Over the coming years, Africa’s growing renewable energy industries are expected to reduce imports, create jobs, and build the local capital base. The International Energy Agency estimates that around 4 million additional energy-related jobs are needed across the continent by 2030.

South Africa has leapt into a solar energy revolution, aiming to install over 8GW of solar capacity within the next eight years.

The industry saw rapid expansion last year. According to Eskom data, rooftop solar additions totalled 2.6 GW throughout 2023. Scatec’s Kenhardt plants (which became operational towards the end of 2023) alone has added 540 MW of solar PV + 225 MW BESS capacity – providing 150 MW of dispatchable contracted capacity to the national grid.

SA is now predicted to be the 10^th largest solar PV market globally by the end of this year. Analysts forecast the nation to likely reach a cumulative capacity of about 36GW by 2030.

Sazi Ramoekipa, mechanical engineer and operations and maintenance manager at Scatec South Africa, is one of the individuals at the forefront of driving this transition to a greener future in the country.

Born and raised in South Africa, Ramoekipa’s journey in the renewable energy sector began in 2014 when he joined Scatec as a mechanical and quality control foreman at their Dreunberg plant.

Having demonstrated passion, talent and commitment, he was promoted to plant manager in 2015, and again when he assumed his current role as O&M manager in January 2022. In this role, Ramoekipa oversees a portfolio of PV plants, with a total capacity of 258MW.

“I am working in the renewable energy sector to improve our future,” Ramoekipa says, succinctly capturing his mission.

He believes that achieving this bold goal requires fostering a culture of high performance and continuous improvement. To that end, Ramoekipa and his team are implementing LEAN methodology into their O&M operations. LEAN is a problem-solving framework designed to achieve greater value creation while minimising resources used, as well as waste outputs.

“We aim to set the trend in O&M and ultimately scale it across the greater organisation. It’s all about continuous improvement, commitment, and consistency,” Ramoekipa explains.

“Although our solar PV market is accelerating, there are still major challenges that the industry and society must overcome. These include ensuring sufficient grid capacity to absorb the additional solar-generated capacity; equitable regulatory frameworks, and the need for more investment from both local and international levels,” he adds.

“Prepare yourself to seize any opportunity that might arise for you and continually improve yourself. No matter how difficult things may be, never give up on your dreams,” he says.

As South Africa stands on the brink of a solar-powered future, men and women like Ramoekipa are proving indispensable in steering the country towards its ambitious energy transition goals, as well as mentoring the next generation of renewable energy professionals.