Balwin Properties has partnered with SolarAfrica to introduce solar energy to its upmarket developments. Kikuyu and The Whisken come standard with prepaid electricity and individual water meters. Whilst all Balwin apartments are considered eco-friendly, their two newest developments will be the first to make use of solar energy as a considerable portion of their daily electricity usage, operating in conjunction with an automated load management system.
SolarAfrica specialises in clean energy solutions for the residential sectional title market in South Africa. Its solutions require little to no capital investment whilst operating and maintaining the systems that generate electricity for use by residential homeowners.
Steve Brookes, CEO of Balwin Properties comments: “While we already offer prepaid meters allowing residents to actively manage their electricity consumption, the addition of solar power will save residents on their monthly electricity bill which is of utmost importance considering the rising cost of living.
SolarAfrica’s latest advancement combines effective geyser load management with solar, allowing for up to 40% of a development’s total energy requirements to be supplied by solar energy. The system works by managing the time and temperature of hot water heating in order to maximise the use of solar energy, since solar PV can only generate energy when the sun shines.
Grahame Cruickshanks, Managing Executive: Residential at GBCSA, says “Kikuyu and The Whisken are targeting EDGE certification and will deliver significant energy savings to residents who ‘live smart’ in their homes through a range of practical solutions which contribute towards achieving a minimum of 20% savings in the predicted energy and water consumption of the homes. In addition to this a 20% reduction in the embodied energy of the materials used in construction will result in a reduced environmental impact. Once certified these projects will be amongst the first EDGE certified projects to include solar PV technology, offering energy savings benefits to residents and setting an exciting trend in green homes.”
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