STAYING SUNNY SIDE UP
Across Africa, and indeed the rest of the world, the idea of solar photovoltaic (PV) power is an increasingly attractive one, allowing the conversion of free solar energy from the sun into a renewable source of electricity for use in buildings.
In South Africa (SA), with its glorious climate and copious amounts of sunshine, it is easy to see why many of the nation’s home and business owners are looking to harness the sun’s energy and utilise it by installing a solar power system on their properties.
A key player in the emergence and growing popularity of this technology, Segen was formed in October 2015 and has grown to become a one-stop shop for a plethora of energy supplies and services.
Segen’s product range includes
Segen has grown to become Africa’s leading solar energy distributor, offering top-quality products, innovative tools, and unmatched support for businesses and homeowners. We hear from James Shirley, Managing Director, and examine how the company continues to thrive and shine brightly
Writer: Ed Budds Project Manager: Reegan Glade
solar panels, inverters, mounting systems, and ancillaries applicable to grid-tie, grid-backup, and off-grid applications.
The company has meticulously expanded its reach across SA and now boasts five warehouses around the country, enabling it to service as many solar professionals as possible.
These world-leading facilities provide improved access to and visibility of stock, simplifying its customers’ order processing and collections to save time and money.
Having joined the solar industry in 2008, Managing Director, James Shirley, is driven towards enabling a better energy climate for the continent.
“The reason why I’m so passionate about solar, and renewables as a whole, is because it gives us the opportunity in Africa to skip an entire generation of
state-led electrification by capturing and storing energy at the point of use, rather than in large central plants,” he opens enthusiastically.
“There is one simple image I have in my mind which drives me every single day. It is of little kids in a rural village playing outdoors in the afternoon, with their friends, because they know they can do their homework at night with adequate light in their homes.”
SERVICE FOOTPRINT
Segen is the South African subsidiary of Segen Ltd – the UK’s largest solar PV specialist, wholesaler, and distributor – selling to a nationwide network of specialist installers.
“Our focus is on importing, warehousing, training, distributing, and servicing solar storage products and systems, along with associated equipment, as well as heating products in Europe and water pumping and purification systems in Africa,” Shirley sets out.
“Our SA headquarters is in Johannesburg, and we are currently opening an East Africa headquarters in Tanzania,
reinforcing our commitment to being the continent’s number one distributor of renewable energy solutions to installers.”
Segen also leverages four South African service hubs in Cape Town, the West Rand, Durban, and the East Rand, and is busy opening facilities in Pretoria, Mbombela, and Bloemfontein.
“We recently opened service and support centres in Durban and the East Rand to complement the West Rand and Cape Town, with three more currently underway,” confirms Shirley.
WHY CHOOSE SEGEN?
• Customer-obsessed
• The perfect partner for renewable energy success
• Seamless digital experience
• Tailored customer solutions
• State-of-the-art products and suppliers
• Expert knowledge and training
• Real-time product pricing and stock availability
• Easy order tracking and management
• Automated quoting tools for faster customer proposals
This is in line with the company’s eventual target of 11 service centres in SA, alongside 11 more spanning subSaharan Africa.
“We are continuing to grow our service centre footprint throughout sub-Saharan Africa as a way to be closer to where our customers do their business. This is extremely important to us in our journey to demonstrate customer obsession in everything we do,” he emphasises.
“We have 131 employees currently, growing to 161 in this year’s forecast as the new service centres open, and an active customer base of approximately 3,500. We do not sell to end users; rather, our customers are installers and sub-distributors.”
By investing heavily and being present and available close to where its customers operate, Segen’s strategy is to reduce the time it takes for them to complete any support work required for their own customers.
“Our service centres continue to grow in line with our commitment
to getting closer to where our customers do business,” Shirley adds.
PORTAL REDESIGN
Whilst many competitors are brick and mortar businesses, Segen is a digital one, albeit with large levels of stock in the country that is immediately available for dispatch.
“A large part of our differentiation is through making it easy to buy from us. We have always had a really great online portal, where our customers can design their systems online, see stock levels and prices, get quotes, place orders, and make payments any time of day,” Shirley tells us.
“The most exciting part about this is we have also invested heavily in redesigning our complete customerfacing portal and support tools to make our customers’ lives easier – a huge leap forward. This will push us right to the forefront of this space, a position which others who have caught up to over the past few years will struggle to follow.”
In addition, Segen has also spent the past year focusing on delivering value to its valued, loyal customers to improve their experience and help them to become more profitable.
“Our analysis revealed that 70 per cent of our time was spent on activities contributing to only 11 percent of our revenue. Presumably, these same customers were also burdening our competitors, causing increased costs and delays in customer service.
“By creating the convenience chan nel and freeing up time, we have been able to focus on and understand our loyal customers better. This has led to a good recovery of relationships over the past few months with some excel lent partners who we simply weren’t able to focus on before,” Shirley shares.
