by AKANI CHAUKE
JOHANNESBURG, (CAJ News) – ONE of the first grid connected solutions approved as part of South Africa’s energy reforms is complete.
The 163kWp solar installation in the Brits area of the North West province is a project by the Pretoria-based Energy company, LessWatts.
It is among the first grid connected solutions for which Eskom and National Energy Regulator of South Africa (NERSA) approval was granted in the area.
“This aspect in itself strengthened our knowledge of the processes involved, and lessons learnt during the entire project will be put well into practice in future,” said owner, Ignatius Cronjé.
The project entailed the analysis of projected cost savings through a solar plant, taking the customer’s historic consumption into account.
Using modern projection methods, LessWatts was able to come up with a solution to maximise the saving against power usage.
Cronjé said they facilitated the application process with Eskom and NERSA, both from a technical and regulatory perspective.
“Once approval from Eskom was received, we designed the system and implemented the entire solution,” he explained.
Increased network stability due to a high-power demand, and increased job creation during the construction and maintenance phases are projected.
In contrast to traditional generators, solar power solutions provide a quiet alternative with minimum maintenance.
A properly installed solar solution provide in excess of 20 years’ trouble-free electricity at a fraction of the cost of energy from the utility.
“Energy security is paramount. Just like buying a car to get by, solar solutions provide a modern way out to cash in on electricity prices at today’s tariffs and reap the benefit for many years,” Cronjé said.
South Africa is undergoing some energy reforms to address long running power outages amid challenges at the parastatal, Eskom.
– CAJ News