With the aim to strengthen their network reliance from higher stages of load shedding, MTN South Africa is venturing into a series of hybrid wind and solar renewable energy projects.
With the overall project expected to be completed within six months by the third quarter of this year, this launch will begin at a small-scale field trial in Worcester in the Western Cape. The company also revealed that these hybrid renewable energy systems will provide green energy to power its assets sustainability and reduce its reliance on unstable grids.
Given that the Eastern Cape is a proven geographic destination for wind energy, the following series of projects will take place in the province. The company revealed how with the new energy projects, they would avoid the need to work with complicated masts, wires, or towers, and the windmills being used will be installed at various levels of a cell tower to harness more energy.
The standout feature of MTN’s project will be the seamless integration with their telecommunications equipment to provide hybrid energy generation for Base Transceiver Station (BTS) sites and other asset classes with a not so heavy workload.
To top it all off, this use of alternative energy will reduce the amount of diesel burnt per site by reducing generator run hours all while increasing power security per site, mitigating the effects of load shedding by using hybrid, wind, solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, and battery arrays.
The group is currently making strides in its four-phase green energy programme, with planned initiatives including onsite renewable deployment, off-site renewable power purchase agreements and driving energy efficiencies at their buildings and infrastructure.
Main Image: Daily Investor
