Energy management + energy efficiency
Dane Links, Head of Operations & Maintenance and Hanno Mostert, Chief Asset Management Officer at Sustainable Power Solutions (SPS), suggest that South Africa’s clean energy sector is entering a new phase. The focus is shifting from installing new capacity to how consistently these assets perform. Expert O&M in embedded energy generation Wayne Cowie, CEO at EXSA
These assets operate under challenging conditions such as temperature extremes, exposure to dust, storms and fluctuations in grid quality. Each of these variables affects performance and raises the probability of inefficiencies. Traditional, schedule-based maintenance can no longer keep pace. Intermittent site visits may identify visible issues, but they do not detect gradual efficiency loss or emerging faults that occur between inspections. Over time, such undetected issues accumulate and erode output, reducing financial returns and weakening operational resilience. Modern O&M models address this by combining continuous system visibility with timely intervention, ensuring that distributed generation remains stable even under variable conditions. Using data-driven intelligence O&M has expanded from reactive repairs to a technical discipline driven by real-time intelligence. Connected sensors and asset management platforms provide continuous insight across multiple sites, monitoring generation levels, storage behaviour, inverter efficiency and environmental conditions. Early warnings identify potentially problematic issues before they affect performance. Predictive analytics strengthen this capability by identifying patterns that indicate future failure risks, such as rising temperatures in storage units or gradual dips in electrical performance. Various technologies can be used to support this proactive approach. Drones, for example, improve inspection accuracy, robotic cleaning systems keep panels performing well in dusty regions, and infrared imaging highlights hotspots that signal
Dane Links and Hanno Mostert, SPS.
A s more companies depend on embedded generation to stabilise operations and manage electricity costs, day-to-day performance has become one of the most critical factors influencing business continuity. This shift places Operations and Maintenance (O&M) at the centre of long-term energy efficiency, reliability and financial returns. Why O&M matters O&M is the specialised discipline that ensures power plants operate as intended throughout their lifespan. It covers technical oversight, continuous monitoring, preventive maintenance, fault detection and on-site interventions. In practice, it serves to keep energy infrastructure and operations delivering at designed performance levels. Although many organisations have internal engineering or facilities teams, few have the expertise needed to manage today’s distributed generation plants. Modern installations often combine several technologies that must work together seamlessly and dynamically. This makes performance management more complex than general maintenance.
It requires dedicated skills to ensure small deviations are noticed, operational decisions are proactive and performance is maintained optimally. This is why more businesses are choosing to treat O&M as a specialist function rather than an internal add-on. The increasing complexity of energy systems requires focused attention and that technical capability may be difficult to maintain in-house. Complex energy operations What were once relatively simple photovoltaic arrays have evolved into integrated power systems that may include energy storage, wind inputs, generators and sophisticated control software.
O&M is a specialised discipline that ensures power plants operate at designed performance levels throughout their lifespan.
16 Electricity + Control APRIL 2026
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