Solarcentury Africa said on Tuesday that its 19.3 megawatt-peak (MWp) Gerus solar photovoltaic plant in Namibia has reached commercial operation, marking a milestone for market-driven renewable energy in Southern Africa.
The Gerus plant becomes the first merchant solar facility in Namibia to sell electricity into the Southern African Power Pool (SAPP), and only the second purpose-built merchant solar plant in Africa to trade on the regional market.
The project follows Solarcentury Africa’s 25 MWp Mailo solar plant in Zambia, which began commercial operations in July 2025, with a 34 MWp expansion at Mailo under construction and expected online in the second quarter of 2026.
Developed with Sino Energy (Pty) Limited and completed after a 12-month construction schedule, Gerus is wholly owned by Solarcentury Africa and financed by BB Energy, its parent company.
Electricity from the plant will be traded through Solarcentury Trading, a registered SAPP member, reinforcing the group’s strategy of trading-led power generation.
The project created up to 275 construction jobs, with more than 98% filled by Namibians, alongside training and skills transfer initiatives.
Gerus is expected to generate about 50.8 gigawatt-hours of electricity annually, enough to power more than 14,000 homes.
The plant will cut an estimated 17,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions each year, equivalent to the carbon absorption of around one million trees.
The project attracted about $20 million in international funding, representing the largest UK investment in Namibia’s clean energy sector to date.
Solarcentury Africa said it aims to develop more than 320 MWp of fully merchant solar capacity by 2027 to help address regional power shortages and accelerate the transition to sustainable energy.