Urban Solar Farms possess the ability to hold a significant position in the South African markets for mid-sized generation projects that deliver clean and reliable power supply for customers who have substantial energy demands.
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“In recent years, solar PV costs have dropped dramatically and will continue to do so with further declines of up to 59 per cent possible in the next ten years”, said IRENA director-general Adnan Z. Amin in a statement.
The cost of solar PV projects in Africa has plummeted by over 60 per cent in the last four years, paving the way for a “boom” in solar deployment over the coming decade.
The report details how solar power is now consistently undercutting alternative energy options across Africa, either through solar-powered mini-grids or off grid household systems. “These cost reductions, coupled with vast solar potential on the continent, present a huge opportunity for Africa”, said Amin. SolarReserve is a leading global energy developer, with 246 megawatts of solar capacity already on-line in South Africa, an additional 100 megawatts of solar thermal with energy storage awarded by the South Africa Department of Energy, and 450 megawatts bid into the latest round of bidding in South Africa.
The report added that more than 800MW of new solar was added in Africa in 2014 – doubling the continents cumulative capacity – and another 750MW was added in 2015.
“This groundbreaking study has the potential to impact the way municipalities across South Africa accommodate privately-owned clean power generation within their distribution borders”, said Kevin Smith, CEO of SolarReserve.
Together with debt funding of $2.5 million from SunFunder and over $5 million in grant from Shell Foundation, the U.S. Agency for International Development – Development Innovation Ventures (USAID-DIV) and United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), it has scooped up a total of $22.5 million (Rs 151 crore) to grow its PayGo business globally. The grant encourages the motives of the USA government-led Power Africa initiative and also supports the development of solar farms up to 200MW, that ranges in size from 5-30MW. Through five distribution hubs in East Africa, West Africa, India, Southeast Asia, and the United States, the company has impacted over 65 million lives with its products with the goal of reaching 100m people by 2020.
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With its fresh funding, D.light says it will push to accelerate sales for its D30 solar home system, in addition to bringing to market new products capable of powering more devices, including televisions and fans.
