According to a recent report by the renewable energy information website GTM, the development of the photovoltaic industry in Africa is accelerating. Some organizations predict that the photovoltaic market in the region is expected to exceed US$7 billion in the “post-epidemic era”.

According to Abraham Cambridge, founder and CEO of Sun Exchange, a solar rental platform in South Africa, said in an interview a few days ago: "The period of concentrated outbreaks of the new crown pneumonia from February to May this year was the busiest time for the company. So far, we have completed the installation. 11 industrial and commercial photovoltaic projects, but our seventh project in the same period last year has just started."

Not only the increase in installation volume, at the end of June, Sun Exchange will also complete a round of financing of about 4 million US dollars. "In South Africa, although the spread of the new crown pneumonia epidemic has weakened investors' confidence in general, industrial and commercial photovoltaic power generation projects have always maintained a relatively stable or even growth trend against the trend." Abraham Cambridge said.

It is understood that in the financing obtained by Sun Exchange this round, the Arch Emerging Markets Partners African Renewable Energy Fund, headquartered in London, UK, provided approximately US$3 million in support. The director of the fund, Zahid Hassen, said frankly that despite the current economic downturn, many investors have realized the huge potential of the clean technology industry. "Especially during the new crown pneumonia epidemic, off-grid and industrial and commercial photovoltaic projects have been favored. One of the important reasons is that these projects can achieve'online transactions' without too much face-to-face communication."

In addition to the smoothness and convenience of the transaction process, Jay Naidoo, CEO of South African solar installer IMPower, also said that platforms such as The Sun Exchange provide an almost "zero cost" business model. On this type of platform, on the one hand, any individual and organization around the world can purchase photovoltaic equipment and then lease it to community buildings in South Africa. On the other hand, local financing institutions in Africa also show a positive attitude towards such projects.

In fact, under the influence of various factors, Africa's investment prospects in the field of renewable energy are in sharp contrast with the development prospects of other energy fields. The latest report released by Africa Arena, an African consulting and research organization, shows that technology investment across the African continent will drop sharply this year. It is estimated that the funds flowing into African technology start-ups may fall from US$2 billion in 2019 to US$1.8 billion or even US$1.2 billion this year. In the most negative situation, by 2022, technology investment may not return to the level of 2019.

According to the market research report of industry organizations Bloomberg New Energy Finance and Green Cape, Sun Exchange further predicts that in the five-year period from 2019 to 2024, the market potential of sub-Saharan Africa in the industrial and commercial photovoltaic field may exceed US$7 billion.

Abraham Cambridge said that in times of market turmoil, investors are likely to regard African industrial and commercial photovoltaic projects as "a safe bet." "At present, according to our calculations, even taking into account currency depreciation factors, the internal rate of return of investment in industrial and commercial photovoltaic projects can reach 10%-12%, which is already a very impressive figure. Moreover, by promoting industrial and commercial photovoltaic projects, you can It meets about 40% of users' energy needs, and the resulting savings in electricity bills are also a considerable amount. In the future, photovoltaic projects may be installed in buildings such as shelters, nursing homes, and pet hospitals in Africa."

"In Africa, facing a difficult economic environment, as the cost of photovoltaic power generation continues to decline, utility energy costs increase, and people's understanding of industrial and commercial photovoltaics continues to deepen, investors will be more willing to sign long-term energy agreements." Jay Naidoo It is predicted that in the'post-epidemic era', industrial and commercial photovoltaic solutions will be more attractive.

                                                                                                                                                                                                 From:  China Energy News