Thanks to Muti, I came across an article from IOL announcing a solar power breakthrough pioneered by South African researchers.
The article claimed that the new panels will allow a house to receive all of its electricity from the solar panels, even in winter, and that the panels will be available in South Africa within a year. They are much cheaper and much more efficient than the existing solar panels.
That’s fantastic news if everything is as claimed. With Jhb and Cape Town having suffered frequent power failures recently, and the nuke proponents in full flight once again, some progress in renewables is sorely needed.
Being a cautious type, before I set up my IT business in the Karoo, far from Eskom’s lines, I tried to find some other corraborating sources. The article (originally from the Weekend Argus) is rather over-the-top, and reads more as a press release than serious scientific reporting. It’s easy to be cynical. Scientists need to generate noise to get funding, and promising the next big thing is a surefire way of getting attention. I’ve also no idea of what happens at night time, whether sufficient energy can be stored, or alternative sources are required. Googling for the term solar breakthrough gives a good indication of the abuse of the term. Or a big oil company could come along and buy the whole thing, sticking it in a vault while they milk the dying planet of the last of its oil.
However, the leader of the team, Professor Vivian Alberts from Johannesburg University has been in the field for a long time, and seems to have built up quite a track record. In 2004 there was a lot of noise about a big breakthrough, with production estimated within three years. Since it’s now estimated at 1 year, that means everything is still on track. Reports from 2004 came from Science in Africa and the SABC, amongst others. IAfrica has a good article from October 2005 that looks at some of the economics.
Ordinary solar panels are 350 microns thick, while the new method means they can be 5 microns thick. That doesn’t mean much on its own, but in this case it means its much cheaper to product. Not only that, it’s more efficient. So, on a commercial scale, old solar panels produced 50 W at a cost of about R2100. New panels produce 60 W at a cost of R650. Quite a dramatic increase that suddenly make solar very viable. How does that compare to other sources? These next figures are gleaned from a bit of rough research, sources don’t really match up, and of course there’s lots of vested interest research in all these figures. I don’t really know the details , so don’t trust anything quoted here entirely 🙂 One source claims that this means that solar energy can be generated at a cost of 50c/kWh (SA currency used throughout).
Apparently wind energy costs 30c/KWh in the US (with a subsidy), and until now wind has always been seen as the most cost-effective renewable energy, so coming in under this is a big step forward for solar. It’s tricky to make fair comparisons, as the calculation is relatively complex, and of course affected by the capital costs of building the power stations, so I didn’t manage to find reliable figures for the others. But Earthlife publish a good, though dated, investigation of how existing nuclear power stations rely on massive subsidies to be in the slightest bit viable.
At least it looks like exciting times ahead. I’ve always believed that the correct way forward is not massive, centralised sources, but decentralisation. Each household being able to generate its own power will be a wonderful achievement.
I haven’t read all the sources you quote Ian, but when I built my house about 5 years ago in Botswana (before I moved to the USA) I dearly wanted to be independant of the BPC (Botswana Power Commision) grid. Since Botswana has a great many sunlight days per annum I figured this would be pretty easy to do. It turned out that the cost of solar power at that time was roughly three times more expensive than getting on the traditional grid. This was based on calculating the costs over 5, 10 and 15 year periods. It turned out that the single biggest cost was not the panels themselves but the batteries. The batteries need to be replaced every few years and at a very high cost. (The lifespan being if I recall around 5 years at best). The panels at that time had a slightly longer lifespan but also needed to be replaced every few years. Then there was the issue of the BPC not having any facility for feeding the grid in times of excess charge. In the US and other countries, the power suppliers allow you to reverse run your meter when you are not drawing from their power and actually sell your excess power to them. In Botswana at the time any such suggestion was met with amazement and I bet it is the same with ESKOM today.
I agree with you, Ian, here in Scotland every building could have a little wind generator on top – ideally it should still be linked into a national grid, with a reverse run option as mentioned above.
And championing allotments so that people can grow there own food is a simple and cheap solution to problem of eating spinach that’s more well travelled than you are.
