In less than a month Woodridge College and Preparatory School will be in a position to reduce its carbon footprint by more than 500 tons per year as part of their Eco Smart initiative.
In a bid to have one of the lowest carbon footprints per educated child in the country, Woodridge launched Eco Smart in August, a programme designed to reduce its impact on the environment and reduce energy consumption costs by 30%.
The school has enlisted the services of solar specialists, Genergy, to design and install solar panels to several classrooms, the dining hall and two school halls, two residences, the library, the administrative building, and sanatorium.
Managed by a dedicated team under the direction of Woodridge alumnus, Ray Holmes, Eco Smart is being rolled out in phases with each focusing on one aspect of sustainability, namely energy generation, energy efficiency, water security and recycling.
Upon installation completion in June, the 1,121 PV panels, will generate up to 579.26 MWh and reduce its CO2 emissions by about 597 tons per annum.
Genergy Head of Engineering, Michael Stevens, said the solar PV system for Woodridge will have a capacity of 369.93kWp/337kVA, enough to power about 163 average South African households.
“Our brief was to create a system that reduced the amount of electricity the school pulls from the grid and thereby reduce its reliance on fossil-fuel-generated power,” Stevens said.
Being a grid-tied system, excess energy generated will be pushed back into the grid.
This means the school will be using the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality’s net-metering credit system, whereby any electricity fed into the grid can effectively be banked for later usage during the same time of use bracket it was generated in.
In time, Woodridge hopes to invest in a back-up system, which includes a bank of batteries to draw from during power outages.
Holmes said the aim was to become a leading eco-school in SA and a leading globally registered eco-school.
Speaking about the project funding, Holmes said many traditional banks were creating bespoke solutions to fund renewable energy projects, with Standard Bank being one of them, as the funder of the Woodridge solar installation.
“About 90% of the panels will be in commission by the end of May. Once all the panels are in use, we anticipate a 30% reduction in energy consumption costs. Building into the equation the expected price increase of electricity, the school intends to pay off the initial financial outlay in seven to eight years,” he said.
Apart from enhancing the energy security of the school and its long-term sustainability goals, the system could, over its 20-year lifespan save 10,935 metric tons of carbon emissions, 15,394Kl of water and the planting of 29,727 trees.
Headmaster of Woodridge College, Derek Bradley, said their approach allowed the school to lead by example and assist in alleviating the strain on the municipal grid.
“It is an honour for Woodridge College & Preparatory School to be among a handful of schools in SA, which are at the forefront of renewable energy in education,” Bradley said.