Subscribe
  • Home
  • /
  • Green IT
  • /
  • Local firms launch commercial solar insurance in SA

Local firms launch commercial solar insurance in SA

Kgaogelo Letsebe
By Kgaogelo Letsebe, Portals journalist
Johannesburg, 28 Nov 2017
All Power Systems and Synthesis Power, together with a global re-insurance company have completed the first commercial solar savings insurance pilot project in SA.
All Power Systems and Synthesis Power, together with a global re-insurance company have completed the first commercial solar savings insurance pilot project in SA.

Local firms All Power Systems (APS) and Synthesis Power, together with a global re-insurance company, have completed and commissioned the first pilot project in SA which includes a commercial solar savings insurance to protect companies from risks associated with adverse weather and system failure.

As part of the partnership, APS provided technical advice and guidance to the development process and is the engineering and construction contractor who installs, operates and manages the solutions. Meanwhile, Synthesis provides the funding and project development services.

Jay Naidoo, chief executive officer at Synthesis Power, explains: "If the client requires a fully funded solution, both companies offer this product. If the client wants to purchase the solar solution directly, APS will supply it at a cost. If the client only wants the net saving with zero investment, Synthesis will fund and develop the project and pass on the savings through a unique Off-Balance sheet contract."

Naidoo adds that the first of its kind Solar Solution Insurance was invented to give assurance to its clientele. "With All Power, we install solar rooftop systems for commercial clients who want to own their own sustainable electricity supplies," he said. "With Synthesis, we offer a complete financial solution with zero capital input from the client, and since Synthesis effectively owns these projects, we agree to a guaranteed monthly fee for electricity, with zero risk. In a nutshell, the insurance was developed to be 'all-risk' in nature and is intended to cover most, if not all, of the associated risks which are attributed to solar rooftop systems. This includes inclement weather, product failure, product/material defects, to name a few.

"We have developed this product as it 'de-risks' the solution for our clients and allows them to have the peace of mind knowing that our forecasted savings (as provided to them by us in the design stage) is guaranteed by a global insurance firm. If our solar solution does not achieve the forecasted savings, the insurance product will pay out the difference in order to ensure that the forecasted savings is always met," he noted.

Although the insurance was introduced in August, the conglomerate first pilot project - with this insurance - is a 145Kw Solar Rooftop Project at The Hydro Spa, in Stellenbosch. "Our target market includes any property or land owner who is interested in solar power (as an investor or net-user through our financed offering) whose solar solution requirement is within the 85Killowatt to 1MegaWatt range. This includes commercial (shopping centres) and industrial buildings, office parks, large-scale housing developments, agricultural/farming facilities, to name a few," said Naidoo.

The partnerships' business model includes investing in solar energy and in so doing allowing consumers to save money. "By investing in solar energy, our clients are producing their own clean energy from their rooftops vs buying energy from the grid at a high price. We are also insuring those savings which means our solar power is now bankable and guaranteed savings which could be seen a 'guaranteed income' from a property owners perspective," concludes Naidoo.

ITWeb was unable to establish if this is the first such insurance offering in SA.

Share