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SPARKS
ELECTRICAL NEWS
AUGUST 2017
23
LIGHTING
SOLAR STREET
LIGHTS
ILLUMINATE
BUJUMBURA
NEW POST TOP IDEAL
FOR OUTDOOR APPLICATIONS
T
he MODRA Post Top from Regent Lighting
is designed to operate a range of LEDs up to
48 W. The fitting, which weighs a total of 6.5 kg
including control gear, can be post mounted or wall
mounted using a uniquely designed rotor bracket
that enables adjustment of 180° on the horizontal
plane. The LED (a 4000 K natural white LED with a CRI
>70 is recommended) is an Osram high powered LED
mounted onto an aluminium circuit board incorporating
Zener diodes and thermal protection providing an
asymmetrical distribution. It is designed to operate for
55 000 hours at an ambient temperature of 36 °C.
The electronic power supply is suitable for operation
at 220 - 240 V, 50 H single phase. It incorporates an
electronic trip connector protector with surge protection
of 6 kV, with an additional removable inline surge
arrester of 10 kV. All external screws are stainless steel
and the cable glands are SABS approved to insulate
IP67 ingress protection. The gaskets are manufactured
from post cured silicone rubber material – silicone
gaskets perform in a wide temperature range of -40 °C
to +200 °C. The gear compartment has an ingress
protection rating of IP65.
The MODRA is particularly suited to outdoor
applications including parking areas, parks and
gardens, residential areas, squares and plazas.
Enquiries: +27 (0)11 474 0213
D
owntown Bujumbura just got a little brighter,
owing to an innovative partnership between
Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa and Gigawatt Glob-
al, a multinational renewable energy company and a
founding member of United States Power Africa’s Be-
yond the Grid programme. This week, solar-powered
‘light islands’ began appearing in the heavily-trafficked
central bus station and nearby marketplace, extending
commercial hours and personal safety.
“The city of Bujumbura is pleased to be working
with Gigawatt Global on this important solar street
lighting project,” said Mbonimpa. “It will enhance se-
curity and provide opportunities for economic devel-
opment to the citizens of Bujumbura.”
Gigawatt Global is now in discussions to scale the
solar-powered ‘light islands’ programme throughout
the city and in other major Burundian towns. “We are
grateful and pleased to work with the city of Bujum-
bura, and the Honourable Mayor Freddy Mbonimpa
to realise this important first step of the solar street
lighting project,” said Michael Fichtenberg, managing
director of Gigawatt Global Burundi. “We intend to
expand throughout the capital and to other locations
as part of our larger programme of green electrifica-
tion in Burundi, with 40 ‘light islands’ planned in the
first phase of the programme. Every country in which
we develop commercial scale solar fields will receive
additional benefits like these ‘light islands’ and rural
electrification with mini-grids.”
Gigawatt Global, which provides 100% financing
for its projects, pioneered commercial scale solar
power plants in sub-Sahara Africa, launching the first
one in Rwanda in 2014, which is currently supplying
6% of the country’s generation capacity. The com-
pany will complete a 7.5 MW solar field in the Gitega
region of Burundi in the next six months, which will
supply 15% of the East African country’s generation
capacity. Similar projects are currently being devel-
oped in 10 African countries, including Liberia and
South Sudan.
“Over 95% of Burundi’s 11 million people lack ac-
cess to electricity,” says Josef Abramowitz, CEO of Gi-
gawatt Global. “By expanding our investments from
commercial scale projects to include off-grid instal-
lations, we are positively impacting the lives of mil-
lions of people throughout Africa, and are becoming
a leading force in green energy projects across the
continent.”
The ‘light islands’ project in Bujumbura is produced
by a team that includes local members Patrick Nz-
intunga, Gigawatt Global Regional Coordinator, and
Deo Hugere, Gigawatt Global Engineer. The engineer-
ing, procurement, and construction components of
this project are being carried out by Asantys System.
The pilot programme is supported by the Energy &
Environmental Partnership (EEP), an initiative of the
governments of the United Kingdom, Austria and
Finland, and with an impact investment from entre-
preneur Alex Goldberg.
As part of Gigawatt Global’s commitment to
additional Corporate Social Responsibility, one of its
investors, Mark Gelfand, funded and built the STEM
Centre (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math)
at the
Université Polytechnique de Gitega.
Enquiries: +972 54 976 0092