Metro calls for investment in innovative solar power project

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Instead, the cost for installing and maintaining these panels – set to generate up to 250MW a year for 20 years – will be paid for by investors from the renewable energy sector. This is outlined in an agreement on the municipality’s website, while the metro also advertised a call for investors in The Herald last week.

In a nutshell, the project would entail investors supplying, installing and maintaining photovoltaic rooftop panels at selected properties in the metro. The energy generated by these panels would be stored in the municipal grid for the property owner's use. The municipality, however, would not buy any excess energy produced.

“The [municipality] will not be signing a power purchase agreement with the [investor], but will only facilitate the flow of money between the [investor] and the participating customer,” according to the agreement.

By using this system, the project would not cost the municipality anything, municipal spokesman Mthubanzi Mniki said. “The programme will by no means be free, but the investor will recover its investment through a legal agreement with the customer and be paid a portion of the electricity tariff,” he said.

“The [municipality] will get paid its portion of the tariff.

“The idea will be to attract investors and encourage investment, thereby decreasing the burden of grid defectors and total loss of revenue.

“This is one step in the future plans for a sustainable energy source for the [metro].”

Blackwood Power chief executive Rory Stear lauded the municipality for the drive to expand its renewable energy sources. Stear, who has expressed his interest in contributing 50MW to the project if his application is approved, said the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality was by far the most proactive municipality in embracing renewable energy.

“Port Elizabeth should be the energy capital of the country,” he said. “This is a great lesson for other municipalities who should be doing the same.”

Using the municipal grid for power storage is also an innovative and cost-effective approach, he said. “Storage is the biggest barrier to solar power, because the battery is extremely expensive. The benefit to the owner is huge.”

Blackwood Power installed 88 panels at Cheshire Homes Summerstrand premises in a separate project. “[The initiative] was funded by the Ezethu Development Trust,” manager Deidre Burger said. She said that it saved the home between R5,000 and R9,000 in the summer months.

Service providers for the municipal project will be selected through a rigorous process. “Only proposals that achieve the specified minimum qualification scores will be further considered,” according to the agreement.

“The company with the highest [score] will be the preferred investor and [will] choose the capacity they want to sign up for. This process will be repeated until the total allocated capacity of 250MW is awarded.”

Community members and interested parties can submit comments on the agreement to az.vog.ortemalednam@kcabdeefVP or the Munelek Building in Harrower Road by 16 March.

Source: Herald