- Solar PV now contributes 3% of South Africa’s total generation capacity.
- South Africa plans to deploy 6GW of new solar by 2030.
According to the latest data from the South Africa Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA), a cumulative capacity of 1,313MW of solar was deployed in the country last year. Of these new additions, about 813MW was from utility-scale plants, while 500MW was from distributed generation deployments. These new additions brought South Africa’s total solar capacity to 4,172MW at the end of the year. This capacity comprises large scale PV (2,372MW), residential systems (834MW), with the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment contributing the remaining.
SAPVIA notes that the changing policy landscape in the country, such as the recent commitment by President Ramaphosa to amend schedule 2 of the Electricity Regulation Act (ERA) and to raise the licensing exemption threshold for distributed generation facilities from 1 MW to 100 MW, should rapidly increase the deployment of larger-scale distributed generation projects.
SAPVIA also notes that the Integrated Resource Plan aimed at deploying 6GW of PV by 2030 is set to increase installed PV capacity from 3 per cent of the current total generation capacity to 11 per cent.
South Africa currently wants to reduce dependence on its state-owned utility via distributed clean energy. ESKOM is currently unable to meet the country’s electricity needs due to financial and operational constraints. The company also is seeking to phase out coal and replace its generation fleet with renewable energy.