MY HUSTLE: Getting my hands dirty in clean energy business 

Elijah Kariuki has been ridiculed for doing a ‘dirty’ job for a living, but he is not about to change what he does.

For eight years the Nanyuki businessman has been making briquettes and he is happy about the progress of his business. He even wants to expand it so he can maximise profits and satisfy the ever growing demand for his product.

Briquettes are a source of fuel made from compressed charcoal dust and are said to be more fuel efficient and environmentally friendly compared to charcoal.

Elijah completed high school in 2008 and was unable to proceed with higher education due to lack of fees.

He was then employed in a briquette-making business in Nyeri and in late 2010 he moved to Nanyuki to start his own business, having identified a market with high demand.

Elijah has a briquette-making plant in Majengo Slums, Nanyuki Town.

The government ban on logging and directives against charcoal trade this year made the briquette business more profitable as demand grew.

For 29-year-old Elijah, these directives were the push he needed to improve his business.

Although some of his peers view his business as a ‘dirty  job’ because of the work that goes into the production of the briquettes, he is not giving up on it, he says.

HIGH DEMAND

Elijah makes briquettes from charcoal dust mixed with water and soil.

His firm, Equator Briquette Limited, produces at least 10,000 kilogrammes of briquettes per week. However, the amount produced highly depends on the availability of raw materials.

The process starts with sourcing the raw materials – charcoal dust, red soil and water – which are mixed. This mixture is then crushed and compressed in an extruder machine that shapes and compacts the briquettes.

Once the briquettes come out of the machine, Elijah dries them in the sun for two to three days.

Sometimes, especially on market days, his shop runs out of stock due to the high demand.

Elijah admits that he been unable to satisfy market demand in Nanyuki and the neighbouring towns such as Timau, Karatina, Nyeri and Narumoru.

Briquettes save cost and are eco-friendly as they emit less carbon compared to charcoal and are more efficient, he argues.

While charcoal users have to part with up to Sh2,500 for a 90 kilogramme sack, Elijah’s briquettes retail at Sh800 per 50 kilogramme sack.

Elijah urged unemployed youth not to be selective in the type of jobs they want, but to embrace opportunities that can help them earn a living.

He is willing to teach young people how to make the briquettes so they can also start their own businesses and be self-reliant.

Elijah hopes to expand his business to enable him manufacture the briquettes on a large scale and sell them countrywide.

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