Solar thermal technologies: clean fit for food and beverage industries

This report by WWF South Africa examines the business case for adopting solar thermal technologies in the South African food and beverage industries to replace non-renewable heat sources. It highlights the potential for significant greenhouse gas reductions, job creation in manufacturing and installation, and financial viability for most fuel replacements other than coal.

• In South Africa's agri-processing sector, heating processes account for up to 77% of energy use, with most energy derived from non-renewable sources. Solar thermal technology is considered ideal for this sector because approximately 60% of the heat required for processes like cooking, sterilisation, and cleaning must be below 250 ±C.
• The potential market for solar thermal technology in South Africa includes more than 5,000 SARS registered food and beverage firms with annual taxable earnings exceeding R10 billion. The report identifies a significant industrialisation opportunity to develop local manufacturing, installation, and maintenance industries if the technology is scaled.
• Adopting solar thermal technologies could lead to substantial greenhouse gas mitigation. Replacing all heat process fuels other than coal could reduce emissions by 158,685 tonnes of CO2e per annum, while replacing coal as well could result in a reduction of 942,556 tonnes of CO2e per annum.
• Solar thermal applications are financially viable for most fuel replacements except coal, with an Internal Rate of Return (IRR) above 10% over a 20-year period assuming a 6% annual fuel price increase. Payback periods are approximately five years for LPG, petrol, and diesel, though longer for other fuels.
• The South African solar thermal industry is currently dominated by domestic single-family water heaters, with very low penetration in the industrial sector; only three of 125 large solar thermal systems are in the food and beverage industry. Local manufacturers are not operating at full capacity due to a lack of consistent demand.
• Several barriers hinder the uptake of industrial solar thermal technology in South Africa, including a skills gap for water design engineers, high initial capital costs compared to Europe (EURO603/m2 vs EURO400/m2), a lack of local component certification, and limited familiarity with the technology among financial institutions.

APA

Rivett-Carnac, K., & Scholtz, L. (2018). Solar thermal technologies: clean fit for food and beverage industries. WWF South Africa. http://awsassets.wwf.org.za/downloads/wwf_2018_solar_thermal_technologies_clean_fit_for_food_and_bev_industries.pdf

Chicago

Rivett-Carnac, Kate, and Louise Scholtz. Solar thermal technologies: clean fit for food and beverage industries. WWF South Africa, 2018. http://awsassets.wwf.org.za/downloads/wwf_2018_solar_thermal_technologies_clean_fit_for_food_and_bev_industries.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Rivett-Carnac |first1=Kate |last2=Scholtz |first2=Louise |title=Solar thermal technologies: clean fit for food and beverage industries |publisher=WWF South Africa |date=2018 |url=http://awsassets.wwf.org.za/downloads/wwf_2018_solar_thermal_technologies_clean_fit_for_food_and_bev_industries.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{rivettcarnac2018solar, author = {Rivett-Carnac, Kate and Scholtz, Louise}, title = {{Solar thermal technologies: clean fit for food and beverage industries}}, institution = {WWF South Africa}, year = {2018}, url = {http://awsassets.wwf.org.za/downloads/wwf_2018_solar_thermal_technologies_clean_fit_for_food_and_bev_industries.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }