Southern African Solar Thermal Training and Demonstration Initiative, Phase III (SOLTRAIN III)

Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe

OPEC FUND extended grant in the amount of US$600,000 to ADA in support of SOLTRAIN III. The SOLTRAIN Initiative is a regional initiative for capacity building and demonstration of solar thermal systems in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region. It is funded by the Austrian Development Agency ADA) and OPEC Fund for International Development (OPEC FUND). The activities of the project included policy workshops, development of national solar thermal roadmaps and installation of solar thermal demonstration systems and will target 750 participants to improve their skills concerning design, installation, commissioning and maintenance of solar thermal systems. Additionally the demonstration systems helped in reducing energy bills and improving the hygienic standard of approximately 7,000 beneficiaries. The following are the key results delivered through SOLTRAIN Phase III: • 1,088 people trained in 35 courses on solar thermal energy. • 139 solar thermal demonstration systems with a total area of 2,600 m2 installed. • 684 tons of CO2 emissions avoided annually. • 2,177 MWh annual energy savings. • 6 thermal roadmaps formulated in beneficiary countries. • 13 newsletters forwarded to almost 1,000 stakeholders. • 58 trade fairs attended by partners. • 3 SOLTRAIN conferences successfully held.