The agrivoltaics project is a one megawatt solar plant which will power the university during daytime and includes the simultaneous use of land for both solar panels and agriculture.
Giving an overview of the renewable energy investment last week, BUAN Vice Chancellor, Professor Ketlhatlogile Mosepele said the project does not only generate electrical power but also aids in food production through providing shade for plants.
Mosepele explained that the project commenced way back in 2019 when MarketVest approached the University to embark on the milestone of establishing an agrivoltaic power plant in the country. “This project marks a key milestone in our key strategic plans to contribute to sustainable resource use and efforts to infuse innovation in food production and power generation.
“This agrivoltaic project will help in generating power and food production,” he said. Mosepele further said the plant has enabled BUAN to reduce its power bill by over 60% as the plant powers the institution during the day. “With our electricity bill down by 60%, this is a notable improvement and a saving of our recurrent expenditure,” he added.
Mosepele further noted the efforts by BUAN represent their “intense desire to protect the environment” as they align with the Sustainable Development Goal Number 13, which exhorts all stakeholders to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts”.
For his part, the National Development Bank (NDB) board member, Gerald Nthebolang explained that the bank’s role was to administer funds for the agrivoltaic project.
Giving an overview, he said NDB is committed to ensuring the transition to the use of green technology in Botswana and the bank stands ready to help all interested organisations and people as long as they are willing to take advice.
“We are entrusted with public money and as a result, we often advise parties to start small and scale up once they have their ducks in a row,” he said. He further said the NDB has to take a balanced risk approach as they operate on behalf of their stakeholders.
