When Jonas Barman, a 40-year-old Swedish engineer, first came to Kenya, the idea of starting a solar energy company was far from his mind. In fact, he was looking for a school roof on which to test an idea.
A master’s student at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden, at the time, he had chosen Kenya as the setting for his thesis on the reliability and affordability of photovoltaic (PV) solar systems in areas with weak or non-existent grid power.
This eventually led him to co-found a company called Miale Solar Inventions with a Kenyan investor. Since 2016, Miale has installed infrastructure capable of generating up to 7.7 megawatts of solar power (enough to power 7,000 homes). The company targets corporate clients, and more than 50 have signed up.
“My journey with Kenya began long before Miale was founded,” says Barman. “I studied sustainable energy systems at Chalmers University. I have always been passionate about finding practical ways to make the world a better place, not only by reducing environmental impact, but also by creating opportunities for people.”
His 2011 thesis was titled ‘Design and Feasibility Study of PV Systems in Kenya’: A Case Study”. It concluded that, in countries with high solar insolation and a weak grid, solar power could be a cost-effective energy source, provided systems were designed for the specific facility and the operator clearly understood how to maintain them.
But the school where he had thought about putting solar panels had not been built yet. It had been conceptualised by a group of Swedish trainees, including his wife, who is a social worker and the mother of their two daughters.
Barman found himself helping to create the school. Through his Swedish connections, he met Kenyan entrepreneur and retired athlete Isaac Macharia, who offered land outside Nairobi. Together, they founded the Kenswed Academy in Ngong in 2011.
“Before installing the solar panels, I had to find my friend here and build the school,” says Barman.
“That was a successful project called Kenswed.”
Years later, the original engineering question returned. Kenswed needed solar power, and Barman saw this as an opportunity.
His search for a capable solar power provider exposed a gap in the Kenyan market.
“We started looking around for a solar energy provider in Kenya, but we couldn’t find one. Very few companies were supplying solar energy products,” he says. “So, we decided: Why not start this business?”
Macharia had the idea over a meal during one of Barman’s visits to Kenya.
“We realised there was a great match between the technical know-how we had started to develop in Sweden around solar energy and the funding available. Together with our local networks and trust in each other, we felt it was worth exploring,” he says.
Swedish engineer Jonas Barman (second right), the co-founder of Miale Solar Inventions, at the premises of Homekena Limited, a quarry company in Kajiado County that uses solar alongside mains electricity to power its crushers. On his left is Homekena Limited Director George Muiruri. On his right is Miale CEO Stephen Adwong’a.
Photo credit: Pool
“Kenya has some of the world’s best solar resources, yet electricity prices remain relatively high. Solar power therefore makes both environmental and economic sense,” he adds.
One insight from the thesis was that reliability and design were as important as the panels themselves. The thesis examined an internet café in Nairobi affected by blackouts and a planned school facility, demonstrating that solar power could serve as backup or as a stand-alone system where grid electricity was unreliable.
“At that time, it was difficult for solar power to compete with the grid purely on commercial grounds,” Barman tells BDLife. “The value addition of providing energy outside the grid or in weak grid environments was a key conclusion.”
This idea would become central to Miale’s pitch to commercial and industrial clients: solar power does not necessarily have to be a charitable project; it can also be a business tool.
The hard part when they began was financing. Although solar power is known to reduce operating costs over time, it requires a significant initial investment. This is when Barman turned his attention to Sweden. In his homeland, he could find technical expertise, investors with a long-term focus, and a network willing to support renewable energy projects in Africa.
“Our strategy was to use equity and shareholder loans for the initial phase,” he says. “We wanted to prove to financiers that the business is viable, feasible and that the system works.”
He says that the first €10 million (Sh1.5 billion) came through private equity and shareholder loans from Swedish investors who recognised the opportunity presented by renewable energy in Kenya.
When asked what had convinced those investors, he replied: “They understood the massive potential for solar energy in Kenya. At the same time, they wanted to invest in something positive for the environment and society.”
Miale’s company profile includes a similar statement from its Swedish shareholders, who say they became interested because solar energy is ‘the energy of the future’, particularly in countries with high levels of solar radiation such as Kenya, where it is ‘environmentally friendly, cheap and locally produced’. They add that investing in Miale felt right because it could be financially successful while contributing to a better future for Kenya.
Barman says that more recently, Miale brought Trine, a Swedish financier, on board in a co-financing arrangement. “That is going well,’’ he says. “It unlocks significant funds, so funding is no longer an obstacle for Miale.”
“Immature market”
Between its incorporation in 2016 and its first major industrial deal in 2019, Miale was searching for a product-market fit.
“We were exploring various business ideas and trying to pitch solar to different potential clients,’ says Barman. ‘The market was not really mature, and it was difficult to convince business owners of the benefits of this new technology.”
The breakthrough came in late 2019, when Miale’s CEO, Stephen Adongo, secured the company’s first major industrial installation.
“Everything changed,” says Barman. “From there, the company began to grow rapidly.”
This growth has since become visible across sectors. Miale’s portfolio includes projects in serviced apartments, hospitals, water utilities, farms, schools, bakeries, quarries and factories. The total project capacity is stated as 7,735.31 kilowatt-peak, with a storage capacity of 1,634.36 kilowatt-hour across the 60 projects listed.
The installations include a wide range of large customers. Barman cites Zebra Plains Mara Camp, the Athi Water projects, the Homekena quarry, Ocean Sports Watamu, St Andrews Turi, the Shalimar Group and the Outspan Hospital as notable examples.
He notes that the company now has around 100 commercial solar systems in Kenya and a team of more than 40 employees.
“I knew the potential of solar power and that it could generate many jobs,” he says. “My vision is that we will reach 100 employees within two years.”
So, how does the company work with corporations? Barman says it all begins with the client’s business rather than the equipment. This involves consultation, site assessment, an energy audit, a tailored design, financing, procurement, installation, testing, commissioning and long-term monitoring.
“Unlike many installers, our relationship does not end after commissioning. We continue to monitor system performance, provide preventive maintenance, and optimise production throughout the system’s lifetime,’ he says.
This reflects one of the thesis’s key warnings: that systems fail when they are not adapted to the facility, operators are not trained, and maintenance is not planned for.
The thesis noted that many small-scale systems in Kenya were not operating well, arguing that planners and operators must communicate clearly and set money aside for future maintenance.
For Barman, the company’s advantage lies in its technical expertise and cultural approach.
“I think our success comes from combining international experience with in-depth local knowledge,” he says.
“Miale is a Kenyan company with a Kenyan team, but we also bring technical expertise and long-term investment from Sweden. This combination has proved to be a real strength.”
He resists the idea that growth should be pursued at any cost.
“We’ve never focused on growing as fast as possible. Instead, we’ve focused on doing every project well. Every satisfied customer becomes an ambassador for Miale, and over time, that has created a strong reputation in the market. Sustainable growth is built one successful project at a time.”
The social thread has remained. Miale sponsors a solar technician education programme in partnership with Kenswed, graduating around 20 technicians each year. “They all want to start at Miale,” he says. “We would be happy to absorb them all, but at least we are taking on a significant proportion of them.”
As Miale establishes itself in Kenya’s industrial solar market, competing with companies such as Davis & Shirtliff, Green Camel and CP Solar, its origins in a master’s project will be studied as an example of translating academic work into practical solutions.
“Looking back, it’s fascinating that what started as a university thesis on a small solar installation has become a company helping businesses across Kenya to transition to clean energy,” says Barman, a board member and senior advisor at Miale.
“Sometimes the best ideas come from solving a real problem and working with people who share the same vision,” he adds.
