Hotels, lodges and guest houses use energy around the clock: hot water in the morning, kitchens and laundry through the day, lighting and cooling at night. They also have a pattern most businesses do not: busy high seasons and quiet low seasons. Both shape what solar should look like, and getting the order right can double the return.
The example lodge
A 30-room lodge on the commercial CI1 tariff uses about 9,000 kWh a month in high season, roughly 296 kWh a day. A typical split:
| Use | Share | Per day |
|---|---|---|
| Hot water (showers, kitchen, laundry) | 35% | about 104 kWh |
| Kitchen and laundry equipment | 20% | about 59 kWh |
| Refrigeration and cooling | 20% | about 59 kWh |
| Lighting and guest rooms | 15% | about 44 kWh |
| Pumps, pool and grounds | 10% | about 30 kWh |
Your own split will differ, but hot water is often the single largest use.
Step 1: take hot water off the electricity bill
Heating water with electricity is the most expensive way to make it hot. A solar water heating system with storage tanks and electric backup typically covers most of a lodge's hot water. If it supplies 75% of the 104 kWh a day, it avoids about 28,000 kWh a year, worth about KES 550,000 a year at the CI1 average all-in rate of about KES 19.40 per kWh across day and night.
This comes first because it takes out the load that solar panels would otherwise have to carry, and does it more efficiently. Our solar water heater vs electric shower article compares the options in detail, including heat pumps.
Step 2: size the panels for low season
With hot water handled, the lodge still uses about 192 kWh a day, of which about 106 kWh falls in daylight in high season. In low season, say five months at 60% occupancy, daytime use falls to about 64 kWh a day.
| Sized for high season | Sized for low season | In between | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Array | 27.9 kW (45 panels) | 17.4 kW (28 panels) | 22.3 kW (36 panels) |
| Solar produced per year | about 38,900 kWh | about 24,200 kWh | about 31,100 kWh |
| Share of output used | 80% | 97% | 91% |
| Energy savings per year at the CI1 day rate | about KES 684,000 | about KES 520,000 | about KES 623,000 |
| Savings per kW installed | about KES 24,500 | about KES 30,000 | about KES 27,900 |
The larger array saves the most in total, but each extra kW earns less, because in low season and in the sunniest months much of its output has nowhere to go. As with schools, the right size depends on the price of each extra panel against what it saves. Starting near the low-season size and adding panels while comparing the savings per kW is usually the safest path.
Step 3: use the surplus
- Shift flexible loads into the sunny hours: laundry, pool pumps, water pumping, ice making and pre-cooling cold rooms.
- Consider a battery for the evening peak. On CI1, the higher daytime rate runs until 22:00, so storing midday surplus for the dining and lighting peak from 18:00 to 22:00 saves at the full daytime rate. Our time-of-use article explains the windows.
- Watch the demand charge. CI customers pay for their monthly maximum demand; see KPLC demand charges for ways to cut it, such as staggering kitchen and laundry equipment.
Off-grid lodges and camps
Safari camps and remote lodges without a grid connection often run on diesel, which at current EPRA prices costs about KES 100 per kWh in fuel alone. There the case for solar, batteries and solar water heating is far stronger; see diesel generator vs solar hybrid.
What guests notice
Many travellers now ask about sustainability, and some tour operators and booking platforms report on it. A well-run solar and solar water heating system, with simple metering you can share, is a genuine selling point as well as a saving.
Plan your property's system
- The free solar calculator gives a first estimate from your bill and daytime share.
- The commercial and industrial solar guide explains how StimaPulse models energy, demand and seasonal use together.
- For a full assessment comparing water heating, solar, storage and load scheduling, request an assessment.