I recall a detailed description of the Vivian Albert’s panels in a Popular Mechanics edition in 2005. If it’s true I will definitely plaster my roof with the stuff, am already thinking about homebrew diesel too.
incidentally i was starting to research Eskom, thanks for the information!
Here’s another link on the same topic:
http://www.bautforum.com/showthread.php?t=37995
I would seriously like to get involved with Solar energy, and with an engineering background i cant wait to read more on the new developments!
all i am looking for is a point of sale
for these knew pannels
as far as i can make out sa’s are to dum
to make this pannel
its going to be made in germany
and its still going to cost a fortuin
RE: REQUEST FOR THE PURCHASE OF SOLAR PANELS CIF ENTEBBE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
We of MAGESTIC STORE wish to introduce ourselves to you as an established dealing General Merchandise, .We came accross your contact address from your website. Since we are dealing in solar panels,we came interested in starting to purchase the following from your trading company:
SOLAR PANELS 75 – 80 -85 -120 walts
GENERATORS 2.5KVA -5KVA
INVERTERS
Please urgently quote for us the prices of the above selected products in US Dollars CIF Entebbe Airport and others you have in stock.
Waiting for your quick and prompt reply.
Regards
IVAN
There is no payback or saving by using solar energy or collecting rain water in tanks from the roof. but we should all be commited to doing it, especially if we can teach our kids lessons in trying to save the enviroment, even if your refuse is seperated for recycling and it gets mixed up at the dump at least we have done our part. Every day we should be teaching our kids the value of saving energy and who knows but maybe one day some of them might invent or discover cleaner cheaper energy.
There was an article about Dr Alberts’ system in You magazine in March 2006 describing the instalation cost for a small home with a few lights appliances etc as expected to be in the region of R15 000.00 Since then I have not been able to find any more info on this system or it’s availability, other than the info that production was going to be in Germany. As an alternative to Eishcom’s service, has the SA consumer lost out?
Do you have a contact number where I can purchace this Solar panel
Thank You
When will these pannels be for sale?
Who will be the destibetors?
Seems like the wait is almost over.
The German company Johanna Solar (http://www.johanna-solar.com) estimates that they will start production mid to end 2007.
There might be a South African manufacturing plant, but who knows ? Most of the raw materials need to be imported from what I can understand – so it might just be cheaper to import the product.
I travel extensively throughout Natal SA to schools, clinics and hospitals in remote areas. There are literally millions of people out there with no electricity at all. It would be great to see a cheap option. Where can we get more details on this product?
i needaplce i can get soller system for my mom who is at the farm. I can buy one if possible
I’ve just looked on the http://www.johanna-solar.com website and there is info there that explain everything.
I’m looking forward to this product becoming available.
One quote from their site:
Johanna Solar Technology signs sales agreement with aleo solar AG
Brandenburg an der Havel, Oldenburg, 11th June 2007. Johanna Solar Technology GmbH has its first sales partner: aleo solar AG will market up to 80 per cent of the thin film solar modules from Brandenburg an der Havel under the name “aleo”.
I need solar panels to purchase in JBH SA. Ifthere is one that can lift two plate stove, fridge & gyeser for a 7 roomed house.
Regards
Tafadzwa
Dude, hang on to your socks.. not quite on the market yet! Do some research so long as to how best to store the electricity these systems will make… lol
I am sure they will include the complete system..?
For your info, I work for a large SA petroleum company and we are very committed to finding alternative mechanisms wrt providing energy to the country. There is much research and intelligent thinking happening behind closed doors – the problem is that there is, as yet, no alternative energy source available (known to man) that will provide the kind of safe, efficient and effective energy release that fossil fuel does. Don’t be so quick to judge the industry. Rather look to why the motor car manufacturers are refusing to come to the table with electric/other cars. In the meantime, we continue to search desperately for ideas.
need more info on how many solar pannels and cost if i want to power a house with pool ext
I am involved in selling these new panels.The first shipment will be here in february at witch time we will convert a standard 3 bedroom house to solar power.I will keep you informed on our progress and will soon have a price list available.
I am very interested in these products. Please send me info as soon as it is available.
we plan to move to mozambique and are very interested in this kind of thing
My company has been importing these panels for a good few years. We also stock the inverters and the back-up batteries.
