Zaheer Khan, Head of Sales for Southern Africa at Trinasolar, is a seasoned energy professional with extensive experience in the electricity sector and a strong passion for innovation and continuous learning. He began his career as an engineer in the control systems and software development fields before joining Eskom, where he served as Head of Integrated Strategic Electricity Planning. In that role, he was responsible for new generation capacity planning and optimisation, as well as demand-side management and energy-efficiency programmes.
Inspired by the growth potential of the solar photovoltaic (PV) industry, Khan later founded a company focused on clean energy consulting, engineering design, and the development of solar PV projects. Today, he leads a team of professionals at Trinasolar, a global leader in solar PV manufacturing and integrated smart energy solutions.
Speaking with Oke Peter on the sidelines of the just-concluded Africa Energy Forum (AEF) 2026 in Cape Town, South Africa, Khan shared his insights on Africa’s energy transition, the growing role of battery energy storage, and the opportunities and challenges shaping the continent’s renewable energy future.
What makes the new Vertex N G3 and Vertex S+ G3 modules a game changer for utility-scale and C&I solar projects in Africa?
The G3 range represents the most significant advancement in Trinasolar’s module portfolio to date. Powered by our patented n-type i-TOPCon Ultra technology, the Vertex N G3 760W is Trinasolar’s flagship module, delivering a maximum power output of 760W and efficiency of up to 24.5%.
*Zaheer Khan, Head of Sales, Southern Africa | Trinasolar
Within the Vertex N G3 range, a tracker-optimised variant delivers up to 670W and 24.8% efficiency, specifically designed to maximise string power and reduce system costs for large-scale deployments using 1P tracker systems. Completing the G3 lineup, the Vertex S+ G3 brings the same next-generation technology to commercial, industrial, and residential applications, delivering up to 485W and 24.3% efficiency, backed by a 30-year power guarantee. What makes this a genuine step change for Africa is not just the headline specifications—it is the engineering behind them. Both modules are certified for resistance to extreme heat, salt, sand, dust, humidity, and coastal environments. Low degradation rates and a strong temperature coefficient ensure long-term performance in Africa’s demanding climate, where reliability directly affects project economics. Higher power density allows developers to generate more electricity from the same land footprint, lowering balance-of-system (BOS) costs and reducing the levelised cost of electricity (LCOE). Together, the G3 range provides developers and commercial users with technology that is built for African conditions, rather than merely adapted to them.
How are integrated solar, storage and tracking solutions helping to improve energy reliability and drive industrial growth across Africa?
Africa Energy Forum 2026 is themed “Building Africa’s Industrialised Future,” and that theme reflects a real shift in how the continent is approaching energy development. Africa is no longer focused solely on adding generation capacity; it is building the energy infrastructure needed to support industries, mines, data centres, manufacturing facilities, and rapidly growing cities. That requires power that is reliable, continuous, and cost-competitive—not merely available. Integrated solar, storage, and tracking solutions are increasingly capable of delivering exactly that. High-efficiency modules provide competitive generation, while intelligent tracking systems such as the TrinaTracker Vanguard 1P Terrain+ maximise energy yield across complex terrain, reducing civil engineering costs and improving project economics. On the storage side, Trina Storage’s Elementa and Electra provide a fully integrated solution covering both the DC and AC sides of the system, enabling intelligent grid interaction and extending solar’s value beyond daylight hours to support evening demand and grid stability. When these three elements work together as a single system, developers and industrial users benefit from a more optimised, easier-to-manage, and more resilient energy solution—precisely what Africa’s next phase of industrial growth requires.
What role will battery energy storage play in accelerating Africa’s energy transition over the next five years?
Battery energy storage will be one of the defining technologies of Africa’s energy transition over the next five years. Its role is not just to store electricity — it is to make renewable energy dependable enough to replace fossil fuel generation at scale. Across Africa, grid instability and supply gaps remain among the biggest constraints on industrial development and economic growth. Storage addresses both by firming renewable generation, shifting supply to match demand, and providing the grid stability that utility-scale solar alone cannot guarantee. As project sizes increase and industrial energy demand grows, the economics of storage are also improving rapidly. Trina Storage’s Elementa 3 platform — featuring a 6.25MWh capacity, 587Ah battery cells, and a 120-minute fire resistance rating — is engineered specifically for the safety, reliability, and performance standards that large-scale African projects demand. Over the next five years, we expect storage to move from a supplementary technology to a core component of virtually every major energy project on the continent.
Which Trinasolar projects in Africa and the MEA region best demonstrate the impact of large-scale solar deployment?
Our project record across Africa and the MEA region reflects both the scale of our commitment and the depth of our delivery capability. In South Africa, where we hold the number one market share position, our portfolio includes the 506MW Khauta Solar Project and the Mulilo project portfolio — comprising the 382MW Beaufort West project, the 338MW Middlepunt project, and the 220MW Orkney Solar Project — totalling approximately 940MW of solar capacity, with a pipeline exceeding 2GW.
In Egypt, the Abydos project stands out as a regional milestone. Trina Storage supplied its Elementa system for the 300MWh BESS project, delivered as part of AMEA Power’s 500MW solar PV plant in Aswan — the country’s first integrated utility-scale solar and storage facility. The project went from installation to grid connection in just 60 days, demonstrating that large-scale integrated energy projects can be executed at speed without compromising on quality or bankability.
What are the biggest barriers to scaling solar and storage projects in Africa, and how can they be addressed?
