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FALCON College in Esigodini within the Matabeleland South province, has formally applied to establish a one-megawatt solar photovoltaic facility.
The institution aims to design, construct, and operate the facility, demonstrating its commitment to sustainable energy solutions.
Zimbabwe Energy Regulatory Authority (Zera) said the licence application was made in accordance with the provisions of sections 42 and 46 of the Electricity Act (Chapter 13:19).
“Falcon College intends to generate power from the proposed solar plant for own consumption. The project will be connected to the Esigodini 88/11kv substation and has capacity for net metering,” said Zera.
Net metering is a programme where private solar system owners use the national electricity grid to “store” excess energy that they do not use at any given point during the day.
It is implemented through Statutory Instrument 86 of 2018 as amended in 2022 for solar systems with a capacity of up to 5MW.
On a cloudy or rainy day when private solar panels are not producing enough energy, the utility grid will feed the home with energy and count it against the credits that the owner would have “banked’ over time.
At the end of the month or year, one will be billed the net amount of what one sent to the grid and what one pulled from the grid, hence “net metering.”
Meanwhile, Shangani Renewable Energy is developing a 25 MW grid-connected photovoltaic power plant in Shangani.
The firm is inviting stakeholders to feedback on the project as part of the mandatory environmental impact assessment.
ZERA says independent power producers (IPPs) have increased their investment in renewable energy, mainly for their own consumption, to offset the adverse impact of erratic power supplies.
By harnessing the sun’s power for solar energy, businesses are tapping into a sustainable and renewable energy source, reducing reliance on conventional power systems, especially hydro, which is also prone to the effects of the El Nino weather phenomenon.
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