Building Consensus on Accelerating the Rollout of Solar Water Heaters in South Africa (2009)
Submitted by Raquel Ponte Costa on August 20, 2012This report summarises the speeches and outcomes of South Africa’s 2009 National Solar Water Heating Conference, which was held in preparation for the countries 2010 National SWH Strategic Framework. After summarising the Framework - which plans to unblock the high costs of solar heaters and deliver 1 million units across South Africa within 5 years - the report lists key outcomes from the varied presentations from public and private-sector speakers.
A common conclusion is that South Africa’s SWH sector could be more internationally competitive. Although it receives double the amount of sunshine as leading countries such as Germany and Austria, it is 30 years behind them in terms of SWH sector development. Several speakers call for SWH installation to be made obligatory for new builds and renovated properties, following the success of countries like Israel, in which 95% of households are now using SWH.
Other speakers argue for improving capacity of national industry associations such as the SESSA’s Solar Water Heating Division and for greater use of carbon credits to create revenue for supporting SWH installation.
Author: South Africa Department of Energy
Date: 2009
Pages: 48
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