Alternative energy answer to power cuts
ALEXANDRA - Alternative energy activists are on a mission to rescue the poor through access to power and to change the mindset of the public on the value of this form of energy.
Alternative energy activists are on a mission to help the poor access electricity via solar generated energy.
Joe Baleka of Tswaranang Environmental Pro and Reactive Safety Mentors said energy sources provided by the sun, wind and other environmentally friendly sources could supply all household and business needs.
Speaking about solar energy, Baleka said, “The technology is also suitable for any house and in large quantities can also power businesses even with minimal sun as long an there was natural light. The power is also stored in batteries as reserve for emergencies.”
Baleka said the advantages of solar energy included a 20 year guarantee on the installation, its portability and was easy to install. He added that using solar energy could generate employment by training local installers, it would provide the 50kW of energy under government’s subsidy scheme in areas with no power grid, guarantees power availability all the time, and is protected from illegal connections as it is household or community owned.
Baleka said a municipality in the Northern Cape had installed solar energy at a rural settlement with a population of 2 000 under the government subsidy scheme.
“Informal settlements like Alexandra deserve this power source and we are engaging local counsellors to motivate council and its officials to consider this power source which ranges from R4 500 to R50 000 to own depending on the amount of power required.”
Baleka said schools, clinics and other public facilities using solar energy would avoid outages as happened at one school where children could not write an examination due to a power failure.