Please feel free to drop me an email
for any queries and we will gladly try to assist you.
Regards
Y M DENATH
AL-SUKKAR TRADING
JOHANNESURG
SOUTH AFRICA
yunus@worldonline.co.za
I also would like to find out how one can purchase this in South Africa, as the local electricity suppliers in SA has now introducted load sharing where you never sure when your turn is. Down time on power in areas at least twicw a week now.
When will the solar panels be available for purchase?
From what lox said,” S.A’s to dum to build it” I think not. We are a lot more clever than people give us credit for, the reason we are not building any is because the government is too afraid to venture into this since they already hold a major stock in Eskom. As far as I’m concerned we have the resources, the man power( I’m one of them) and defintely the skill. I bet my life on it.
Hi guys,
Seeing that we have the skill, resources and manpower, why are we not producing this ourselves, what is the hold up???
I have very little knowledge about this but I definitely see great value in getting solar power, in fact I would like to get involved in selling solar power systems here in South Africa.
It’s the start of a new year, lets be pioneers and get this off the ground asap!!!
Have a great day.
Regards
Clint
I am very interested in these products. Please send me info as soon as it is available. Thanks
Cripes ppl! Don’t you research and read properly?
There are plans for an SA plant which should be completed this year (2008) and start production upon completion.
The raw materials are available in South Afica, however the manufacturing equipment is not.
This link contains the above mentioned information:
http://cooltech.iafrica.com/features/508858.htm
This link is to the wiki that contains a number of resources:
http://peswiki.com/index.php/Directory:Vivian_Alberts_thin_film_solar
If Joey Mosert, who posted earlier, isn’t talking rubbish then it would be best to contact him if you are interested in purchasing these units.
Cheers,
Alan
I am equally interested in knowing contact details of the manufacturers or ditributors of Dr Alberts product. Please advise.
I AM INTERESTED TO GET THE CONTACT NUMBERS WERE I CAN PURCHES AS WELL AS GET DETAILES IN BECOMING A DISTRIBUTOR OF THE SOLAR PANELS
REGARDS
DES S
To set up a system just for power outages is very expensive. Unless you do it for other reasons as well. To run a stove and a geyser from a solar system would require a HUGE panel- and battery array.
Read more at:
http://www.kgelectric.co.za/news.htm
For the people enquiring to sell the product or become a distributor – see the following link :
http://www.engineeringnews.co.za/article.php?a_id=114626
Quote from article :
“To enable entry into the right markets, JST has signed a strategic sales and distribution agreement with solar-module manufacturer Aleo for the worldwide distribution of its products. Aleo has a 19% interest in JST.
JST has the legal right to issue sublicences anywhere in the world, excluding Africa and offshore islands.”
And to the person thinking we (South Africans) are too dumb – think again – after all the technology was developed … in South Africa. The only reason why it is manufactured in Germany is for financial reasons – at least that is what I gathered from the original article in the Popular Mechanics SA.
Load shedding:
Everybody seems to think it is a joke but after today’s news release that the situation will be resolved in 5 to 7 years it is clearly a disaster.
Soccer World cup in darkness!
Generators and Power plants do take a long time to build.
Time to think about Eco power?
Wind and Sun.
The idea of switching off geysers is great but:
Millions of houses in South Africa are empty during the day not consuming electricity at all.
What if they had a Solar Panel or a Windmill, not to supply power to their own battery rack, but to feed it back into the Eskom network?
Can be implemented almost immediately.
Increasing effects will show on a daily basis.
No import taxes on Eco electricity projects.
No government tenders to support the gravy train and slow down the process.
Individuals and companies that wish to participate can deduct it from tax!!
Power fed back into the network is deducted from the electricity bill.
Jobs for many, small and medium enterprise opportunities rather than large enterprise to implement and service.
A showcase to the world maybe if handled correctly?
Good Idea actually..
Only problem is this is South Africa. The panels will start getting stolen from your house etc.
That and SA is quite useless
Are these new panels available in SA? Who are the distributors? Contact details?
Fantastic stuff indeed
Being a distributor in KZN would be great. Imagine low cost housing with enough panels to power a few lights at night
Shine on, S.A!
