Productive Use of Energy or PUE is a term that has been popping up growingly in  discussions and literature around solar energy for the African continent over the past 2 years. Next to the other traditional solar segments such as “large scale”, “mini-grids” or “SHS – Solar Home Systems” to cite a few, PUE indeed presents very specific attributes in the African context in that it offers revenue-increasing solutions in areas where they were previously not economically viable or simply not possible because of technical considerations. As a result, PUE has the potential to unlock or drastically
improve economic activity in many places across the continent.

PUE comes in many shapes and forms. In this Catalog, PUE solutions are categorized by their field of application (agriculture, commercial, services and private). As a nascent solar specialty, the frontiers of PUE are not yet fully cast in stone and some solutions are home to several categories. We trust the reader will identify these few cases and  understand this PUE Catalog is not yet a final scientific document but rather a humble
attempt to shed more light on a new discipline which will shape the life of many Africans in the years to come.