Load shedding has been an ongoing challenge to South Africans since 2007. The country currently experiences regular, planned power outages from the national grid, forcing the country’s citizens to look for alternative sources of energy and power. While many solar energy solutions providers in the region focus on commercial and industrial installations, Huawei partner Metrowatt concentrates on the residential sector.
Nigeria’s Rural Electrification Agency (REA) was established to solve electricity challenges in rural parts of the country. As the organization that manages electric power in remote areas, the REA is committed to solving the problem of power access for its constituents. The REA is responsible for the main business scope of Nigeria, covering new power generation, microgrids, and distribution network construction. Abba Aliyu, head of project management for the REA’s Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP), says that much has been achieved but there are still energy challenges that remain to be solved.
The 1.2 GWp Janaúba solar project has so far resulted in the creation of around 11,000 jobs in the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. The 20 solar parks will generate enough power to supply the needs of 1.8 million Brazilian households.
A project combining solar with hydroelectric power at the Bui dam in Ghana has given a massive boost to the country’s efforts to provide universal electricity access by 2025. Digital transformation is also reducing the time to resolve technical issues at the dam.
In March 2023, France passed a law to accelerate the production of renewable energy. In this interview, Bertrand Drouot L’Hermine, Deputy General Manager Business Development with TSE, discusses the important role agrivoltaics will play not only in weaning the country off fossil fuels, but also in providing benefits to France’s farmers.
Thailand has seen strong, stable growth in its solar market in recent years, leading it to become one of Southeast Asia’s most secure demand centers for renewable technology. Polytechnology, a diverse company with an expansive and growing green energy division, has more than doubled its solar inverter sales every year since 2016. Today, the company holds the biggest share of Thailand’s solar inverter market.
SolarApex has built what it calls the world’s largest rooftop PV array. A 140 MW project on a steelmill will help Turkish steelmaker Tosyali to shift its production to carbon-free “green steel.” Chief Marketing Officer Besime Özderici says the project could be an example for other energy-intensive industries.
Huawei Digital Power Technologies, a unit of Chinese multinational tech giant Huawei, recently signed a deal with Ghana-based solar developer Meinergy Technology to build a 1 GW solar plant coupled with 500 MWh of storage in Ghana over the next years. Under the terms of the deal, Huawei will supply solar-plus-storage systems for the project. Meinergy will be responsible for the development and construction of the facility. pv magazine recently spoke about the project with Kevin Wu, CEO of Meinergy, and Peter Acheampong, Deputy Director of Renewables for the Bui Power Authority, which owns the installation.
Engineering, procurement and construction companies must take special steps to ensure that PV plants operate reliably and efficiently. Japan’s ORIX Renewable Energy Management (OREM) is one such company. pv magazine recently caught up with Executive Vice President Kazuhisa Yurita to discuss the current challenges of O&M.
In Thailand, the 7-Eleven convenience store chain uses PV systems at its shops to lower its electricity consumption. Cristobal Chin, the CEO of Chow Energy, shared his thoughts on these projects.