Industry
Industries on the path to sustainability
Renewable Energy Implementation in Cabo Verde’s Industrial Sector: Addressing High Energy Costs
The shift to renewable energy in the industrial and commercial (C&I) sector is not only an environmental imperative but a crucial economic necessity, primarily driven by the extremely high cost of electricity.
Industrial Diversification in Cabo Verde: Beyond Tourism
Cabo Verde’s economy is heavily service-oriented, with tourism, commerce, and public services accounting for the largest share of the GDP (around 70%). However, robust industrial sectors are essential for economic diversification, resilience, and reducing dependency on imports. The primary industrial activities that complement the service economy are the Blue Economy (Fisheries) and the Construction Sector.
Energy Costs in Cabo Verde’s Fish Processing Industry: The Cooling Challenge
The fish processing and canning industry in Cabo Verde is a strategic sector for the national economy and a leading source of export revenue. However, it is severely impacted by high energy costs, largely driven by the essential requirement for extensive refrigeration and cold chain management.
High Energy Share: A significant proportion of the total operational expenditure for fish processing plants, particularly those handling freezing and long-term storage, is attributed to energy costs. This is primarily due to the continuous, high-power demand required to maintain industrial-scale refrigeration and blast freezing units.
Mitigation through Renewables: This high energy burden is the primary economic incentive driving the industry toward renewable energy solutions. By installing large-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) systems and battery energy storage (BESS), processing facilities can secure reliable, cheaper power for their refrigeration units, thus reducing the high share of energy costs in their overall production expenses and improving competitiveness.
Even without integrating costly battery energy storage systems (BESS), solar photovoltaic (PV) installations designed for direct self-consumption during daylight hours offer massive economic advantages:
- Significant Cost Reduction: Systems operating without storage can achieve savings of up to 50% on the commercial electricity bill. This is realized by generating free solar power precisely when industrial operations (e.g., machinery, lighting, cooling in fish processing) have their peak demand.
- Rapid Return on Investment (ROI): Due to the country’s high electricity prices (typically over 0.30€ per kWh), the savings generated are substantial enough to ensure that these solar PV systems achieve their Return on Investment (ROI) in the shortest possible time, often within just a few years.
- Focus on Immediate Needs: This model focuses on replacing the most expensive grid energy consumption during the day, offering a fast, low-risk entry point for businesses to decarbonize their operations and secure long-term price stability.
Reducing Carbon Footprint through Energy Savings
Switching to solar photovoltaic (PV) systems in Cabo Verde’s industrial sector—especially in energy-intensive areas like fish processing and manufacturing—directly contributes to a substantial reduction in the country’s carbon footprint.
- Displacing HFO/Diesel: The majority of grid electricity in Cabo Verde is generated using imported Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) and diesel generators. By installing on-site solar, businesses are directly displacing demand for this grid power, thereby reducing the amount of fossil fuels burned by the central power plants.
- Lowering Emissions: HFO and diesel are high-carbon fuels. Each kilowatt-hour (kWh) of electricity generated by solar PV and consumed directly by a company means one less kWh produced by burning these fuels, resulting in a direct and measurable decrease in CO_2 emissions and other pollutants.
Optimal System Integration for Existing Industrial Plants
Our core expertise lies in designing and implementing customized renewable energy solutions—primarily solar photovoltaic (PV) and storage—that ensure optimal integration with a client’s existing industrial infrastructure. This includes:
- Seamless Operation: Ensuring the new renewable system works in perfect harmony with existing machinery, refrigeration units, power grids, and internal electric systems without requiring costly or disruptive overhauls.
- Maximizing Self-Consumption: Developing an intelligent energy management strategy to maximize the direct use of solar power, which ensures the best possible financial return on investment (ROI) for the facility.
- Space Utilization: Optimizing system layout on limited available space (such as rooftops or unused ground plots) common to island industrial sites.