Phelan Green Group Celebrates Public Health Breakthrough in De Aar Through Renewable Energy Investment
Cape Town, South Africa – 05 June 2025 – As the world accelerates toward clean energy futures, Phelan Green Group reaffirms that true sustainability extends beyond megawatts – it’s about lives uplifted and futures reshaped.
Today, the company honours the extraordinary public health achievement of its long-standing community partner, the Foundation for Alcohol Related Research (FARR), as the organisation prepares to conclude its operations in De Aar, Northern Cape in March 2026. Through its subsidiary Solar Capital, Phelan Green Group invested R15 million over the past decade to support FARR’s ground-breaking work – a partnership that transformed maternal and child health outcomes in one of South Africa’s most vulnerable communities.
“At Phelan Green Group, our projects are not just about generating clean power; they are about generating social value,” said Blair Phelan, Director of Development at Phelan Green Group. “FARR’s remarkable success is testament to the kind of meaningful, enduring impact that responsible infrastructure investment can deliver.”
In 2002, De Aar recorded one of the highest global rates of Foetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) – a staggering 11.9%. Thanks to funding support from Phelan Green Group’s subsidiary Solar Capital and FARR’s evidence-based interventions, early childhood health indicators have dramatically improved. Recent reports from the Department of Health confirmed significant improvements in birth outcomes among babies born to mothers participating in FARR’s Healthy Mother Healthy Baby Programme. At the most recent Baby Clinic, just two mild cases of FASD were diagnosed among high-risk births – a powerful testament to this partnership’s life-changing impact.
Among the key outcomes achieved through this partnership:
- Increased birth weights
- Dramatic reductions in infant mortality rates
- A generational shift in maternal health awareness and community practice
As FARR prepares to close its De Aar office and conclude its national operations in 2026, Phelan Green Group celebrates this milestone as a powerful demonstration of how private sector investment in renewable energy can deliver deep-rooted social benefits.
“This isn’t charity – it’s good business. It’s about investing in the communities that host our projects and showing government and the public how strategic partnerships can move the needle on national challenges,” added Maxine Preiss, Head of Corporate Communications at Phelan Green Group.
Phelan Green Group remains committed to continuing this model of integrated social investment within its renewable energy portfolio – driving progress not just in carbon reduction, but in public health, education, and socio-economic upliftment Phelan Green Group Business Address: 1st Floor, Cape Royale, Green Point, Cape Town, South Africa www.phelangreen.com
across South Africa. We look forward to building on this legacy through more transformative projects, such as our upcoming Phelan e-Fuels South Africa Project located within the Saldanha Bay Municipality, which will create over 2,500 jobs and deliver significant local economic impact.
ENDS
Media Enquiries: Maxine Preiss Head of Corporate Communications maxine@phelangreen.com
About Solar Capital: Solar Capital, a subsidiary of Phelan Green Group, is one of South Africa’s leading renewable energy developers, committed to building a sustainable energy future while investing in the social and economic upliftment of the communities it serves.
