South Africa's first solar water heating energy measurement and control product, Vision 49, is in its advanced stages of being made available to solar water heater suppliers by leading pre-paid electricity and metering company, Grinpal Energy Management.

Amid the current energy challenges facing South Africa and calls for a decrease in energy usage that has strained our national energy grid, Vision 49, in conjunction with a solar water heater, will provide a cost effective and sustainable alternative to conventional electricity based water heating systems.

The Vision 49 is the first device to measure and calculate energy harvested from the sun for commercial purposes. It is an add-on to solar water heaters that enables the measurement, reporting and ultimately sales of virtual energy/saved energy. This is done in order to make solar water heater projects financeable.

Vision 49 was first successfully piloted in April, 2010 in Winterveldt and the latest version has added functionalities such as pump control capabilities and remote controlled access to the system.

Grinpal senior vice president, technology, Gert Gous says, "Vision 49 is definitely in a class of its own. The units have been incorporated in real time data capturing and storage to keep track of temperature changes, water consumption patterns, energy consumption patterns and actively calculate the energy harvested from the sun and this will be used to heat water in the unit."

Demand for Vision 49 has been good however the key to the success of this technology will be based on a go ahead from lawmakers. Once this legislation has been passed regarding the sale of energy based on "virtual energy" and "saved energy" Vision 49 will be ready to be sold to registered solar water heater installers.

Consumers will also be pleased to know that this solar heating product will report on actual energy savings which have been accomplished through the use of this product.
With global warming and environmental issues which are created through greenhouse gas emissions, solar water heating reduces household energy consumption which plays a vital role in reducing our national greenhouse gas emissions.

"We are excited by the development of Vision 49 which brings us closer to real solutions to our current energy challenges. The greening element of Vision 49 will play a role in ensuring that we keep our environment as eco-friendly as possible and cleaner for generations to come. This alongside the financial benefits of solar water heating to home owners will definitely be a historical moment which we are proud to be part of," concludes Gous.