12 Dec 2016

With shortage of electricity being a challenge countrywide, Bankent Investments based in Letlhakane identified a niche in renewable energy.

Since going green is the way, the company decided to do solar resources and save planet earth. Street lighting through solar is the project that the company is promoting to cut costs for government. In an interview, the managing director, Mr Diane Lucas said they conducted research on solar products and on how they could access them.  

They identified products suitable for the African environment, and partnered with VIDERE AFRICA, a company which pledged to support all their projects.

VIDERE supplies all renewable energy products. Bankent management recently met with Letlhakane village leadership during sub-council session promoting solar street lighting.

He stated that solar was the future, saying they need to seriously consider street lighting through solar. He noted that the lights had a seven-year life guarantee and  maintenance free.The lights, he said would be switched on automatically once it becomes dark, senses objects and brights if there was a movement in a distance of 25 metres.

Mr Lucas noted that the light does not need any cables, charges from natural light and does not need sunlight to charge.

He indicated that it would go on for the next three days once it was fully charged. He said solar lighting should be considered for domestic use as a cost saving measure.

Comparison between solar and grid in terms of costs, he said stood on a scale of 1:7. Furthermore, he advised that people could use solar and use grid powered light as a back-up to cater for cloudy days.

Fossil fuel use, Mr Lucas further said had deteriorated, noting that the whole world was going into renewable energy. Government and local banks, he said should consider financing renewable energy.

He highlighted that for the country to electrify villages on backlog through grid powered light, it would be expensive, but would be affordable with solar.

Mr Lucas said chances were that prices for grid powered lights might go up, citing that one kilowatt per hour on grid powered light worth P8 and was reduced to P4 after government subsidy. He said there were more areas that were not yet electrified in Botswana with few electrified, saying solar was therefore the solution and very achievable.

 Furthermore, he highlighted that there was still need to sensitise Batswana on green energy. The company director, Mr Bakani Kelebantse explained that solar could be used in households and as much as for pumping water for boreholes of any depths.

He said solar street light is a compact unit that has a chargeable battery, encouraging farmers to buy the lights. ENDS