Climate & Environment
Pico-Solar
Definition
Pico-solar refers to small, portable solar photovoltaic products — generally with a capacity up to around 10 or 11 watts — that provide basic energy services such as lighting and mobile phone charging to households without grid electricity. The category was defined and quality-assured through the World Bank/IFC Lighting Global programme and its successor standards.
References
Supports definition and framing.
Supports definition and framing.
Overview
How it is used
Market tracking (GOGLA reports) separates pico-solar from larger systems; quality standards (IEC/TS 62257-9-8, now VeraSol) verify performance and durability claims for the category.
Why it matters
Pico-solar demonstrated that basic energy access can be delivered commercially at the very bottom of the income pyramid, creating the market from which the broader off-grid solar industry grew.