900 Million People Without Power
Services
Okra provides end-to-end services tailored to the needs of energy companies and utility providers.
IoT Smart Grids
Setup plug-&-play smart grids using our innovative hardware, software and mobile money technology.
Network Planning
Identify off-grid communities, analyse project pipelines, and generate BOMs automatically using our network planning software.
Project Development
Enter new markets confidently by leveraging our relationships with regulators, proven business structures and project financing options.
1240
Lives Empowered
3
Countries
12
Villages energized
Why Smart Grids?
Okra’s modular DC smart-grids enable households to receive 24/7 electricity for half of the operating costs of traditional AC minigrids. Our modular node-to-node distribution architecture and IoT to remotely control and monitor, enables unparalleled reliability for end-users and grid operators.
The Okra Pod
Putting every ray of sunlight to good use.
The Pod is the brainy building block of every Okra smart grid. It allows households to interconnect so that they can share energy to where it’s needed when it’s needed. This ensures each and every family has uninterrupted power for their essential needs – lighting, fans, mobile phone charging and TVs.
Power distribution is automatically balanced which means families can also use freezers, cooking equipment, washing machines and water pumps, without fear of blackout.
Okra Harvest
Enabling remote operation of data-driven smart grids.
Manage
Track inventory, plan installs, assign assets, and generate custom reports for all projects – big and small.
Mobile Payments
Keep tight control of billing statuses, update energy packages remotely and check balances for all customers.
Remote Monitoring
See what’s going on in granular detail: energy consumption, battery SoC, panel generation and more.
Alerts & Insights
Action maintenance tasks efficiently based on real-time alerts and insights delivered via machine learning.
Remote Monitoring
See what’s going on in granular detail: energy consumption, battery SoC, panel generation and more.
Alerts & Insights
Action maintenance tasks efficiently based on real-time alerts and insights delivered powered by machine learning.
Pipeline
Billions of dollars stand to be saved while achieving rapid electrification of the last mile.
Extending the grid to the last mile becomes exponentially more expensive as last mile communities are in some of the hardest to reach areas. Explore some of Okra’s target locations where microgrids make for profitable high impact solutions and let us know where you’d like to start building.
Our Customers
“We’ve deployed Okra projects in 2 countries now – it’s the most flexible solution we’ve found to setting up microgrids.“
Alex Bourme | Energy Program Manger
Entrpreneurs Du Monde
“Automation and digitisation of energy assets through Okra is key to mobilising the large scale capital required to catalyse the sector.“
Mason Wallick | Managing Director
InFunde Development
Awards
IEEE Empower 1 Billion Lives
Best Emerging Utility Solution
PFAN
Winner of Business Plan Competition
IoT Hub
Best IoT Startup
Booking Booster
Global Winner
TechCrunch Hardware Battlefield
Winner
Chivas Venture
Global Winner
Contact
If you’d like to use Okra in an upcoming project, let us know!
Latest Updates
As we're developing this project for the Ministry of Mines and Energy we're getting to go out to the field and see how families are reacting to our latest product - the Okra Edamame pod. With 1.2kW of output, it cracks a bit of a punch! Let us know if you have any good ideas for productive loads we should run in the networks and we'll work with our partners Pteah Baitong to try get them on!
UNDP Cambodia | Ministry of Mines and Energy Cambodia
#moreeneergy #SmartGrids #powertothepeople #okra
🎵Tame Impala - Waves
We're partnering with the Cambodian Ministry of Mines and Energy Cambodia and UNDP Cambodia to energise the community of Steung Chrow.
The remote community of 141 households are located in an island in the Tonle Sap River. It's very challenging to extend electricity grid lines here, it's also not feasible to install a typical minigrid setup as the area (including the households that are built on stilts) are partially flooded during the rainy seasons.
The ministry is trying innovative solutions to bring more than just lighting to these communities. We're excited to work with them. How fast do you think we can bring #powertothepeople ?
Entrepreneurs du Monde | Pteah Baitong
#energy #SmartGrids #powertothepeople
🎵Tame Impala, Miguel - Waves
This is some awesome news. Here’s our partner ATE Co - Access To Energy for Communities completing some installs in the middle of COVID-19 lockdown in the island community of Maybuho in Quezon in the Philippines.
With travel bans in full force how did they do the install?
They innovated. ATE Co managed to train up 6 installation officers without even being there by using video training. They shipped equipment over and the locals connected 17 households within a week. Remote support was provided using the Okra Harvest monitoring platform to help troubleshoot problems and ensure households came online effectively. We’re glad to have such awesome partners who ensure energy is delivered during the most challenging times.
This could also be a gamechanger in terms of managing installation and operational costs, keep it up ATE Co!
#energy #covid #ateco #energyaccess #philippines #okra #smartgrids #powertothepeople #harvest
Big congrats to Mee Panyar and their partners on this exciting achievement! Over 1000 people in South-East Myanmar now have 24/7 reliable, affordable, and clean energy. 🌏⚡💪
That's a serious impact, and we can't wait to continue celebrating all your amazing work to come. Not only does it warm our hearts to know how much these lives have been changed forever, but it inspires us to work alongside peers who help us learn and collectively bring the world closer to universal energy access, one step at a time.
And a special shout-out to Natasha (CEO at Mee Panyar) - many of our team have the privilege of knowing her, looking up to her, and learning from her. In fact, Okra owes you a lot 😉
Check out the full story to learn more!
lnkd.in/gmgd3UK
Bringing Solar Electricity to Rural Myanmar
lnkd.in
A celebration of Mee Panyar's project in Kan Byin, Myanmar. Made possible by the support of: - GivePower: givepower.org/ - SunPower: www.glob...A few weeks ago we had about 50% of our boards failing the End-of-Line Automated Testing 😅 😅. There were a few of us ageing faster than a cheap whisky at that point. But with a bunch of fixes to our jig, a few firmware updates from the team, and a few more greying hairs from our latest and greatest addition, Sam Bucca in 🇨🇳 we're now up to 95.45% pass rate. Okra pods ready to hit the field!
Lesson here is :
-Patience : dont be too quick to jump to conclusions on a year of hardware design or manufacturing quality.
-Automated Testing Equipment is a product in the same way our Okra Pod is a product - it requires clear definitions, a dedicated team of developers and some tender TLC.
Other notable takeaways for Hardware Startups:
- residual flux on PCB testing points causes problems
- use flat test points and spiky test pins that can punch through dust / flux
- make sure your manufacturing engineers spend time with a freshly delivered testing machine until you have undisputed reliability.
As always thanks for the support SVV 🙏
#timetochurnemout #okra #hardware #IoT #china #svv
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