Water is life. This is especially true on a farm where crops need to be irrigated. One bad crop can mean the downfall of an entire farm and its people. Unpredictable conditions like unreliable power sources, put a strain on both the farmer and the corporation.

This is where SAW Africa enters the scene. They help farmers to put up solar systems, allowing them to be completely off-grid.

Hannes van Niekerk, CEO of SAW Africa, explains why what they do at SAW Africa is so important to farmers here in our country: “In South Africa we are facing a grid that is not very stable. It has quite a big impact on irrigation time. It is important to be in control.”

Furthermore, they offer the opportunity for you to have more money in the long run. “There is a huge cost saving if you generate your own energy. As you are utilising it over time, it pays for itself.”

SAW Africa builds and manufactures solar systems. They partner with farmers for life, as they do the maintenance of the solar systems for as long as its lifespan.

“We have quite a big geographical footprint, with offices in Cape Town, Kimberley, Johannesburg, George, Durban, Kitwe and Harare,” which means that they have help ready the moment you need them.

Hannes explains how one of their products, the floating pump station, works. In this system, the pump is fitted to the float, and the solar panels are mounted directly above it. “So, there is no other power source and it pumps about 100 000 litres of water per hour.” These kinds of systems offer the farmer freedom from concerns and stresses about his irrigation.

“It is a unit that can work completely on its own and you do not have any utility power. Basically, it enables people to irrigate where there is no utility power available.”

Contact information

For your own solar system, visit www.sawafrica.co.za or call (+27)83-264-1272.