With ever-escalating electricity prices and an unstable supply of power from the national energy utility, more and more South African consumers and businesses are looking to invest in solar. But what’s involved?

In this episode of the podcast, TechCentral speaks to Tian van der Bijl, commercial division manager at Ellies, about the costs involved and the requirements that must be met to go the solar route – including going off-grid entirely.

Given Eskom's endless supply problems, why don't more homes and businesses already have solar? What factors, if any, are holding back the adoption of the technology as an energy-supply solution in South Africa? And how expensive (or cheap) is it really to deploy? And when should users expect a payback from their investment?

Van der Bijl tackles all of these questions and talks about what businesses can do to reduce the upfront cost of deploying solar. He also covers what homeowners need to consider before embarking on a solar installation and what some of the traps are that people fall into. Should those interested in solar deploy projects in a big-bang approach, or does a modular and phased implementation of solar make more sense?

Other areas covered in the discussion include lithium-ion vs lead-acid batteries for energy storage and what the latest developments are in solar panel technology.

Lastly, Van der Bijl talks about Ellies' solar solutions and how the company works with homeowners and businesses to deploy solar energy solutions.

Don’t miss this fascinating discussion!