https://www.engineeringnews.co.za
Africa|Business|Components|Energy|Eskom|Power|Projects|Solar|Storage
Africa|Business|Components|Energy|Eskom|Power|Projects|Solar|Storage
africa|business|components|energy|eskom|power|projects|solar|storage

South Africa’s solar PV market expected to become one of the world’s largest this year

An image showing a summary of a BloombergNEF study

Summary

Photo by BloombergNEF

5th March 2024

By: Tasneem Bulbulia

Senior Contributing Editor Online

     

Font size: - +

BloombergNEF’s (BNEF’s) first-quarter global photovoltaic (PV) market outlook predicts that South Africa will be the tenth-largest PV market in the world this year, with the dominance of solar PV continuing to grow in the country.

“As an industry body, we were proud to have contributed to this globally respected report. The statistics generated by our own solar PV dashboard informed this latest BloombergNEF report and in particular the section that dealt with the South African landscape,” highlights industry body South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA) CEO Dr Rethabile Melamu.

BNEF’s research documents provide a perspective on global commodity markets and the technologies driving the transition to a lower-carbon economy.

According to the report, the PV industry added about 444 GW of new capacity last year internationally, a 76% growth on the 2022 build.

Prices of solar modules are at record lows, and the supply of components is plentiful, SAPVIA avers, adding that end-user markets are booming while manufacturers struggle to make a profit.

Installations are expected to top 520 GW this year.

In South Africa, State-owned utility Eskom estimates that rooftop solar additions totalled 2.6 GW last year, while the BNEF database tracked an additional 676 MW (mostly the 540 MW Scatec Solar Kenhardt plant).

This takes the total for 2023 to about 3.3 GW – slightly below previous estimates.

“Eskom and SAPVIA are also pioneering new methods of estimating rooftop solar capacity in a country, from how observed demand for power on the grid varies with the weather.

“These methods are likely to be used more widely in other countries as incentive programmes for solar become less important and therefore more capacity is built without the need to be registered by a centralised body,” explains BNEF lead solar analyst Jenny Chase, who authored the report.

This year, the report expects rooftop solar to grow, particularly in the winter months of May, June and July when loadshedding is more frequent and severe.

Residential demand for solar is linked directly to loadshedding and slows down as soon as loadshedding stops, SAPVIA points out.

The report also expects business adoption of rooftop solar to accelerate.

According to the information supplied to the report by SAPVIA, 90% to 95% of new residential solar installations and about 85% of commercial ones have battery storage for a few hours.

The pipeline of solar projects registered with national regulator the National Energy Regulator of South Africa since the beginning of 2023 totals 4.3 GW, according to SAPVIA’s own data portal that is available on its website.

BNEF maintains a build forecast for South Africa of 4 GW to 4.5 GW this year, reaching a cumulative capacity of about 36 GW in 2030. 

Edited by Chanel de Bruyn
Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor Online

Comments

Showroom

Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East
Weir Minerals Africa and Middle East

Weir Minerals Europe, Middle East and Africa is a global supplier of excellent minerals solutions, including pumps, valves, hydrocyclones,...

VISIT SHOWROOM 
BOVA Safety Wear
BOVA Safety Wear

BOVA cemented their reputation in Africa by delivering high quality engineering through their range of safety footwear. 21 years after producing...

VISIT SHOWROOM 

Latest Multimedia

sponsored by

Photo of Martin Creamer
On-The-Air (04/10/2024)
4th October 2024 By: Martin Creamer
Magazine round up | 04 October 2024
Magazine round up | 04 October 2024
4th October 2024

Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):

Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format

Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):

All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.

Already a subscriber?

Forgotten your password?

MAGAZINE & ONLINE

SUBSCRIBE

RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA

SUBSCRIBE

CORPORATE PACKAGES

CLICK FOR A QUOTATION







sq:7.242 7.313s - 307pq - 6rq
Subscribe Now