Image: Dialogo Chino
Extrupet, one of Africa’s largest recyclers of plastic, has equipped its Wadeville plastic recycling plant with a 1.3 MWp photovoltaic solar power plant built in collaboration with Solarise Africa and NEC XON.
The solar power plant will have an annual generation capacity of 2 GWh of electricity per year and is expected to reduce Extrupet’s annual CO2 emissions by 2,000 tons. The plant was financed by pan-African energy company, Solarise Africa, with engineering, procurement, and construction managed by consulting services company, NEC XON.
The installation of the solar power plant will provide Exrupet’s Wadeville facility, which is located in Johannesburg and recycles more than four million PET bottles every day with 79% of its annual energy needs.
“Not only will it provide energy at a reduced cost, but it will also ensure that Extrupet has a consistent and reliable power supply, even when the national grid is under severe strain,” said Herman Viljoen, Head of Aleternative Energy Pre-Sale at NEC XON. https://www.esi-africa.com/industry-sectors/generation/solar/recycling-firm-switches-to-solar-pv-to-help-tackle-climate-change/
Chief Commercial Officer at Solarise Africa, Sakkie van Wijk, stated, “Extrupet wanted to go even further in its commitment to sustainable development but using solar energy. Not only is solar energy better for the environment, but it will also bring down electricity costs an estimated 30% from the first month and savings of around R130-140 million over the course of the lifecycle of the solar plant.”
“This is a significant investment, and we challenge other industries to do the same. We look forward to a very long and fruitful relationship with Solarise Africa and NEC XON,” concluded Vijay Naidu, Joint Managing Director at Extrupet.
