MTN South Africa has issued requests for information (RFIs) for the supply of renewable onsite and offsite renewable energy solutions to power its data centres and base stations.

At the same time, the mobile telecommunications operator has signed its first power-purchase agreement with a renewable energy producer, with its first renewable power project to be launched “soon”.

The company, which said it wants to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2040, will soon begin work on a “solar park” at its head office in Fairland, Johannesburg.

“MTN’s hybrid energy RFI calls for applicants to deliver innovative solutions across solar, wind, hydro and any alternative innovative solution that ensure there are no emissions associated with the generation of the energy,” the firm said. The RFI also calls for “wheeling” solutions, which will see energy supplied over the national grid from electricity production facilities elsewhere in South Africa.

“Our aim with these two RFIs is to gain an edge through renewable energy solutions across the MTN footprint. Given the various challenges in South Africa, solutions must be scalable and offer high availability and efficiency,” said MTN South Africa CEO Charles Molapisi in a statement on Monday.

“To play its role in driving sustainability and meeting net-zero emission goals, MTN South Africa is making strides in the roll-out of a four-phase green energy programme,” said the company in the statement.

Phase 1

“Planned initiatives include onsite renewable deployment and offsite renewable power purchase agreements as well as driving energy efficiencies at technical buildings, corporate buildings and technical infrastructure. This includes energy-efficient lighting replacement and the decommissioning and removal of legacy, high-energy and redundant hardware.”

Phase 1 involves turning the head office campus into a solar park, which will see 40% less dependency on grid electricity. After performing technical studies on the campus, the preferred solution will see solar PV panels being installed at the campus, with a battery energy storage system to store the sun’s energy.

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The closing date of the RFIs is 19 June. Interested parties are required to respond e-mailing [email protected] and the e-mail subject line should be “wheeling solution” or “onsite solution” depending on the supplier’s interest, MTN said. – © 2023 NewsCentral Media