First Africa project for Baywa is Zambia solar-plus-storage pilot

By Amanda Lennon
LinkedIn
Twitter
Reddit
Facebook
Email
The pilot plant in Zambia. Image: Baywa r.e.

German renewables firm BayWa r.e. has commissioned a combined PV and battery system in Zambia's Chisamba province, to supply irrigation for aquacultural farming.

Christof Thannbichler, Managing Director of BayWa r.e. Solar Projects GmbH, said: “We are really happy to have successfully completed our first project in Africa.”

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Enjoy 12 months of exclusive analysis

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Annual digital subscription to the PV Tech Power journal
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

The farm is supplied for up to 13 hours per day with 450kWh, equating to emissions of 145 tonnes of CO₂ per year and 150 litres of diesel fuel per day.

Situated on the premises of the NKTC farm the pilot plant consists of 260 solar modules with a total capacity of 86kWp.

Excess energy is temporarily stored in 160kWh battery storage systems with the water reservoir also serving as additional storage.

Battery and water storage supply the farm from 7am until 7pm, operating during these hours independently from the grid. The farm is then reconnected to the grid during evening hours.

“It is precisely in the tropical and subtropical regions of the globe where farmers are dependent on reliable and uninterrupted power supply for the irrigation of their fields,” said, Thannbichler.

BayWa r.e. will assume technical operations management of the plant as well as being active in training location farmers and monitoring the systems.

The company currently has other projects in development to expand its activity on the African continent as well as continued projects elsewhere including the UK.

In October, Redavia, a solar equipment rental company, completed work on two pv-plus-storage microgrids with 300kWh of batteries in neighbouring Tanzania. 

Image: Baywa r.e.

Read Next

Premium
May 20, 2025
ESN Premium speaks with Chloe Hicks of EnergyCo about New South Wales’ Renewable Energy Zones (REZ) and its hopes for energy storage.
May 19, 2025
Elements Green has received grid connection approval from Powerlink Queensland and the AEMO for a 1.3GWh solar-plus-BESS site in Queensland.
May 16, 2025
Developer Elgin Energy has secured grid connection approval from AEMO for a 150MW solar-plus-storage site in Victoria.
May 14, 2025
The Mobility House will provide its aggregation and trading software to Electrohold, the energy trading arm of IPP and T&D network owner Eurohold Bulgaria, to optimise a 2.5GWh portfolio of BESS projects.
May 9, 2025
Georgia Power has begun construction on 765MW of new battery energy storage systems (BESS) across Georgia, US.

Most Popular

Email Newsletter