South Africa's Minister of Energy in a press conference held today announced that South Africa will be in the Northern Cape Province Upington (Upington) and around the construction of a large-scale solar energy industrial park, and in the next 8 During the year,solar water heater so that the industrial park of solar power generation capacity will reach 5,000 MW, the preliminary estimated total investment of 150 billion rand (about 21.5 billion U.S. dollars).
Peters said that South Africa is the world's most abundant solar energy resources one of the countries, solar collector but so far, the rich resources have not been fully exploited. October 2009, the Energy Department and the Clinton Climate Foundation of South Africa signed a memorandum of understanding in South Africa to establish a large-scale solar energy or more pre-industrial park feasibility study.
According to the cooperation of the pre-feasibility report submitted by the team in the Northern Cape region, the average daily amount of direct solar radiation (DNI) up to 7-8KWh/m2, not only in South Africa where the highest radiation, but also among the highest in the world (China the most abundant solar energy resources in western Tibet, the highest radiation levels to 6.4KWh/m2). The area sparsely populated, land slope, vegetation and soil conditions is superb, and less geological natural disasters; across the Orange River in the area, with good roads and other infrastructure; South Africa's largest state-owned power company in the recent in the region of large-scale construction of transmission line upgrades, which will facilitate future solar power generation network; most important state-owned large tracts of land area, land acquisition, development can be efficiently implemented. All of these conditions make the area ideal for large-scale solar power option.
The report notes that the area set aside in a special regional focus on engaging in solar power, to allow different companies to share water, roads, transmission lines and parts supply, it will greatly reduce the cost of solar power. Solar power needs of the steel, glass, turbines and so can be mass-produced locally, some of the current can not be produced, will be established through the introduction of technology in the local production capacity. Report recommends that in the next 8 years in the region to build a power generation capacity of 5,000 megawatts of solar energy industrial park, this year will create 12,300 direct jobs, and in all are completed, the annual operation and maintenance also can create 3010 jobs. This region has been suffering from the pain of the unemployed people is undoubtedly a blessing.
Peters said the Department of Energy has begun a formal feasibility study, the proposed Industrial Park Authority, set up solar power to co-ordinate land development, construction of supporting facilities, all kinds of approval procedures and follow-up management. South African government has approved the convening in October of solar Industrial Park Investment Conference, clear and specific planning, publicity and investment work.