Sungrow champions utility-scale storage as key to South Africa’s energy resilience

This situation is not unique to South Africa, where, across the continent, countries are facing similar challenges as they look to scale up renewable energy without compromising reliability.

To this end, utility-scale energy storage is emerging not as a supplementary component but as the linchpin in Africa’s evolving power landscape. At the recent Africa Energy Forum (AEF) in Cape Town, global energy storage leader, Sungrow, reaffirmed its commitment to supporting Africa’s energy ambitions, showcasing how advanced storage solutions are enabling the stable integration of renewables into national and regional grids.

Energy storage isn’t just a nice-to-have; it’s an essential piece of the puzzle. Our utility-scale solutions enable grid operators to stabilise supply and demand, manage peak loads, and integrate intermittent renewables more effectively, all without sacrificing performance or reliability.

While Africa has made remarkable strides in solar and wind generation, integrating these variable sources into an already fragile grid remains a core challenge. Sungrow’s presence at AEF highlighted how storage can support frequency and voltage regulation, time-shifting of renewable power, and greater grid resilience, particularly in markets such as South Africa, where stability is paramount.

Utility-scale storage enables African countries to add more renewable energy to the grid with far greater efficiency. By time-shifting energy for use during peak demand, smoothing out fluctuations in solar output, and regulating frequency and voltage, battery systems ensure a more stable supply.

They also provide black start capabilities, helping to restore power after outages and significantly reduce renewable energy curtailment. These capabilities are critical for integrating higher volumes of solar power into constrained or fragile grids without compromising reliability.

A clear example of this is the recently expanded a shopping mall that faced an energy shortfall, with peak demand reaching 6MVA – exceeding the 4MVA capacity allocated by the local municipality. Sungrow implemented a 6MVA battery energy storage system, effectively bridging the gap and providing reliable backup during outages – a practical demonstration of the real-world value of storage.