Eco- and Agri-Solar

The first two trainings took place at the V&A Waterfront in Cape Town, and further sessions were held at the CSIR in Pretoria, with 50 participants each. The attendees were local government officials from various utilities (municipalities) across South Africa. The training covered aspects such as distributed generation (DG), its benefits for the country like job creation, reducing dependence on fossil fuels, dealing with power outages (load shedding), how DG can impact the national grid, and how to process and approve DG in their network in a sustainable way. It also covered concepts like setting up export tariffs and installing the correct bidirectional meter to compensate consumers who want to feed their green solar energy into the grid.

According to GIZ, a key training funder, this training and capacity building programme is one of their best and most impactful programmes in Africa. The impact SUNCybernetics and Sustainable Energy Africa was making in South Africa, was so profound and effective, that Germany based GET.transform, supported by GIZ, wanted to roll out the same training and capacity building model out to other African Countries. The first cohort of 6 countries included Namibia, Uganda, Madagascar, Mozambique Lesotho and Eswatini. There is a potential for this programme to roll out soon to 10 African Countries in total.

The training for the African Countries, focused more on developing a draft template regulation for distributed generation as well as utility requirements for DG to connect to their respective grids. The training was quite challenging, as the existing grid codes, regulations, stakeholders, approaches and even their languages were different. Translation services had to be used for the first time to effectively communicate and convey the same message. The training was still well received and the hope is that other African Countries will be able to capitalise on their new knowledge and capabilities to open the market for DG in a sustainable way.

Feedback from International DG Training
“I commend you for the support given to the various countries; while addressing the real issues and following up (each training session is a build up to the next step) The continuous efforts to get feedback and needs of each country tailor made, ensure relevance of all content The daily recap of principles in a fun interactive way is invaluable for the participants” –

The forum brought together a variety of companies connected with Schleswig-Holstein Netz AG (SH-Netz) – from pure feeders to battery project developers to municipal representatives. However, the majority of attendees were feeders. The main goal of the forum was to facilitate mutual acquaintance, understand the current situation of SH-Netz, and work together on solutions. Additionally, SH-Netz's plans and roadmap for the coming years and decades were presented, including the future grid development in Schleswig-Holstein.

Some of the exciting information shared during the forum included SH-Netz's ambitious goals for 2024. SH-Netz plans to connect an additional 2000 MW. The three essential components of their target grid are:

1. Grid Coupling Points: Over 20 new 380/110 kV substations with a capacity of around 1 GW
2. 110 kV Overhead Lines: 950 km of new 110 kV overhead lines
3. 110 kV Substations: 100 new 110/20 kV substations

However, grid expansion also brings significant challenges, including long approval times of 2-4 years, skilled labor shortages, material delivery times of over 3 years, and land acquisition times of 1-3 years. Additionally, the planning basis is complex due to unpredictable feeder requests and load fluctuations. In addition to grid expansion, SH-Netz is significantly increasing the number of annual connections. Currently, 104,700 installations are connected to the grid, and a yearly increase of over 50,000 installations is forecasted for 2024-2026.

SUNfarming looks forward to working together with SH-Netz and other partners to successfully implement these ambitious plans and further advance the energy transition in Schleswig-Holstein.

SUNfarming, represented by Martin Tauschke, Piotr Budzyniak, and Anna Pilarczyk-Naprawski, participated in the 5th edition of the PV Congress, which took place on May 27-28 at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Warsaw, organized by the Polish Photovoltaic Association. This is one of the largest congresses in the photovoltaic industry in Poland, addressing key PV sector topics and gathering top experts, government representatives, and leading companies in solar energy. The two-day event attracted over a thousand participants.

On the second day of the conference, Martin Tauschke had the honor of speaking as a panelist in the discussion panel “Floating and Agri-PV. The Rescue for Agriculture?”. As a pioneer of the German Agri-PV market, he presented the technological advancements of Agri-PV solutions used by SUNfarming in Germany, highlighting the benefits of dual usage concepts advantageous for both agriculture and the energy system. Additionally, he addressed the obstacles in spreading Agri-PV technology in Poland. During the panel, a discussion with representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture also took place, focusing on the complexity of regulatory and administrative processes. Martin Tauschke called for joint cooperation and the development of legal and political frameworks that would allow the growth of this still-nascent sector in Poland, proposing the exchange of experiences and ready-made solutions that have proven successful in the advanced Western European Agri-PV market.

During the congress, SUNfarming Polska was also officially accepted as a member of the Polish Photovoltaic Association, where it intends to primarily engage in the development of Agri-PV in Poland.

For visitors to our booth: You are warmly invited to contact Ms. Janine Breitenfeld to schedule an appointment:
j.breitenfeld(at)sunfarming.de

Based in Erkner near Berlin, SUNfarming is a family-owned, medium-sized enterprise in the solar energy sector, specializing in the development, construction, and operation of photovoltaic systems. The company also invests in the production of renewable energy for climate protection and energy security. In addition to rooftop PV, landfill and conversion site PV systems, and floating PV installations, SUNfarming focuses particularly on the development, construction, and operation of Agri-Photovoltaic systems for animal husbandry as well as fruit and vegetable cultivation in Germany and internationally. With innovative dual-use concepts tailored to agriculture, horticulture, and viticulture, SUNfarming is driving the energy transition sustainably forward. SUNfarming's in-house engineers develop innovative PV solutions, having already realized more than 700 MW of installed capacity and holding more than 230 MW of plant capacity in its own portfolio. SUNfarming has received numerous awards for its Food & Energy Training concepts in various developing countries.

These bankers, agricultural experts, and technical engineers are specialists from Germany’s largest bank for renewable energy financing. Due to new legislation, particularly the Solar Package 1, they showed great interest in Agri-Solar.

Edith Brasche, Managing Director for SUNfarming Project Development, and Peter Schrum, founder and main shareholder of the SUNfarming Group, presented the innovations and research facility in Rathenow. They explained the unique features of Agri-Solar with glass-glass modules and SUNfarming's rainwater distribution techniques.

Since farmers are supplied directly by SUNfarming for the construction of privileged 2.5-hectare APV systems, this business field becomes an attractive financing area for DKB Bank with EEG security.

The 200 kWp Agrisolar Training Centre in Gros Cailloux, Mauritius, was recognized in the following categories:
1. Best Solar Project of the Year: Agrivoltaics
2. Outstanding Service Innovation in Solar: EPC

The awards were presented by Mr Beemadoo, CEO of the Mauritius Renewable Energy Agency (MARENA), to SUNfarming Africa Project Manager, Chetan Jankee (pictured right) & SUNfarming Africa Agronomist, Jeevesh Sewdee (pictured left).

Project Overview

The Agrisolar Research and Training Centre was commissioned in July 2023 under the National Scheme for Emerging/Innovative Renewable Energy Technologies (NSEIRET). This program, initiated by the Mauritius Renewable Energy Agency in collaboration with the Central Electricity Board (CEB), the Economic Development Board (EDB), and the Mauritius Research and Innovation Council (MRIC), promotes innovations in renewable energy sources.

Significance and future prospects

The plant serves as a research and training platform in cooperation with local partners. During the installation phase, 60 students from the University of Mauritius and the Université des Mascareignes were trained.

SUNfarming's agrivoltaic system in Mauritius is an innovative solution that integrates energy production with food production and promotes local capacities and economic development. It supports local self-sufficiency and optimises land use by simultaneously enabling large-scale solar projects.