By Eamonn Ryan

The challenge of loadshedding in South Africa has evolved from a temporary inconvenience into a defining constraint on how buildings, infrastructure and energy systems are designed. At the Solar & Storage Live Africa 2026, held at the Gallagher Convention Centre, a panel of industry experts unpacked how solar, storage and hybrid energy systems are being designed to withstand grid instability in the panel topic ‘Loadshedding proof: designing solar systems for energy security’.

The panel consisted of Nikash Rughubir of Ndalamo Resources; Sula Ntsaluba of Grenex; Matthew Whalley of Balwin Properties; and Lerato Ramushu of Ngwanalaka Group Holdings.

This is part one of a two-part series.

The panel. © RACA Journal

While the discussion focused primarily on solar PV and battery storage, the implications for HVAC&R are both immediate and profound. From load management and system efficiency to resilience planning and energy cost optimisation, the themes raised by the panel align directly with the future of building services engineering.

Efficiency first: the foundation of resilient design

A central message from the panel was that ‘resilience’ begins with reducing demand. Rather than designing systems that simply “ride through” loadshedding, Whalley argued that the first step is to minimise the need for load curtailment altogether. This is achieved through energy efficiency, load optimisation and intelligent control strategies before adding generation capacity.

For HVAC&R professionals, this principle is critical. Cooling and ventilation systems are typically among the largest electrical loads in buildings. Poorly optimised HVAC systems will:

  • Increase peak demand
  • Require larger (and more expensive) backup or storage systems
  • Reduce overall system resilience

Conversely, high-efficiency HVAC design – including variable speed drives, thermal storage, demand control ventilation and optimised setpoints – can dramatically reduce the size and cost of solar and battery systems required to support a building.

In essence, every kilowatt saved in HVAC is a kilowatt that does not need to be generated, stored or backed up.

Load management and smart energy control

The panel repeatedly emphasised the importance of smart energy management, particularly in residential and commercial environments.

This includes:

  • Prioritising essential versus non-essential loads
  • Scheduling energy-intensive processes
  • Using intelligent controls to balance demand

For HVAC systems, this translates into:

  • Load shedding readiness: defining which HVAC functions remain operational during outages (for example, critical cooling versus comfort cooling)
  • Staggered operation: avoiding simultaneous compressor or chiller start-ups
  • Integration with building management systems (BMS)

Ramushu highlighted a common issue: a single high-load appliance can collapse an entire backup system. In HVAC terms, this could be a poorly managed chiller, packaged unit or even resistance heating element overwhelming a battery system.

This reinforces the growing need for HVAC-aware energy management strategies, where cooling systems are not treated as passive loads but as controllable, optimisable assets.

Rughubir introduced a more industrial perspective, describing multi-layered hybrid systems designed for operational continuity in mining environments.

These systems combine:

  • Grid supply
  • Solar PV
  • Battery storage
  • Diesel generators

Critically, loads are categorised into tiers:

  • Critical loads (for example, ventilation, safety systems)
  • Essential operational loads
  • Non-essential loads

This hierarchy has direct parallels in HVAC&R:

  • Critical HVAC: ventilation in mines, hospitals or cleanrooms
  • Essential HVAC: process cooling, server rooms
  • Non-essential HVAC: comfort cooling in offices or retail spaces

Designing HVAC systems within this framework enables:

  • Selective backup sizing
  • Improved reliability
  • Reduced capital costs

In sectors like healthcare, data centres and industrial processing, this approach is already essential. However, the panel discussion suggests it is becoming increasingly relevant across all building types.

Environmental and operational challenges

The discussion also highlighted how local conditions affect system performance – an often underappreciated factor in HVAC design.

In Mpumalanga’s mining environment, for example:

  • Dust and particulate matter reduce solar panel efficiency
  • Weather variability impacts generation
  • Operational interruptions carry high safety and financial risks

For HVAC systems, similar environmental considerations apply:

  • Fouling of heat exchangers
  • Reduced airflow due to dust
  • Increased maintenance requirements

This reinforces the need for integrated design thinking, where HVAC, solar and storage systems are engineered together with site-specific conditions in mind.

 

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