American multinational technology and e-commerce company, Amazon, has commissioned its first solar project in South Africa. Located in the Northern Cape province of South Africa, the 10MW solar project officially came online on February 22.
With a potential production capacity of 28,000 MWh annually, the solar project will supply Amazon’s Web Service data centers with clean energy while supporting the economic development of local communities. Comprising 24,000 bifacial solar panels across an area of 20 hectares, the solar project will offset 25,000 tons of carbon emissions annually, aligning with the country’s 2030 renewable energy plan – a framework for increasing the share of renewable energy in the energy mix.
“Amazon is committed to working with governments and utility suppliers around the world to help bring more renewable energy projects online,” stated Nat Sahlstrom, Director of Energy at Amazon Web Services. “We are honored to work with the Department of Minerals and Energy, the National Energy Regulator of South Africa, and Eskom to help deliver a new model for renewable energy generation in South Africa.”
Meanwhile, the project has and will continue to create economic opportunities for local communities through job creation, particularly for women. During the construction phase, the project created 167 jobs, some of which will turn into permanent positions over the lifetime of the project.
