A barbershop, salon or shop that opens at eight and closes at seven uses most of its power while the sun is up. That makes small businesses some of the best candidates for solar in Kenya: almost every unit the panels produce replaces a unit bought from KPLC at the small commercial rate.
The numbers for three typical businesses
Small commercial customers using more than 100 kWh a month are on the SC3 tariff, with an all-in daytime rate of about KES 28.82 per kWh. Using Kenya's average monthly sun:
| Barbershop | Salon | Minimart with fridges | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly use | 150 kWh | 300 kWh | 600 kWh |
| Share used in daylight | 85% | 85% | 55% |
| Monthly bill (about) | KES 4,300 | KES 8,600 | KES 17,300 |
| Panels (620 W) | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| Array | 1.2 kW | 2.5 kW | 3.1 kW |
| Savings per year | about KES 43,000 | about KES 86,000 | about KES 110,000 |
The barbershop and salon save most of their bill because clippers, dryers, irons and lights run in daylight. The minimart saves a smaller share because its fridges and freezers run all night too.
What uses the power
- Hair dryers, flat irons and steamers draw 1 to 2 kW each. They are short, heavy loads, so the inverter must be large enough to run two or three at once, typically 3 to 5 kW, even if the array is small.
- Clippers, lights, TV and sound are small but run all day.
- Display fridges and freezers run day and night; door seals and keeping them out of the sun cut their use noticeably.
- Water heaters for hair washing can be replaced by a small solar water heater.
Keeping the business open during outages
A blackout in the middle of a hair appointment costs a customer, not just a few units. A hybrid inverter with a small battery can keep the lights, clippers, router, card or M-PESA till and one dryer running through a typical outage. For a 1 kW essential load and 3 hours of backup, about 3.3 kWh of lithium battery is enough; see our battery backup guide.
Renting the premises?
Most small businesses rent. Before installing:
- Get the landlord's written permission for roof mounting and cabling.
- Choose a system that can be removed and moved: panels on a frame, an inverter on a wall board.
- Agree who owns the system if you leave, and whether the landlord might share the cost for a longer lease.
Making the case
At these savings, a small business system often pays for itself in two to four years. The honest way to check is in our solar payback article, and how to compare solar quotes helps you choose a supplier.
Size your business system
- Enter your bill and opening hours in the free solar calculator.
- See what a KPLC unit really costs for your tariff class.