New hotel in South Africa leads the way in solar energy

With the recent increases in electricity prices in South Africa, the country has been paying more and more attention to the implementation of solar energy in homes and workplaces. A new luxury hotel that has just opened in Johannesburg has set the standard for the hotel industry and implemented extensive measures to make use of solar panel energy in its hotel.

The hotel in the spotlight is the DaVinci Hotel which is opening in the upmarket area of ​​Nelson Mandela Square in Sandton, Johannesburg. Legacy Hotel Group, owner of the luxury hotel, worked in partnership with Kayema ​​Energy and numerous international solar energy experts to design the substantially large and complicated solar water heating system.

The solar powered water heating system consists of 117 massive flat solar panel collectors that will generate enough hot water to supply 138 rooms with hot water. The solar-powered hot water system, which has the capacity to heat 30,000 liters of water, will result in a 60% reduced energy bill for the hotel and substantially decrease the hotel’s carbon footprint.

The solar energy system is not the only green initiative that the hotel has implemented. Other initiatives include a system that completely cuts off electricity to a room that is not occupied at any time, the use of LED lighting throughout the hotel, water-saving shower heads, and the use of non-hazardous building materials. The hotel’s main restaurant, called Maximillien, is also designed and built with energy and the environment in mind. The restaurant floor is made of bamdoo, the cleaning materials in the kitchen are non-toxic and environmentally friendly, and all other construction materials used in household appliances, etc. They are made of harmless eco-friendly materials.

Congratulations must go to the Legacy Hotel Group and everyone else who was involved in building this solar powered hotel. May many more homes, commercial properties and hotels follow in his footsteps! Hopefully, the South African government will also jump on the bandwagon and start giving appropriate rewards to people and places that make use of solar energy.