structure to our projects, documents and approach 💪🏽 #sopowerful #solarwhereitmattersmost #team #introductions #malawi

🌱 𝗘𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗮 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗦𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿-𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗜𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻   Throwback to 2022, when a 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗮𝗿-𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 transformed life in 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗴𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝗮, a village in Dedza District, Malawi, where water scarcity made both farming and daily life a big challenge.   Thanks to this project, almost 1900 people now have reliable irrigation, enabling them to cultivate larger plots, increase crop yields, and improve food security, access to clean water, and nutrition in the surrounding community. The villagers named it Mphwekesa Moyo—meaning "making life easy." 😊   #Sopowerful #SolarWhereItMattersMost #Malawi #SDG6 #CleanWater #SustainableFarming #CommunityImpact

In the coming months we want to introduce you to the people in our team! 😃 Today: Goodwill, our Project Engineer! 👷🏾♂️💪🏽 Goodwill is a certified renewable energy engineer with over 10 years of experience in solar energy. He beats all of us if it comes to time spent on-site and loves to be with his boots on the ground (or on the roof!) Goowill is responsible for inspections, supervision and other interventions and accompanies the installation process of our projects, working closely together with our contractors 🙌🏽🛠️ Wherever he travels in Malawi or beyond, Goodwill's favorite meal remains 'Nsima', the local version of 'polenta' 🥘 #solarwhereitmattersmost #team #introductions #malawi

This week marks our 5-year anniversary! 🎉 We’re beyond grateful to celebrate this milestone, having implemented over 30 projects with an incredible and growing team. None of this would have been possible without the trust and collaboration of more than 40 amazing partners who share our mission. A heartfelt thank you to everyone who have been part of this journey and is making a tangible and sustainable impact with us.  Here’s to the next 5 years of making a difference—together! 💛 BayWa r.e. EMEA | Voltiq - Energy Transition Finance | Encavis AG | LONGi Solar | Sunrock | GPSS Group | Klimaatfonds Nederland | SolarPartners | Hyphen Renewables | Green Horse Advisory | EDP Renewables | STÄUBLI | Higeco More | Enlight Energy Services | Green Arrow Capital | Energie Nuove Srl | Ameri Power | Green Zone Consulting | Wessel Management GmbH | Floating Solar | Joulz | Ecorus | Energy Solutions Group | Raptech srl | ZIMMERMANN PV-Steel Group | re:cap global investors ag | GreenGo Srl | REA - Reliable Energy Advisors | Plain Energy GmbH | Solarfields | Sinergies Group | Innovo Renewables S.p.A. | Our New Energy | Chint Solar Europe #sopowerful #solarwhereitmattersmost #ruralelectrification #sdgs #sustainableimpact

🎉 A new chapter for Matiya Health Centre! The community of Matiya celebrated the inauguration of its new solar system. For years, the health centre struggled with frequent power outages, limiting its ability to provide essential services. Today, it stands energized, offering reliable electricity for lighting, medical equipment, and vaccine storage. The celebration was unforgettable, with traditional dances and heartfelt speeches from local leaders. A massive thank you to everyone who made this possible! #sopowerful #solarwhereitmattersmost #sdgs #sdg3 #sgd7 #renewableenergy #ruralelectrification #healthcare #sustainability

With an international team (by now 7 nationalities and located in 6 countries) it is a challenge to all know each other and be connected! During our call, we spent an informal hour getting to know each other better by sharing photos representing personal and memorable moments. The twist? The photos were shared anonymously, sparking conversations and stories as we guessed who they might belong to and learned more about each other in the process. We really enjoyed this 'remote moment together' and will try to plan this at least every two months. We're eager to learn about how other international organizations maintain team cohesion and connection, even when you're spread out over different locations! #sopowerful #solarwhereitmattersmost #sdgs #energy #solar #ruralelectrification #health #education #safewater #safefood

This week we held our yearly team retreat! Two days of getting to know each other better outside the daily work, in nature 🌳⛅️⛰️ We definitely enjoyed the time, hikes and meals together, as well as the remote session we held with our colleagues who could not join in person. Now we are refreshed and ready for the last intense weeks of this year! 💪🏽 #sopowerful #teambuilding #solarwhereitmattersmost #malawi #nature

Healthcare at Sengerema Hospital, in the north-west of Tanzania, is now solar powered! ☀🔌🏥 Two weeks ago we commissioned the system, consisting of 198kWp of solar generation and 480kWh of battery storage. As the hospital was founded in 1959, some of the existing electrical infrastructure and roofs have been upgraded. We also constructed a dedicated power room for the inverters and the batteries. ⚡️ Now, healthcare for more than 64.000 of the poorest in this region of Tanzania is not dictated by power outages or high diesel costs, but can rely on clean and uninterrupted electricity obtained from the sun. Last Friday the inauguration of the solar system and the brand-new operating theatre building took place. The celebration event was attended by the Tanzanian Minister of Energy, Mr. Doto Mashaka Biteko and other stakeholders that have been involved in these important developments at the hospital. 📊 The next months we will be focused on further optimizing the system and its integration with the local grid and hospital diesel backup, as well as improving energy management measures together with the hospital's appointed Solar System Manager. We are both proud and thankful for being able to implement this change, which is completely in line with our mission '𝘴𝘰𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵', and support the hospital in its life-saving work. 🙏 A massive thank you to: ▪️ our Partners and funders, for their trust and for making this project possible ▪️ the hospital, for co-investing with us and believing in this change from the start ▪️ Greenlink ReGen, the EPC, for the hard work and great collaboration through the highs and lows of the project ▪️ Stichting Vrienden Sengerema Hospital, for their valuable support across the implementation of this project ▪️ our team, for the hard work and dedication, on-site and from remote, over the last months ▪️ all other stakeholders that have contributed to the successful implementation of this project. #sopowerful #solarwhereitmattersmost #sdg3 #sdg7 #tanzania #solarenergy #ruralelectrification #healthcare #health #change

Why does our 'power room' at Mlambe Hospital now has a second roof? 🏠 The container is the heart of the system at the hospital: it contains all the inverters, batteries and other key equipment. Too high temperatures for too long impact the functioning and durability of the components. Even with airconditioning installed in the container, under the Malawian sun the temperatures measured by the sensor reached 46 degrees Celcius! 🔥 We decided to install a separate roof, which hangs above the container. This way the sunrays can't heat up the container directly anymore.  The results: the maximum measured temperatures are now 10 degrees lower than before ✅ #lessons #adaptation #solarwhereitmattersmost #malawi #sdg7 #sdg3