Two new generators have recently been installed near a group of Stellenbosch University (SU) residences and will provide electricity to these residences during loadshedding. This is according to Nadeem Gafieldien, director of property services at SU facilities management. The generators were installed between Simonsberg and Helshoogte, which forms part of the so-called Wimbledon cluster, he said.
“This is part of [SU’s] master planning to ensure security of electricity supply during loadshedding,” said Gafieldien. The generators service buildings within the Wimbledon cluster, and also several surrounding buildings such as men’s residences, Huis Marais and Huis Visser, and postgraduate residences such as Russel Botman House, according to Gafieldien.
The newly-installed generators, located between Stellenbosch University (SU) residences Helshoogte and Simonsberg, will power residences and buildings in the Wimbledon cluster during loadshedding, according to director of property services at SU, Nadeem Gafieldien. PHOTO: Marthinus Botes
A solution years in the works
“Conversations about the generator project and inverters have been going for nearly two years now,” said Nikolas Germishuysen, vice-primarius of SU men’s residence Eendrag, one of the residences that will be powered by the generators. Germishuysen served as Eendrag’s financial manager in 2023.
According to Germishuysen, the university informed residence leadership of a scheduled six hour power outage on 21 March in order to test the generators. “[The testing of the generators] is probably the first tangible thing that I’ve seen with regards to this project, so it’s nice to see that it’s coming to realisation,” he said.
Two generators recently installed between Stellenbosch University residences Helshoogte and Simonsberg are expected to be operational by 22 March. This is according to Jean Pierre Jordaan, an electrician at Bloemhof Electrical who has been working on the generators. PHOTO: Marthinus Botes
“Many of the university study centres that have access to generators, such as the library and the Jan Mouton building, become packed with students during loadshedding,” said Mikaela van Otterlo, primaria of the women’s residence Sonop. “I think that [the university] has identified a problem, and they’ve tried to deal with it,” she said.
The future of campus power
SU intends to expand generator power to much of its campus in the future, said Gafieldien. “The next buildings that will benefit from generators being installed will include Harmonie, Wilgenhof, the Victoria hub, Botanical Gardens, the museum and the Lombardi building,” he said. These expansions, he says, are planned for the second half of 2024.
Two newly-installed generators will provide electricity to residences and facilities in and around Stellenbosch University’s (SU) Wimbledon cluster, according to Nadeem Gafieldien, director of property services at SU facilities management. PHOTO: Marthinus Botes