The large scale PV market in Namibia is beginning to move forward with its first projects. The latest, the 5 MW Otjozondjupa Solar Park will supply electricity to state-owned utility NamPower.
First Solar will supply the project, which will deploy its modules in combination with single-axis tracking technology. Switzerland's HopSol is developing the project.
Our decision to select First Solars thin film modules was primarily driven by the operating conditions in the area. We needed a reliable module technology that would thrive in the hot temperatures that are common in the summer months and also deliver energy in cloudy, low-light conditions, said Robert Hopperdietzel, Chairman, HopSol AG.
As Namibia continues to shore up its generation capacity by adding
renewables to its portfolio, HopSols project, will, no doubt, stand out as a singular example of the sustainable development of solar energy in the country, said Nasim Khan, Vice President for Africa, at First, Solar.
The 4.5 MW Omburu Solar Photovoltaic Park, completed last year, was the first in Namibia to sign a PPA with Namibia's national utility, NamPower. The park deployed TSMC CIGS modules on a single-axis tracking system. Delta supplied the power electronics in the form of its three-phase string inverters. The project was developed by InnoSun, a subsidiary of French wind developer InnoVent. TSMC has since exited the solar market.
First Solar reports that Namibia has a total electricity generating capacity of 430 MW and imports more than 50% of its power from the Southern African Power Pool (SAAP).
This content is protected by copyright and may not be reused. If you want to cooperate with us and would like to reuse some of our content, please contact: editors@pv-magazine.com.
Popular content
Share
1 comment
Leave a Reply
Please be mindful of our community standards.
By submitting this form you agree to pv magazine using your data for the purposes of publishing your comment.
Your personal data will only be disclosed or otherwise transmitted to third parties for the purposes of spam filtering or if this is necessary for technical maintenance of the website. Any other transfer to third parties will not take place unless this is justified on the basis of applicable data protection regulations or if pv magazine is legally obliged to do so.
You may revoke this consent at any time with effect for the future, in which case your personal data will be deleted immediately. Otherwise, your data will be deleted if pv magazine has processed your request or the purpose of data storage is fulfilled.
Further information on data privacy can be found in our Data Protection Policy.
When are you going to complete the solarpark at otjiwarongo and who is going to benefit from this project?