Sun TV: SolarWorld to Fund Youth Soccer Center in South Africa Project for Public Viewing, Education and Integration
SolarWorld AG is supporting the construction of a youth soccer center in South Africa equipping it with a Sun TV station free of charge. This will enable the young kickers of Gaansbai some 160 kilometers to the south-east of Cape Town to gain access to television transmissions and to modern media information. With the installation of a large number of Sun TV stations in the run-up to the 2010 Soccer World Cup SolarWorld AG wants to give people in South Africa the opportunity to follow the World Cup in their own country by way of Public Viewing. Because of the high ticket prices and the long distances many South Africans would otherwise hardly be able to see any of the matches live. The main locations of SolarWorld Sun TV´s will be rural regions without any regular energy supply as well as suburban areas with a high population density. The stations to be sponsored and installed by SolarWorld will in addition to the solar modules, batteries and charging devices for the power supply be equipped with a DVD player and a television set with satellite receiver. In addition to the Public Viewing designed to promote a community spirit in Gaansbai the media offered will mainly focus on education, social integration and environmental awareness.
The "Dibanisa“ project handled by local organizers and supported by a national Spanish soccer player is aiming at building a small size soccer pitch with an adjacent teaching facility in which the Sun TV station will be installed. The SolarWorld solar modules for the power supply will be working on the roof. The facility is located on the border of three townships in which people of black, white and mixed race live largely separate from each other. The project sets out to promote understanding and integration between these communities.
Presentation in the context of the Confederations Cup 2009
"Soccer makes the frontiers between people disappear. That is what we want to contribute to with Sun TV in soccer-crazy South Africa”, says Gregor Küpper, head of the SolarWorld subsidiary SolarWorld Africa (Pty.) Ltd., on the occasion of the presentation of the "Dibanisa“ project within the framework of the Confederations Cup 2009. "Every bit as important, however, is access to educational channels so as to improve the development opportunities of young people. This holds true in South Africa as much as anywhere else in the world”. In addition, the climate-friendly power supply of the Sun TV station is designed to make the children and young people in Gaansbai aware of the necessities and opportunities of climate protection.
Solar2World: Solar technology ideal for sustainable energy supply in Africa
The SolarWorld modules make the operation of Sun TV stations as well as of any other electronic appliances possible independently of a central power grid. Solar technology is the ideal source to give people who are far away from a central power supply access to energy, for example for lighting, refrigeration or the operation of machinery. At the same time the use of solar energy renders environmentally damaging energies superfluous. It is this potential of solar power technology for poorer regions of the world that the solar technology group wants to highlight with its ethically motivated "Solar2World“ projects.
About SolarWorld AG
The SolarWorld AG group of companies (ISIN: DE0005108401) is a world leader in providing high quality solar power technology. The company which is exclusively dedicated to its core business of photovoltaic technology is represented at all the stages of the solar value chain combining industrial activities ranging from the raw material of silicon to turn-key solar power plants and recycling. SolarWorld AG is represented in all solar growth markets of the world with production facilities mainly in Germany and the USA – with the major sites located in Freiberg/Saxony and in Hillsboro/USA. The group headquarters are located in Bonn/Germany. Worldwide sales of the solar modules are secured by our five sales offices in Germany, Spain, USA, South Africa and Singapore. The central element of the business in addition to the sale of turn-key solar plants and solar modules to the specialist trade is the distribution of solar silicon wafers to the international solar cell industry. In addition to grid-coupled (on-grid) products the SolarWorld Group also distributes grid-independent (off-grid) solar power solutions. Under the name Solar2World the group lives up to its ethical commitment to a fair development also in threshold and developing countries. In this context mainly off-grid solar power solutions are funded that are perfect examples for sustainable economic development.
Sustainability is an integral part of the SolarWorld AG corporate strategy. Corporate management feels committed to sustainable ecologically, economically and socially acceptable growth. SolarWorld AG employs some 2,500 people worldwide. The company is quoted at the stock market including listings in the technology index TecDAX, the ÖkoDAX, the Dow Jones STOXX 600, the international MSCI Index as well as the sustainability indices DAXglobal Alternative Energy and NAI.
Source: SolarWorld
