Building resilience in the solar PV sector through quality assurance and skills development

This case study by GreenCape examines three initiatives in Cape Town and South Africa designed to build a resilient solar PV industry through quality assurance and skills development: the establishment of SARETEC, the creation of a national Solar PV Service Technician qualification, and the implementation of the PV GreenCard.

• The South African Renewable Energy Technology Centre (SARETEC), hosted at the Cape Peninsula University of Technology in Cape Town, is the first national renewable energy training centre in South Africa. It opened in July 2015 to provide accredited training, short courses, and workshops for the renewable energy industry.
• SARETEC was developed from an earlier 2010 initiative to create the South African Wind Energy Centre (SAWEC). The scope was expanded to include energy efficiency and other renewable technologies (solar and biomass/biogas) to meet the needs of the 2010 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) and the SA Renewable Energy Independent Power Producers Procurement Programme (REI4P). Construction funding of R105 million was secured in 2012 from the National Skills Fund via the Department of Higher Education and Training.
• A national accredited Solar PV Service Technician qualification was established to ensure the availability of a workforce with internationally recognised qualifications. This was driven by the needs of utility-scale solar power roll-outs under REI4P and the City of Cape Town's commitment to retrofit public buildings with solar PV and solar water heaters.
• The PV GreenCard is a voluntary national initiative led by the South African Photovoltaic Industry Association (SAPVIA) to promote safe and quality installations. It consists of an as-built report for owners and a checklist for installers. The assessment component was developed by SARETEC and GreenCape to help the City of Cape Town and banks vet installers for small-scale embedded generation (SSEG) connections.
• As of the report date, the PV GreenCard programme has expanded to Gauteng, with training and assessments occurring monthly. While 122 installers have completed the process and 53 companies are registered, only 10 approved PV GreenCard installations have been completed. The City of Cape Town endorses the card, but it is not a legal requirement.
• The case study identifies several lessons for building resilience: the importance of proactive timing for skills development, the use of small and agile partnerships, and the necessity of drawing on mature markets (specifically Germany) and past local experiences, such as the 2008 Solar Water Heating Programme.

APA

GreenCape (2019). Building resilience in the solar PV sector through quality assurance and skills development. https://greencape.co.za/assets/Energy-2_GreenCape_Resilience-Report_Interactive.pdf

Chicago

GreenCape. Building resilience in the solar PV sector through quality assurance and skills development. 2019. https://greencape.co.za/assets/Energy-2_GreenCape_Resilience-Report_Interactive.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=GreenCape |title=Building resilience in the solar PV sector through quality assurance and skills development |date=2019 |url=https://greencape.co.za/assets/Energy-2_GreenCape_Resilience-Report_Interactive.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{greencape2019building, author = {{GreenCape}}, title = {{Building resilience in the solar PV sector through quality assurance and skills development}}, institution = {GreenCape}, year = {2019}, url = {https://greencape.co.za/assets/Energy-2_GreenCape_Resilience-Report_Interactive.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }