Sun City Resort in North West Province has installed a R16 million (€790 415) solar plant to reduce electricity consumption from the national grid.
Located along the border of the Pilanesberg National Park, and enjoying many sunny days throughout the year, the grid-tied solar photovoltaic system – rated at 1.4megawatts peak of installed capacity – ties in at the Sun Central entertainment centre for use around Sun City.
The system constituted 2 584, 550W monocrystalline solar PV modules installed on the roof of the Sun City hotel, said TM Lesetla, Senior Operations Engineer at Tsebo Energy Solutions, who installed the system.
“These panels will be married into Sun City’s internal electrical network, including twelve 112 kW newly installed inverters, to feed the power produced on the roof to the delivery points. Sun City is like a little town on its own, and the solar capacity is part of the energy mix,” said Lesetla.
The installed plant will displace an equivalent of 2 367 571kWh yield per annum, with the highest levels of energy production expected in nine out of the 12 months.
“This is an equivalent of what 329 average-sized South African households consume over a year. On good sunshine days, which will be most days, the facility will free up an equivalent of 14% of Sun City’s electrical demand from the national utility supplier Eskom, which will be to the benefit of the grid in the vicinity and, by extension, local communities that feed off the same supply,” said Sun City GM, Brett Hoppé.
According to Aubrey McElnea, CEO of Tsebo Facilities Solutions, the solar plant at Sun City has already exceeded expectations. While an annual nett saving of R3.2 million (€15 805) was projected, data acquired from the plant’s intelligent consumption dashboard shows that just over the last two months, 413 871 kWh in energy savings were achieved.
“This results in an estimated over R1 million (€493 810) in savings, considering both energy and demand reductions, highlighting the efficiency and value proposition of transitioning to renewable energy solutions,” he said.
CO₂ emissions reduced
Furthermore, from a sustainability perspective, the solar plant will see Sun City reduce its annual CO₂ equivalent emissions above 2 510 metric tons per annum, a positive contribution to mitigate against climate change into the future.
“This is one of the many initiatives that Sun City, in particular, and Sun International, are rolling out to reduce energy use both from a supply and demand perspective. Efficient lighting, HVAC retrofits and reconfigurations, water-heating and a gradual move to renewables, all form part of the plan,” said Hoppé.
Sun City Sustainability Manager, Lwazi Mswelanto, said: “Sun International’s sustainability approach ensures we continue to meet our vision of providing memorable experiences for our guests, providing employment for our people, delivering superior shareholder returns, creating genuine value for the communities in which we operate and making sure we reduce our environmental footprint at the same time.”
“Our array of innovative solutions and over five decades of experience, positions Tsebo as a strategic Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) accelerator. Working with like-minded companies, whether suppliers, partners or clients – like Sun City – to achieve sustainability targets more effectively and efficiently," concluded McElnea.
The investment will pay for itself within five years, driven by above-average annual electricity price escalations. The plant has an expected lifespan of beyond 25 years when coupled with a well-planned preventative maintenance regime.
