SolarAfrica recently launched its new solar energy solution for the sectional title market in South Africa. The product offers home owners in complexes and estates access to affordable solar energy over a 10-year contract period.
“The single most important thing about SolarAfrica’s offering is the ability for customers to circumvent the upfront capital which, until now, has always been the biggest barrier to entry,” explained Johan Pienaar, commercial director, SolarAfrica.
According to SolarAfrica, the biggest barrier to entry on solar energy has been the significant upfront costs amounting to more than 80% of the total operating costs, which has put solar ‘out of reach’ for many South Africans.
“South Africa has one of the largest sectional title markets in the world. For SolarAfrica, it makes sense that we provide an alternative solar solution when we have such a large market relying on the national energy grid.”
SolarAfrica’s offering will install, fully operate and maintain the solar panels to the sectional title market. An innovative funding model enables customers to acquire solar panels without the upfront capital cost, whereby costs are then reclaimed over the 10 year lifespan of the agreement.
The service charge offered by the SolarAfrica solution is R1,38 Kw/ph and will only increase by CPI +1 in July 2017. By comparison, NERSA approved an Eskom rate hike of 9,4% this year and this is expected to rise by approximately 8% each year in perpetuity.
“The results speak for themselves,” explains Pienaar. “Body corporates can expect to save 15% - 20% of their energy costs which are directly reflected through a reduction in its levies and this financial model means that customers are only paying for the performance of the solar solution.”
Further to this, users have access to an online real-time data service, which provides visibility to customers on their energy usage, allowing them to monitor and manage their energy.
Some of the main reasons for moving to solar energy include the desire to hedge costs against those of the increasing energy prices, as well as a growing awareness for environmental sustainability.
“There is a move to disrupt the current energy production infrastructure in South Africa, and also globally. Traditional systems of national power grids are being replaced by the concept of distributed generation,” explained Pienaar.
The reality is that distributed generation is the way of the future. In South Africa, electricity prices have risen by 390% since 2008 and yet South Africa is among the top ten countries in the world ideal for renewable energy usage, indicating that the appetite for alternative energy solutions already exists.
In South Africa, standby power usage sits between 5% - 6% a significant proportion of which is used during the day. Solar energy therefore allows South Africans to operate as usual without the incurring the costs associated with this.
But as Solar takes off, this also means we can expect a rush of innovations and decrease in price on the technology itself over the next few years.
The SolarAfrica solution is built on a modular system that enables solar optimiser technology, which means it is easily scalable. Add-ons such as energy storage, specifically, batteries can be featured as new technologies emerge.
“We are extremely excited about this offering,” says Pienaar. “Our goal at Solar Africa is to make solar energy accessible to South Africans by building simple energy solutions that positively impact the world. We are now able to do this.” concluded Pienaar.