Hi, Hopefully the cost of suitable batteries will also come down?
I am interested in the contact numbers were I can purchase the solar panels as wel become a distributor
Im very interested in distributing solar panels, pls send me contact numbers.
Another exciting new technology: silicon nanowire batteries.
http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2008/january9/nanowire-010908.html
As long as they aren’t also 10x as expensive.
I am moving to the karoo and would be definitely interested in your product
Hi All,
I was chatting about the issue of load shedding and solar energy with someone yesterday. I live on a game farm in Zululand and the shedding is a real problem for me.
Most of the people around me are going for generator backup. While relatively cheap to buy they are expensive to run.
I heard of a local farmer running his entire household on solar power including things like pool pumps and electric lawn mowers. Apparently the outlay was R150,000 but I am not sure how much poser he generates/stores. It is something I intend investigating very soon.
I am certainly interested in trying to convert to Solar and gas (my stove is already gas and is very cost effective).
I’ll try and keep this site posted with developments as I investigate.
Regards
Richard
Hi,
I am interested in becoming a distributer. Please send me the relevant information.
Regards,
Attie v Wyk
If you look at this site, you quickly get an idea of the issues involved.http://www.solar-panel.co.za/solar-power-calculator.htm
For a simple configuration to power a house, typically not for a load shedding situation, but a continuous power situation you apparently need quite a bit of kit!
House:
10 x 12Watt lights, 10 hrs
2 x 250W TVs – 6 hours
1 x 250W Fridge
You need:
30 x 75Watt solar panels
10 x 20Amp solar regulators
16 x 105Ah deep cycle batteries
1 x 1000Watt inverter (DC to AC)
The idea would be to pay for the system using savings from electricity not used from the grid. The above configuration would probably draw only R200 worth of electricity if that much.( the R200 I take from my son’s bill for his flat, where they also have an electric stove, some PCs, geyser, etc.)
Just the batteries, I heard from some people who installed them, is around R1500 per battery, and yes you need to replace it after a few years(4 to 5)
16 Batteries alone will cost you R24,000. If you compare that to R2400 per year in electricity you cannot make this anyway near affordable.
Then you also have to deal with storage for the kit. 30 panels will take a lot of space!
It might however be the “right” solution for a low density area, where power cable theft is an issue, and where new connections will be a problem.
I think a lot of the comments above have not studied the realities as yet. The panels are just a small part of the cost, if they are as cheap as planned. And while it is great that we do have this advance, it will not really help Eskom.
Much more can apparently be done by installing gas stoves and solar geysers, since these are the biggest drain on the network from a residential perspective, then change the light bulbs, and then use a small generator coupled to some batteries to provide continuous power just for the load sharing times.
Also, if more business/industrial areas can be provided with generators, then maybe we can get a better load sharing scheme, and not effect our complete daily movements.
I feel that Eskom, since it cannot provide continuous power, which is is assigned responsibility, should be made responsible to somehow subsidise the installation of all the new generators required and the same should go for the operational costs. Then again, it would not translate to a penalty for them, as it will ultimately just come from our own pockets in terms of either tax or tariff increases.
Hope to see some solutions shortly. Eskom is not thinking at all, they just react.
Hi There,
Also Interested in becoming a Distributor. If anyone knows any details on this, please send me Information,
Regards,
Theo Koekemoer
I have just started looking at inverter/solar charger/battery and found one company but so far seem too shy to reply. Retirement homes/residences require approx 5 lights and power for the tv which will make life a lot more comfortable for older folk but the system must be affordable. A very interesting site. Thanks
I need to purchase the new solar panels as developed by Prf Vivian Alberts now. Who are the local agents such that I can purchase
The best investment is to do market research on the area you live. if you can find a house that is connected to the same line as a big industrial company (that just will not be left in the dark).. problem solved. no load shedding here
I am interested in Prof. Alberts time macine eer I mean solar panel – Also Interested in becoming a Distributor. If anyone knows any details on this, please send me Information
We are very keen to get hold of the solar pannels. We are also very interested in the wind generators. Please can you give me the contact numbers for suppliers in South Africa, and if there are any in Cape Town.