Ing. Dereje Walelign Mera

Job Title: Chairman
Company: Ethiopian Solar Energy Development Association
Country: Ethiopia

Eng. Dereje Walelign is the Chief Executive Officer of Lydetco PLC, a pioneer Ethiopian company specializing in solar photovoltaic (PV) and solar thermal solutions. He is a founder and current Chairperson of the Ethiopian Solar Energy Development Association (ESEDA), where he contributes to the growth and promotion of solar energy development in Ethiopia.
Eng. Dereje holds a B.Sc. degree in Civil Engineering from Addis Ababa University. Before establishing Lydetco in 1996, he had a distinguished career with Shell Ethiopia, where he worked for over 12 years in various engineering and management roles, including Project Engineer, Equipment Engineer, Operations Assistant, and later Engineering Manager for Shell Ethiopia, Shell Eritrea, and Shell Djibouti.
Through Lydetco, he has led the development and deployment of solar PV and solar thermal technologies, including innovative grid-independent solar energy solutions and solar cooker manufacturing, supporting the expansion of renewable energy applications in Ethiopia.

June 23, 2026Panel Discussion

Sessions

Session

Off-Grid to the Rescue: Rebuilding with Mini-Grids

Tuesday, June 23, 2026, 4:30pm–6:00pm

ICM - Room 14 C

In this urgent and forward-looking session of the Intersolar Europe Conference, we bring together voices from the frontlines of decentralized energy: representatives from Syria, Ukraine and Ethiopia - spanning immediate crisis response and longer-term energy market development - alongside practitioners who build and operate these systems at scale. What unites all perspectives is a shared insight: decentralized renewable energy proves its reliability precisely where conventional grids are absent, destroyed or isolated - from war-torn regions to island communities cut off from mainland supply.The initial focus is on the immediate, life-saving needs: hospitals, schools and water supply systems. We then move to the medium-term goal - interconnecting mini-grids, rebuilding resilient infrastructure, creating new jobs and livelihoods. A central question runs through both phases: how do we train local workforces through vocational training, apprenticeships and certification programs, so that rebuilding is not only about hardware, but about people and enduring capacity?Join us to examine how off-grid solar transitions from emergency stop-gap to the sustainable backbone of recovery and growth.