Solving Energy Insecurity at Kaloko Clinic with Solar PV and Batteries

There are moments when the work we do becomes more than innovation, technology or solar system design. It becomes personal. This year’s 1% project was one of those moments.

For the first time, Openers had the privilege of choosing the project that would receive our annual 1% commitment donation. Openers chose Kaloko Clinic, a vital healthcare centre in Ndola, Zambia, serving nearly 19,000 people.

Watch the video to see how solar and battery power has transformed healthcare for mothers and children in Ndola.

The everyday realities of energy insecurity for frontline clinics

Despite being grid-connected, Kaloko Clinic operates in a region plagued by brownouts. Many areas around Ndola experience electricity for just four hours a day, most often in the early morning hours when families are asleep. 

Unreliable power at Kaloko Clinic meant vaccines spoiled and mothers gave birth in extreme heat and darkness.

For a clinic responsible for maternal care, emergency support and child health, this kind of unreliability isn’t just inconvenient, it’s dangerous.

At OpenSolar, we believe sunlight should be a source of security, not uncertainty. And we believe access to energy shouldn’t depend on luck or geography.

Designing power that never switches off

Together with our partner Empowered by Light (EBL), we installed a system built entirely around reliability:

• A 33kW solar array
• A 60kWh battery bank
• Full load coverage so the clinic never has to rely on the grid
• And a new AC unit for the maternity ward, bringing comfort and safety to mothers giving birth

For the staff at Kaloko Clinic, consistent power means safer deliveries, functioning equipment, cold storage for medicines, and peace of mind that doesn’t disappear when the grid does.

Dr Lillian Nyendwa captured the impact beautifully:

“This project will significantly enhance our ability to provide safe, reliable and uninterrupted healthcare services, particularly in critical areas such as maternal and child health.”

This is why we do what we do.

And we can only do work like this thanks to the continued use of OpenSolar by the world’s solar installer community. And we’re especially grateful to those Solar pros who have added the Empowered by Light Showcase to all of their customer proposals.  Not only does this show their customers that they care about the bigger picture, the US$10 / month donation to activate the showcase goes straight to EBL, and helps transform life for communities and ecosystems. 

A milestone for EBL and a win for Ndola, Zambia

This installation marks EBL’s first clinic project in Africa and their 15th project in Zambia — a milestone worth celebrating.

To our partners at EBL: thank you for your unwavering dedication to expanding access to reliable, renewable energy.

Want to be part of the change? Add the EBL Showcase to your proposals for just $10 USD/month and show your customers how their decision to go solar in 2026 is supporting life-changing installations and helping bring energy security to communities that needs it.

You can read more about our previous projects through our 1% commitment here.