The barriers are well understood and they are addressable: First is technical complexity at the storage layer. Large-scale battery storage projects in remote or harsh environments face real engineering demands — safety, thermal management, and system integration all need to be solved at scale, not just on paper. This is where Trinasolar's own technology is directly relevant. Our Elementa 3 platform is engineered with a 120-minute fire resistance rating and six-fold electrical protection, addressing the safety concerns that often slow down storage adoption in industrial and utility-scale projects. And our Cell-to-AC integration, through Elementa and Electra, simplifies what would otherwise be a complex, multi-vendor system into a single, pre-engineered solution — reducing both project risk and the technical expertise required on-site. Addressing this barrier is as much about the right technology partner as it is about policy or capital.
The second is financing. Capital costs for solar and storage projects in Africa are 3 to 7 times higher than in developed markets, driven by perceived risk rather than technology cost. Clean energy investment in Africa doubled to $40 billion in 2024, yet the continent still accounts for just 3% of global energy investment — far short of the $200 billion per year needed to achieve energy access and climate goals. Closing that gap requires stronger PPA frameworks, continued DFI engagement, and innovative financing mechanisms that reduce the risk premium and mobilise private capital at scale.
The Third is grid infrastructure. Africa’s total solar potential is vast, but when limited to areas within 10km of existing transmission lines, accessible solar capacity drops to 69,895 GW — and current installed capacity represents less than 0.04% of even that constrained figure. Grid absence, not solar resource scarcity, is the binding constraint on deployment in many markets. Coordinated public investment in transmission and grid expansion, running alongside private project development, is essential to unlock the pipeline that already exists.
How are Trinasolar’s solutions helping governments and businesses achieve their net-zero targets?
Achieving net-zero targets requires more than ambition — it requires technology that is bankable, proven, and capable of delivering at scale. That is where Trinasolar’s role is most significant. As a manufacturer rated 100% bankable in BNEF’s annual survey eight times, Trinasolar gives governments, developers, and financiers the confidence to commit to large-scale clean energy projects. Bankability is not a credential — it is a prerequisite for the financing structures that make net-zero projects viable. On the innovation side, Trinasolar’s continuous R&D investment is directly translating into better project economics for clean energy. In H1 2025 alone, we invested USD 317 million in R&D — accounting for 7.28% of total revenue — with over 7,500 patent applications filed to date. The Vertex N G3, powered by our patented n-type i-TOPCon Ultra technology, delivers 760W and 24.5% efficiency, meaning more clean energy generated from the same land footprint and lower LCOE for every project. In 2025, Trinasolar became the first PV manufacturer in the world to surpass the 30% efficiency milestone for tandem modules, achieving 30.65% efficiency on a large-area perovskite/crystalline silicon tandem module — a breakthrough that signals the next generation of solar performance.
For businesses with decarbonisation commitments, our integrated portfolio — the Vertex N G3 and Vertex S+ G3 modules, Trina Storage’s Elementa and Electra, and the TrinaTracker Vanguard 1P Terrain+ — provides a complete, optimised energy system from a single partner. That integration reduces procurement complexity, improves system performance, and supports the bankable project structures that net-zero commitments require. Every megawatt of integrated solar and storage capacity we deliver displaces fossil fuel generation and moves governments and businesses closer to their climate targets — reliably, and at scale.
Looking ahead to 2030, where do you see the greatest opportunities for solar and energy storage growth in Africa?
The greatest opportunity between now and 2030 is the convergence of industrialisation and energy transition across Sub-Saharan Africa. For the first time, governments, development finance institutions, and private capital are genuinely aligned around the idea that renewable energy is not just an environmental imperative — it is an economic accelerator. Africa’s solar development pipeline now stands at approximately 133GW, and in 2025 alone, new solar installations across the continent grew 54% year-on-year — the fastest rate ever recorded. The highest-growth opportunity segments are utility-scale projects serving industrial demand — mining, data centres, manufacturing, and large infrastructure — where the scale of power requirements makes solar-plus-storage the most compelling economic solution. Markets like South Africa, Egypt, Kenya, and Zambia are building the procurement frameworks and pipelines that will drive volume. Beyond these, emerging markets across West and East Africa represent significant longer-term opportunity as grid infrastructure improves and financing conditions evolve. Trinasolar is positioning to serve that pipeline with depth — through technology, delivery capability, and long-term market commitment.
What is Trinasolar’s key message to investors and policymakers attending Africa Energy Forum 2026?
The message is straightforward: the technology is ready, the economics are compelling, and the pipeline is real. What Africa needs now is the policy certainty, financing frameworks, and long-term partnerships to unlock it at speed. For policymakers, the clearest lesson from markets that have scaled successfully is that bankable procurement frameworks — clear PPAs, grid access, and consistent regulation — are the single most powerful tool for attracting private capital. Every gigawatt deployed under a credible framework creates the track record that makes the next gigawatt easier and cheaper to finance. For investors, Africa’s energy transition is not a future opportunity — it is a present one. The projects are there, the developers are there, and the demand is growing faster than at any point in the continent’s history. Trinasolar brings to this moment a combination that is rare in this market: a manufacturer rated 100% bankable in BNEF’s annual survey eight times, an integrated portfolio spanning high-efficiency modules, storage, and tracking solutions, and a proven delivery record across Africa’s most dynamic energy markets. In South Africa alone, our project pipeline is exceeding 2GW. We are not here to observe Africa’s energy moment — we are here to deliver it.
