Cape Town - A solar experiment is powering 20 shacks in a settlement near Stellenbosch and the system could potentially electrify thousands of households.
The solar energy project, implemented as a pilot in April, includes solar-powered panels, electricity distribution boxes and batteries. Residents use the power for televisions, radios and cellphones.
The project may power an idea for the future as members of Parliament’s portfolio committee on energy affairs visited the site yon Wednesday.
“They’ve given us a lot to think about,” said project co-ordinator Andreas Keller.
“It was an excellent site visit.”
The iShack (or “improved shack”) project was developed by students at the Sustainability Institute and Stellenbosch University and given a five-year funding grant by the National Research Foundation. The project plans to have 80 iShacks by October.
About 2 400 households make up the settlement and about 8 000 people live there.
Most of these households do not have basic services such as electricity and sanitation.
The solar panels charge batteries that store enough electricity to power televisions, radios and lights for up to eight hours a day. They don’t require constant sunlight.
The settlement is on state-owned land, but the project’s organisers are confident there is no immediate danger of the community being evicted.
“There is a right to receive services and infrastructure. What we’re doing here is looking at ways in which, in a very feasible and affordable way, we make improvements over time which can provide enormous benefits to the households,” said Keller.
“If a community is allowed to stay and there is no immediate danger of relocation in the next three years, then it is entitled to receive grid electricity.
“Central to the project is the idea of groups. We’re using technology to catalyse community organisation. One of the key aspects of the project is job creation.”
Victor Mthelo, who has been a resident of Enkanini since 2011, said members of the community who were eager to be part of the project had been invited to a meeting. He lives in an iShack and says there are 280 people on the waiting list. - Cape Times
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