The distributed energy future is here!  — Lionesses of Africa

Impact Partner Content / Absa

We recognize Africa’s vulnerability to climate change, and together with like-minded individuals and organisations, we will contribute to creating sustainable, value-creating solutions to some of Africa’s greatest environmental challenges. 

The call to make a sustainable, equitable and just world is either a challenge or the biggest opportunity of our time. It will require our collective bravery, draw on our individual passions and ask all of us to be ready. It’s a call that we have to answer, because that’s Africanacity. That’s Absa.

The distributed energy future is here! This future is more than pushing solar widgets. It is the New Energy Industry, where distributed solar, energy storage, energy efficiency, electric vehicles, analytics and energy literacy are coming together with comfort and lifestyle to transform the lives of everyday people.

Since 2020, many businesses and households had to navigate through the challenges brought about by continued lockdown restrictions, to curb the impact of COVID-19 and then, in 2021, had to deal with the addition of unrest across the nation. These uncertainties contributed to the current health and economic constraints experienced by citizens and the country as a whole. And yet, despite historic declines in our economic activity, we still saw a high intensity of load shedding. Driven by Eskom’s aging power plants, we are seeing a continued decline in the energy availability factors (the amount of energy available compared with the total energy generation). 

To limit the risk of load shedding going forward, we need new generation capacity, as we cannot currently rely on the old and poorly maintained existing fleet. Furthermore, increasing tariffs by Eskom (~15%) and municipalities (~18%) have forced businesses to focus on renewable energy generation and energy efficient interventions. Renewable energy technologies continue to become more cost-competitive and are seeing increasing use and acceptance across the globe.

As we start 2022, Eskom pushes for higher tariff increases, with an increased risk of load shedding due to additional generation units planned to go offline for maintenance. These major factors have put sustainability and investment in energy production at the top of many business and household agendas.

Furthermore, there is continued momentum in South Africa’s ”just transition” from fossil fuels to renewables for power generation, with greater levels of private sector participation in energy generation. There is a strong positive sentiment in the sector, given the regulatory developments that have taken place over the past 12 months. Such as, small-scale embedded generators (SSEG) or installations of less than 100 MW no longer needing a generation licence and only needing to register with NERSA and their utility, this increased certainty and clarity is supportive of growth in investment. We feel that investment by businesses in renewable energy solutions are likely to grow strongly in the next 12 months and beyond. 

Aligned to our ongoing focus, customer education and awareness continue to be important components of our approach to driving renewable energy adoption. Through our engagement with employees, clients and industry, we have noted the need for insights and content that focuses on the technology, the resource availability in South Africa, financial considerations for investment in these technologies (including operation and maintenance), suitable implementations, as well as some of the regulations that must be kept in mind. 

We bring these insights to our Absa colleagues though training sessions around solar PV, renewable energy and energy efficiency, both digitally and in person, equipping them with the knowledge to best solution Absa clients. We continue to build on our insights base through a dedicated team of specialists who focus solely on renewable energy, and we share these insights through customer testimonials (including in the ENCA Gamechangers series), dedicated events and webinars as well as multiple thought-leadership articles.

This year, we are proud to be associated with Solar Power Africa, Africa’s premier exhibition and conference for the Solar PV and Energy storage sectors.  The event is powered by SAPVIA (The South African Photovoltaic Industry Association) and endorsed by SAESA (The South African Energy Storage Association).  

The event will take place between the 16-18 February 2022, at the Cape Town International Convention Centre, bringing together an extensive alliance of local and internationally renowned industry leaders, stakeholders and experts with the aim of discussing and unpacking strategies that aim to provide greater access to solar power and clean energy solutions on the continent.

The conference is aimed at all industries, both public and private, forming part of the renewable energy industry value chain. This includes installers, contractors and producers, major utility companies, energy storage experts, smart energy professionals, finance, industry bodies and government.

Solar Power Africa consists of free-to-attend seminars on the exhibition floor with content aimed at small to medium-sized businesses as well as to provide practical, skills training for the installer markets. 

The event also consists of a paid conference consisting of eight plenary sessions and over 12 specialised breakaway streams, covering a range of topics. Download the conference agenda: https://solarpowerafrica.za.messefrankfurt.com/content/dam/messefrankfurt-southafrica/solar-power-africa/2022-conference-agenda/SPA%20Conf%20Prog-200122.pdf 

Don’t miss this opportunity to meet with us and network with industry leaders, and learn about the latest regulations, technology, trends and opportunities in this rapidly growing market.

To book for the show, you can visit the event website at https://solarpowerafrica.za.messefrankfurt.com/ and click on Register here to attend. You will then be able to register for the conference or book to visit the expo for free. We look forward to seeing you there. 

Image: courtesy of Absa