dordabis base station for motorola - namibia

A cost effective power method for a remote telecoms base station in South Africa.

The Challenge

Motorola required an alternative solution to using costly diesel generators to power a telecoms base station in Namibia.

The base station provides phone power to Dordabis Village which has a population of over 1,500. The base station is situated almost 30 km from the town and grid connect power would involve costs of $8,000 per km. Motorola required a reliable, cost effective power source that could provide continuous power to the telecom base station.

The Solution

Due to a successful pilot project for Motorola UK, the Proven 11 wind turbine system for battery charging and an array of Solar PV panels were chosen. The coastal location in Africa provides intense sunshine during the day, and high winds at night giving ideal conditions for a solar/wind hybrid solution and with the Proven 11 life expectancy being over 20 years, it is an extremely cost effective means of generating electricity. Excess power generated from the wind turbine is stored in a battery bank as back up which means continuous power for the base station. The base station would serve about 1,500 people living in the village of Dorbadis in Namibia as well as farming communities about 30km away.

The Benefit

The Proven 11 can handle intense heat and is therefore ideally suited to the climate in Africa. The turbine also has no cut out in high winds so can produce up to 12000kWh of electricity annually. The solar panels coupled with the high output of the Proven 11 and the battery storage system guarantees that the site will never lose power ensuring complete peace of mind. The hybrid system eradicates the need for costly grid connect or a polluting and expensive diesel generator. The site only requires annual servicing meaning very low maintenance is required.