The Chronicle
Nqobile Bhebhe, Senior Enterprise Reporter
AFTER a number of years of working as a radio technician and satellite tv for pc dish installer, Mr Obert Murimbika left the enterprise and joined the photo voltaic vitality sector again in 2006.
At the moment, there weren’t many photo voltaic system installers available in the market.
Nevertheless, in recent times, Mr Murimbika reckons the sector has been “invaded” by chancers.
“Photo voltaic vitality is a gold mine proper now. It is a increase, a bonanza,” he stated with a smile.
“This jogs my memory of the times when wiztech satellite tv for pc dish set up was well-liked. Everybody who considered creating wealth then reinvented themselves in a single day to make a residing from satellite tv for pc dish set up. The identical is going on in the present day within the photo voltaic enterprise.”
Many companies in Zimbabwe are turning to photo voltaic vitality due to Zesa’s lengthy load instances.
Trade captains say the ability shortages dealing with the nation and the area needs to be seen as a actuality verify for companies and households to begin investing in photo voltaic vitality as a long run answer.
It’s argued that Zimbabwe has a robust case for adopting solar energy because it experiences lengthy hours of sunshine all year long with the Authorities encouraging industries to construct photo voltaic vegetation. .
Photo voltaic panels have turn into a part of the panorama of residential and business areas.
Mr Murimbika acknowledged that the set up enterprise was booming however was fast to warn of great dangers.
He defined that some purchasers get caught up within the insanity and find yourself shopping for the incorrect panels and inverters.
Mr Murimbika stated it was unlucky that generally the standard of the merchandise was a secondary consideration so the lifetime of the photo voltaic system was not given a lot thought.
He stated that that is how many individuals promote faux merchandise which have flooded the market.
A fundamental photo voltaic system features a photo voltaic panel, battery, an inverter and a controller.
The lifespan of a panel ranges from 5 years for the most cost effective to over 25 years for premium high quality in accordance with Mr Murimbika.
“There may be plenty of demand for installers. Typically I feel individuals set up photo voltaic programs for status as a result of it is trendy now,” he stated.
Mr Murimbika stated many individuals are speeding to put in photo voltaic programs however they have no idea the standard of the merchandise required.
Social media is awash with corporations promoting varied devices, together with sub-standard merchandise, a growth that has frightened the Zimbabwe Power Regulatory Authority.
Use of photo voltaic vitality
Individuals with low budgets find yourself with the worst programs, says Mr Murimbika.
“They purchase what they assume is reasonable however these are faux merchandise that do not final,” he stated.
The chief govt officer of Zera, Mr Eddington Mazambani stated that increasingly more households are utilizing solar energy however the regulatory authority doesn’t have prepared nationwide statistics.
“The authority is remitted to advertise renewable vitality and thus actively promotes the usage of photo voltaic vitality. The usage of solar energy has elevated through the years as evidenced by the expansion within the variety of retailers and repair suppliers,” stated Mr Mazambani .
Nevertheless, he stated that though Zera has developed requirements for all photo voltaic merchandise and has additionally drafted laws for checking the standard and requirements of merchandise, the sub-standard merchandise flooding the market.
Thus Zera continues to obtain complaints of poor service provision from solar energy customers.
“Legislative modifications within the related authorized acts have been made to pave the best way for the promulgation of laws. The Authority has allotted a price range for take a look at gear to enhance high quality enforcement within the sector of renewable vitality.
Devices available in the market are additionally topic to the Consignment Based mostly Conformity Evaluation (CBCA) program the place merchandise are issued with certificates of conformity of origin” stated Mr Mazambani.
He stated that sub-standard merchandise are flooding the market due to unhealthy sellers and porous borders.
Zimra is due to this fact engaged in intensifying product checks on the port of entry.
The renewable vitality service suppliers are assessed by Zera and there’s a record of really helpful suppliers.
In response to the analysis, as of August final 12 months, there have been 159 registered photo voltaic gear service suppliers and 11 have been in Bulawayo.
Miss Carol Ndimande, a photo voltaic system dealer who operates from Bulawayo metropolis heart stated the fakes are more likely to trigger environmental challenges.
Among the homes in Bulawayo the place solar energy is put in
Battery life spans range relying on the kind, from a number of months for some gel batteries to 10 years for lithium batteries.
He famous that expiring batteries can translate into an extra of photo voltaic waste if not disposed of correctly.
“I’ve now seen panels being thrown in open areas in residential areas and youngsters are nonetheless enjoying with the discarded panels. Used home equipment are being thrown randomly and that is more likely to hurt the atmosphere,” he stated.
Miss Ndimande requested the group to familiarize themselves with the assorted parts of the photo voltaic system earlier than buying.
“In a single day merchants are promoting photo voltaic panels rated at 300 Watts however they solely generate 150 Watts or much less.”
In response to Miss Ndimande, a 300 Watt photo voltaic panel, 12 volts battery, a regulator, 1 000-Watt controller and 30Amp controller can energy many family home equipment.
Whereas interviewing Miss Ndimande, three purchasers hurriedly purchased varied photo voltaic system gear.
They do not appear to wish to take care of Miss Ndimande on the ensures and high quality of the merchandise.
That is in all probability the rationale why many individuals purchase photo voltaic home equipment with out totally understanding how they work.
In response to Zera, when buying photo voltaic PV gear, you will need to calculate the full consumption of electrical energy and vitality of all the masses that have to be provided by the photo voltaic PV system.
An inverter is utilized in programs the place AC energy output is required.
“The enter score of the inverter should not be lower than the full wattage of the home equipment. The inverter should have the identical nominal voltage as your battery. For stand-alone programs, the inverter have to be giant sufficient to deal with the full quantity of
Watts that you’ll use at one time. As well as, the dimensions of the inverter needs to be 25 to 30 % bigger than the full Watts of the home equipment.
For a grid tie system or grid linked system, the enter score of the inverter have to be the identical because the PV array score to permit secure and environment friendly operation.
The kind of battery really helpful to be used in photo voltaic PV programs is a deep cycle battery.
“Deep cycle batteries are particularly designed to be discharged at low vitality ranges and quickly recharged or cycled to be charged and discharged day by day for years. The battery have to be sufficiently which is giant sufficient to retailer sufficient vitality to run home equipment at night time and on cloudy days.
