Soventix South Africa, a subsidiary of the international solar project developer Soventix (Germany) has been awarded the construction of the largest IPP Solar PV project in Zimbabwe. The Harava 22-Megawatt peak (MW) utility scale project will be developed on 40 hectares of land in the Bwoni Village, Seke Rural District which is located South West of the city of Harare. The local villagers of the Bwoni Community shall own 10% of this project through a Community Development Share Ownership Trust. The project is due to start within the coming days. The project is being funded by Invest Solar Africa limited, a Botswana based clean energy investor & Independent Power Producer which enjoys strong financial backing from top tier financial institutions from across Zimbabwe, South Africa and Botswana.
Expected energy generation capacity of 40 GWh/yearly
The fixed mounted 22 MW system will be powered by 66,528 solar modules and 192 string inverters, and would have an approximate energy generation capacity of 40 GWh per year. The energy will be fed into the national utility’s infrastructure by way of a 132 KW substation and overhead line. As part of the implementation Soventix SA will be constructing a 30 MVA substation, which would be large enough to cater for phase two of the project.
‘‘Infrastructure development, particularly energy generation is a cornerstone to growing an economy. Pioneering such projects into Africa has its challenges, however through commitment and tenacity both Soventix SA and the developer have overcome. I am very confident that the excellent cooperation will continue throughout the realization process and I am looking forward to the start of construction. It is a privilege to be part of this project,“ says Jean-Paul de Villiers, Managing Director of Sosventix South Africa.
Huge growth potential
Soventix sees great growth potential in the African solar market. Energy costs in Zimbabwe and other southern African countries such as South Africa, Namibia, Botswana and Zambia are high and continue soaring. Furthermore, companies in these countries suffer from fault-prone power supply.
“The photovoltaic market in Zimbabwe is still in the initial stage. Hence, the country offers great weather conditions to use the potential of solar energy. With the high and predictable level of irradiation photovoltaic could be used to stabilise electricity supply and reduce energy costs. Solar energy in southern Africa has convincing prospects for the population, local economy and international investors. I am confident that we will continue our successful development in the African growth markets with our experience and our know-how,” explains Thorsten Preugschas, CEO of Soventix. (HCN)
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More useful information:
https://www.pveurope.eu/Company-News/SOVENTIX-and-Huawei-Solar-Sign-Exclusive-Framework-Agreement
https://www.pveurope.eu/News/Markets-Money/Juwi-constructs-and-operates-250-MW-in-South-Africa
