A 50,000 solar street lamps project in Senegal is now over 50% complete according to the contractor, Fonroche Lighting Senegal, a subsidiary of the French company Fonroche Eclairage.
Fonroche Lighting Senegal begun working on the project immediately after it was created about ten months ago, and the recruitment of technical and administrative teams and, the selection of local service providers and subcontractors for the installation of this public lighting equipment was done.
This solar street lamps project was awarded to Fonroche by Senegal’s National Agency for Renewable Energies (Aner), following the lighting project for the access road to the new Blaise-Diagne international airport in Dakar, where the French company had already installed 160 Fonroche Smartlight street lamps.
Actual work done so far
As of now, these installations are already visible in the cities of Dakar, Saint-Louis, Fatick, Linguère, and several other Senegalese communes, and as per the Fonroche Company estimates, more than 20,000 Senegalese are already benefiting from this installations.
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The solar street lamps, running on nickel alloy batteries produce the same power as traditional public lighting (15 to 20 lux depending on needs) and are expected to operate 365 days a year without interruption and will not require maintenance for at least ten years. Furthermore, they are equipped with connected sensors that enable Fonroche teams to monitor the operation of the streetlights remotely and if one of them fails to provide sufficient lighting, it can be adjusted from a control center.
“In a solar streetlight, 80% of the added value comes from the battery and the software, which allow the power to be delivered intelligently to ensure operation for 10 years, or 4,000 cycles,” says Laurent Lubrano, the managing director of Fonroche Eclairage.
The project is not only meant to illuminate the Senegalese streets but also help in the improvement of the day to day lives of the local population.
