Cape Town based IMPower has developed a market-leading Medium Sized solution comprising of solar and energy storage technologies for the Commercial & Industrial market, which includes business parks, factories, shopping malls, schools and many others, providing reliable, affordable power.

Energy storage technologies are viewed as a potential game-changer for widespread adoption of renewable energy generation throughout Africa. They facilitate the management of renewable power intermittency, demand response services and the dispatchability of stable, clean and sustainable power into the local or national grid system. 

“Our energy solution combining solar and energy storage provides a maximum benefit solution for the market, ensuring security of supply and significant cost saving, especially with the recent tariff increase.  Companies are forced to consider alternate energy solutions and the hybrid combination of solar and energy storage provides a perfect solution for any energy user, be they large or small,” says Chief Executive Officer, Jay Naidoo.

The deployment of renewable energy is not only driven by cost efficiencies and environmental awareness, but when coupled with Battery Storage, a new dimension emerges where utilities are able to compete on a level playing field with conventional electricity power plants.  Furthermore, energy storage remains a flexible, scalable and efficient solution. Energy storage thwarts the need for power utilities to unearth and replace wires or spend money and time on constructing new plants. As an alternative, they can build a network of battery storage within 6 months.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) predicts that by 2035, developing nations will constitute 80% of total global energy production and consumption alike. A greater portion of this new generation will be derived from renewable sources in response to adhering to international policies for cleaner energy.    Energy storage is considered to be the next wave of growth and the international market is expected to grow from $221m in 2014 to $18bn in 2023.

Spurred by the adoption of cleaner energy, declining prices and regulatory subsidies; solar photovoltaics, battery energy storage systems and mini-grids are being increasingly utilised across the electric system. These developments necessitate that utilities adapt their conventional centralised systems into more flexible, integrated and distributed power networks. This movement is evolving from preliminary phases to long-term investments that support the evolution of new business models.