????在發(fā)達(dá)國(guó)家，電價(jià)低廉,，供電隨處可得,。但在電力基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施薄弱的非洲，缺電很常見(jiàn)。人們用汽車蓄電池為手機(jī)充電,。煤油燈是常用的照明設(shè)備,，但同時(shí)也非常臟和危險(xiǎn)。

????由于各國(guó)電網(wǎng)增長(zhǎng)速度遠(yuǎn)遠(yuǎn)落后于需求增長(zhǎng),，越來(lái)越多的非洲人不再尋求基于化石燃料的集中化解決方式,，而是轉(zhuǎn)向了太陽(yáng)能。

????迄今為止,，太陽(yáng)能發(fā)電在非洲能源構(gòu)成中只是一個(gè)輔助角色,，但太陽(yáng)能利用的增長(zhǎng)標(biāo)志著非洲地區(qū)向可再生資源的轉(zhuǎn)向。2004年,，非洲的可再生能源行業(yè)規(guī)模還只有7.50億美元,。2011年，這個(gè)數(shù)字已經(jīng)達(dá)到36億美元,。去年年末,，聯(lián)合國(guó)預(yù)計(jì)，到2020年,，非洲的可再生能源行業(yè)規(guī)模將達(dá)到570億美元,。

????太陽(yáng)能特別適合非洲中部和東部光照充足的赤道地區(qū)，一位創(chuàng)業(yè)者說(shuō)：“這里,，能源每天都照在我們頭上,。”最近幾年,，這個(gè)地區(qū)已經(jīng)成為可再生能源的天堂,，一些科技領(lǐng)先的小公司迫切希望能從南半球?qū)δ茉吹目是笾型诰蛏虣C(jī)。

????總部位于美國(guó)硅谷的Fenix International就是這樣一家公司,。這家公司開(kāi)發(fā)出了一種即插即用的電池ReadySet,，可以通過(guò)太陽(yáng)能電池板或自行車充電。雖然ReadySet擁有一系列的功能（它擁有USB接口和汽車點(diǎn)煙器接口）,，但它的設(shè)計(jì)主要是幫助用戶在沒(méi)有電網(wǎng)的地方為手機(jī)充電,。

????根據(jù)移動(dòng)運(yùn)營(yíng)商行業(yè)協(xié)會(huì)GSMA的數(shù)據(jù)，今年一季度,，撒哈拉以南非洲地區(qū)的手機(jī)入網(wǎng)總數(shù)超過(guò)了5億,。這個(gè)數(shù)字預(yù)計(jì)在未來(lái)5年還將再增加2.50億。在非洲,，很多人擁有手機(jī),，但不一定有供電。他們是全球缺電手機(jī)用戶的一部分,，這些用戶2009年預(yù)計(jì)為5億人,。沒(méi)有電力供應(yīng)，意味著很多電池沒(méi)電。

????“非洲的手機(jī)入網(wǎng)增長(zhǎng)速度非常驚人,，”Fenix的CEO兼創(chuàng)始人林麥克（音譯）說(shuō)“這是我們看中的機(jī)會(huì),?！?/p>

????迄今為止,，F(xiàn)enix已經(jīng)在烏干達(dá)賣出了3,000套R(shí)eadySet（烏干達(dá)的銷售辦公室是Fenix最大的一個(gè)），在全球共售出5,000套,。早期用戶包括一些創(chuàng)業(yè)者,，他們使用ReadySet為當(dāng)?shù)厥謾C(jī)用戶提供收費(fèi)充電服務(wù)。

????“它就像一個(gè)迷你許可,，”Fenix東非地區(qū)總監(jiān)林賽?漢德勒說(shuō)“它是一個(gè)可以規(guī)?；暮?jiǎn)單解決方案。用這個(gè)箱子,，人們一年可以獲得穩(wěn)定的收入,。”

????起初以10萬(wàn)美元信用卡貸款白手起家創(chuàng)立這家公司的林麥克最近完成了新一輪融資,，吸引到了法國(guó)電信公司Orange和能源管理公司施耐德電氣（Schneider Electric）這樣的大型企業(yè)投資者,。林麥克預(yù)計(jì)，F(xiàn)enix將在未來(lái)兩,、三年實(shí)現(xiàn)盈利,。

????In the developed world, electricity is cheap and as available as the nearest outlet. But in off-the-grid Africa, energy poverty is endemic. Car batteries are tapped to charge mobile phones. Kerosene is a popular light source -- as well as a dirty, dangerous one.

????With national grid expansion lagging well behind growth in demand, increasingly Africans are looking not to centralized, fossil fuel-based solutions, but to the sun.

????To date, solar power plays only an auxiliary role in Africa's energy mix, but growth in solar use is emblematic of a regional shift toward renewables. In 2004, the African renewable energy sector was valued at $750 million. By 2011, it reached $3.6 billion. Late last year, the U.N. projected that by 2020 the value of the African renewable energy sector would reach $57 billion.

????Solar is particularly well-suited to sunny, equatorial Central and East Africa, where, in the words of one entrepreneur, "energy is every day beating people on the head." In recent years, the region has become a haven for renewable energy, spearheaded by small, tech-savvy companies keen to capitalize on the global south's hunger for energy.

????Silicon Valley-based Fenix International is one such firm. The company developed the ReadySet unit, a plug-and-play battery that can be charged either by solar panels or bicycle. While the ReadySet has a range of functions -- it has USB and car cigarette lighter ports -- it was primarily designed to assist mobile phone charging in off-the-grid markets.

????According to GSMA, a mobile operators trade association, total mobile connections in Sub-Saharan Africa surpassed 500 million in the first quarter of this year. That number is expected to grow by another 250 million over the next five years. In Africa, more people have a mobile phone than electricity. They're part of a global population of off-the-grid mobile users that, in 2009, was estimated at 500 million. Without access to power, that's a lot of dead batteries.

????"The growth in mobile connections in Africa is tremendous," said Mike Lin, Fenix's CEO and founder. "This is the canary we're looking at."

????To date, Fenix has sold 3,000 ReadySet units in Uganda, where the company maintains its largest field office, and 5,000 total worldwide. Early adopters include entrepreneurs who use the ReadySet to provide local phone charging for a fee.

????"It's almost like a mini-franchise," said Fenix's Lyndsay Handler, the company's regional director in East Africa. "It's a simple solution that's scalable. Right out of the box, people can produce a smooth income over the course of the year."

????Lin, who initially shoe-stringed the company with $100,000 in credit card debt, recently concluded a new fundraising round, enticing major corporate investors like Orange, the French telecom, and Schneider Electric, an energy management firm. Lin expects Fenix to reach profitability in the next two to three years.