N$137 million Trekkopje Solar Project completed
The Trekkopje Solar Project in the Erongo region which was financed by Bank Windhoek in conjunction with Enertronica Group, as part of the development of solar parks in Namibia, has been completed.
The Trekkopje’s Solar Project construction was completed and operational in August 2018, build by Enertronica Group a multinational industrial company specialising in renewable energy, the project incurred construction costs of N$137 million, excluding development cost.
Dr Maurizio Decinti, the lead consultant of the project said the project has a combined output of 5,78 Megawatts, but they expect it to be a bit higher because of the high performance of the technology adopted for this specific plant. “This is the first plant where Enertonic Group’s patented trackers are mounted on the structures which means that the modules will follow the sun during the day optimizing the already high irradiation,” he explained.
Decinti said the future is in renewable energy and this is even truer today when the cost of renewable is basically similar to the traditional energy and that they have basically achieved the so called ‘Green Parity’.
Lukas Nanyemba, Executive Officer for Corporate and Institutional Banking at Bank Windhoek said they recognise that optimizing renewable energy opportunities is critical for the development of Namibia and as such, they fully embraced the opportunity to finance these projects. “Together with partnerships such as this one, we can make an impact and prove that things can be done in cleaner and environmentally friendly ways,” he added.
The site was chosen for its potential to supply power for industrial, farming and storage purposes without posing a threat to the environment and its community. The project has a life span of 25 years which is anticipated to be even longer after its is revamped.
Although the output from the plant is dedicated to feeding into the NamPower grid, Enertronica Group has committed to building three smaller solar technology facilities to serve schools of the surrounding communities.
In terms of job creation, 30 community members were employed during construction and once completed an average of five people are permanently employed to ensure the proper maintenance of the plant.
