An Alternative Source for Africa - Solar Energy

 

Energy from the sun when fully harnessed would be of enormous value. In the world today, about 65 % of total energy we consume comes from fossil fuels. The challenge here is that fossil fuels deplete much faster than the replenishment rate. This invariably implies that with time, humanity will run out of fossil fuels. This gives rise to the need for search into alternative energy sources, which are sustainable and renewable. The most sustainable and renewable source is solar energy.

Photovoltaic (PV) systems are systems used to convert solar energy to electrical energy. They comprise of arrays of PV modules, inverters, batteries, charging systems for standalone systems, and load.  The PV module is an array of solar cells interconnected in a sequence. We use semiconductor materials to make solar cells. These materials becomes conductive when they absorb photons. The loosely bound electrons in the valence band get sufficient energy to jump the band gap into the conduction band. Some common technologies used include the crystalline Silicon, the Cadmium Telluride,  the thin film Silicon, the III-V junctions like GaAs, the CIGS, and the organic dye technologies. Though PV systems are still somewhat expensive to implement, there is continuous researches to improve on the batteries and other non-modular components to make them more affordable. There is hope and a future for electricity generation from the sun. It is also of importance to note that recent PV technologies work to surpass the Shockley-Queisser limit of 40% for the maximum conversion efficiency of the solar cells.

As at 2012, European Union was leading the world in the total installed PV systems with over 65% of world’s total installed PV systems. China and Asia Pacific follow with about 20%. America has about 10% of the world’s installed PV systems. Ironically, Africa and Middle East with a great part of the regions lying within the equator have less than 1% of the world’s installed PV systems. This tells that there is still a lot that can be achieved in this regard. A country as Nigeria, with much higher irradiance (power per unit area) and up to 11 Sun hours per day when compared with countries like Germany, has a potential of generating good electric power from solar per annum. Germany as at 2008 has a total installed PV capacity of over 9 GW of electricity, which accounts for 31% of the world’s total installed PV capacity in 2012.

There is hope for Africa. China just began their journey into PV systems in 2010. Today, it has a rapid and continuous rising stake in the world. Solar technology is still virgin in Africa. Certain government policies like the progressive feed-in-tariff (where individuals and organizations feed in excess power generated from PV systems into the national grids) if implemented, can facilitate this development. This would arouse interests among investors and make the market viable. It is time for governments, organizations, and well-meaning individuals to synergize and tap into this uncharted field to harness the resources within the Africa region and make a platform for improved living standards. We can do better than this. I am African. I am Nigerian. I believe in us… See you at the top.