MAJOR INVESTMENTS
The complete overhaul and modernisation of Segen’s customerfacing digital platforms is one of three major investments the company is working on this year.
SegenFinance is also being launched, with four different options for customers, each offering their own benefits.
WHAT IS YOUR TAKE ON THE INDUSTRY ACROSS AFRICA AT THE MOMENT?
James Shirley, Managing Director: “The global industry is still in its early stages, I imagine much like the early generation throughout the transmission and distribution stages towards the end of the 1800s and early 1900s.
“Technology is advancing quickly, and industry leaders are still changing every quarter. Massive investment is taking place, and companies are entering and exiting the industry at a rapid rate.
“In Africa, we face barriers beyond technology, sales, and installation. Here, we face issues around logistics and most certainly access to financing, which brings some very different challenges to what our European or US counterparts at Segen may face.
“On the other hand, we are most certainly ahead in terms of knowledge and experience in the storage environment – whilst other areas look at arbitrage and peak shifting as primary drivers around battery sales, along with subsidies in certain countries, we consider energy availability as one of the major concerns in Africa, with no subsidies in most cases, and this brings a whole different set of economics with it.
“It is an extremely exciting space to be in. Month on month, we never face the same set of challenges. Whether its global oversupply driving prices down or availability shortages, each month brings a different scenario. It’s certainly not for the faint-hearted, but it is most definitely rewarding.”
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Aluminium walkways
Galv slotted cable trays
Railless Solutions, flush or tilted for all commercial roofs
Double row aluminium ground mount
Multipoint earth bar and end clamp
SEGEN’S STRATEGIC GOALS
• Reach 11 service centres in each of SA and sub-Saharan Africa.
• Service mean-time-to-repair (MTTR) target of 90 percent of cases within 48 hours.
• Open its Tanzania headquarters in Q2 2025.
• 30 percent of business to come from commercial and industrial customers.
• Launch the company’s water pumping, storage, and purification portfolio in Q2 2025.
• Successfully roll out a new website, online shop, and portal – all aimed at enhancing relationships and making it easier for Segen’s customers to be more profitable.
“WE ARE CURRENTLY OPENING AN EAST AFRICA HEADQUARTERS IN TANZANIA, REINFORCING OUR COMMITMENT TO BEING THE CONTINENT’S NUMBER ONE DISTRIBUTOR OF RENEWABLE ENERGY SOLUTIONS TO INSTALLERS”
– JAMES SHIRLEY, MANAGING DIRECTOR, SEGEN
Rent-to-own customers own their system at the end of the financial term, along with all responsibilities for maintenance and operating activities.
For the operational expenditure (OpEx)-based rental option, end users simply pay a full-maintenance rental amount every month. This has both maintenance and tax benefits, especially for companies who may be renting their business facility.
Mezzanine financing, meanwhile, eases any cashflow requirements during project execution, whilst
export financing allows customers to bring larger quantities into various countries throughout Africa.
“They can then draw down on that stock weekly or monthly and only pay a fee for the outstanding balance, as opposed to interest on the full amount,” explains Shirley.
“The two main benefits of this method are reduced transport costs, as bulk quantities result in lower per-unit shipping fees, and the ability to pay in local currency in certain countries, such as Nigeria and Kenya.”
CHAMPIONING SUSTAINABLE SOLAR POWER
Segen fully complies with extended producer responsibility (EPR) regulations to achieve its worldleading process for the end-of-life management of all products that it brings to market.
As more and more South Africans look to renewable energy to mitigate climate risks and address the country’s energy crisis, the solar industry – like all other industries –must ensure suitable systems are in place to manage the disposal or recycling of increasing volumes of end-of-life equipment in an environmentally responsible manner.
To this end, the Department of Forestry, Fisheries, and the Environment (DFFE) has imposed an EPR regulation upon the PV industry.
As a responsible corporate citizen, Segen is committed to compliance with legislative requirements. The company recognises its
responsibility to implement processes to ensure full compliance with the EPR regulation, which became mandatory in May 2021.
Segen is therefore proud to help reduce waste and the environmental impact of its operations.
MAKING THE WORLD BETTER
Segen’s wide, ever-expanding product range means there is something for every application.
As well as its market-leading systems, Shirley notes that the staff at Segen are the cornerstone of what it does.
“We have a flat management structure which makes it easy to work with our teams,” he reveals.
“For me, my favourite part is the people – our customers, staff, and suppliers. We are all doing things to make the world better, perhaps with different reasons and roles, but we make a difference.
“It’s easy to smile when you’re
installing an inverter to bring power to someone’s life, manufacturing a battery that lets the lights stay on during load shedding, or winning a bid to take a school off grid.
“Sure, the competition is tough, but we get to make a positive impact to the world, and to people, every day!” Shirley proudly concludes.
