₦airaland Forum

contact us on 09087571860 or visit our website for efficient and affordable solar solutions for your home

Inadequate power supply is the major factor driving up production costs in developing countries as most businesses have to fall back on alternative energy sources to power their production. Marlenique Inadequate power supply is the major factor driving up production cost in developing countries as Estate, a fruit farm and wedding venue in Western Cape, South Africa has built a commercial floating solar park to tackle load shedding and droughts. The farmers say it’s a better investment than a new orchard.
The 60KW system which is the first and largest of its kind in the continent was installed by New Southern Energy (NSE) on the farm’s dam saving valuable agricultural land as well as providing a cover on the dam, minimizing evaporation. The first phase of the project also includes a land-based solar installation, allowing the farm to run 90% of its operations from irrigation to cold storage and packaging of fruits for export off the grid. A second phase which involves the addition of battery packs to the current setup will see the farm go completely off-grid. On the second hand, the floating platform will help conserve water, a vital resource for the farm by minimizing evaporation from the surface of the dam water.
According to the Economic Opportunities Minister Beverley Schäfer, “This project has looked at some of the key sustainability issues we are facing in agriculture and the economy today – water and energy – and has attempted to find solutions”.
The farm’s financial director Carl van der Merwe, of the van de Merwe family who owns and runs the estate, says the installation would reduce the estate’s carbon footprint by half. The family’s decision to invest in solar followed the rising electricity prices and uncertainty around Eskom (South Africa’s Electricity Utility Company).
Opportunity for Nigeria
From the Lagos lagoon in the west to Oguta and Agulu lakes in the East and the many drought-prone lakes in the north, Nigeria is blessed with water bodies that pose a great opportunity for communities and businesses to become power independent or at least reduce their demands from the grid. While inadequate power is a problem faced by Nigerians as a whole, many farmers in the north are as well faced with the problem of droughts. Floating PV platforms like this one can provide them with multifarious benefits.

source:http://sparkonline.com.ng/2019/05/africa-unveils-her-first-floating-solar-farm.html

More and more homes are switching to solar energy as their main back up energy source. This can be attributed to recent advances in solar energy components manufacturing that have resulted in cheaper and more efficient solar systems.

1. Solar panel prices have fallen more than 50% in the last 10 years
2. The efficiency of the panels has as well improved massively.
3. The cost advantage of installing a solar system has fast outstripped that of running generators
4. Solar energy is clean and noiseless
5. Solar energy units are low-maintenance units