Africa

Sola Group and Tronox have finally reached financial close on two 100 MW solar projects in South Africa, roughly six months after signing power purchase agreements.

Kenya’s new net-metering regulations will apply to PV systems up to 1 MW in size.

Huawei and Meinergy plan to build a facility that could end up being Africa’s largest solar-plus-storage project. Huawei will supply its storage tech for the installation.

The Bwengu Solar PV Power Plant will spread over 105 hectares of land and is expected to be built at a cost of $65 million within 12 months. The facility will be located in Ulalo Nyirenda village, which is just 1 km from the Bwengu Escome Substation power grid. 

The tendered solar PV plants are expected to help the Sub-Saharan country reduce its dependence on electricity imports from South Africa.

The U.S.-based non-profit organization is supporting the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in the development of the three mini grids. The incentives for the projects will be provided in the form of grants.

The floating array is planned for a water reservoir in Chicamba, in Manica province. Consultants are now being sought for the feasibility studies.

The 52 kW containerized solution is being developed by German start-up Solarbakery. The bakery’s production process was adapted in such a way that the majority of electricity consumption is already incurred during the day and is only baked briefly in the dark before dawn.

The Development Bank of Rwanda wants to finance developers to build photovoltaic and mini-grids ranging in size from 10 kW to 1 MW.

The project consists of an 8 M W solar PV plant that is scheduled to be operational in 2022 and a 12 MW wind farm that will be commissioned in 2023. Both facilities will be connected to an 8.25 MW battery and will cover 60% of the annual electricity consumption of the Fort-Dauphin mine, located in the south of the island.