Efficacy of solar power units for small-scale businesses in a remote rural area, South Africa

Hajat, A; Banks, D; Aiken, R; Shackleton, Charlie M

Title: Efficacy of solar power units for small-scale businesses in a remote rural area, South Africa
Creator: Hajat, A, Banks, D, Aiken, R, Shackleton, Charlie M
Date: 2009
Type: Article
Identifier: vital:6636
Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/d1006860
Description: Much work has considered the practicalities and affordability of solar systems for domestic energy supplies in remote rural areas. There is less understanding of its utility for small-scale business enterprises in such areas. We examined the patterns of use of two 12 V and one 24 V systems for small-scale enterprises housed in transportable containers. Monitoring of load shed and top of charge indicated that the 12 V systems were inadequate to meet the requirements of the enterprises. The 24 V operation performed a lot better. Despite some technical limitations the system offered a number of social, economic and environmental positives; primarily the offering of business products not otherwise available in the area, incomes to the entrepreneurs and greater connectivity with regional centres through office services such as cell-phone charging and faxing. Customers of the small-scale enterprises felt that their presence in the area saved them some money because they no longer had to travel as frequently to regional urban centres.
Format: 15 pages, pdf
Language: English
Relation: Hajat, A. and Banks, D. and Aiken, R. and Shackleton, C.M. (2009) Efficacy of solar power units for small-scale businesses in a remote rural area, South Africa. Renewable Energy, 34 (12). pp. 2722-2727. Available: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.renene.2009.05.027

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