General

By using the AREP sites, applications and/ or services, you agree to comply with and be bound by the respective terms and conditions whether or not you become a registered user/contributor/member/subscriber or any other title as may be awarded to you through the use of the services, apps and platform offered by AREP. These terms govern your access to and use of all AREP-managed sites, and/or applications developed for and offered as a service by AREP according to all content of this agreement. These terms also provide guidelines for the participation in the AREP quality assurance platform, steering committees and any other AREP-managed or operated initiative, and constitute a binding legal agreement between the user (you) and Association for Renewable Energy Practitioners, its administrators, secretariat and managers as may be appointed by the Association from time to time.

In addition, certain areas of the AREP websites, domains, sub-domains and other applications may have different terms and conditions, standards, guidelines, or policies posted and may require you to agree with and accept additional terms and conditions for each respective area. Where there is a conflict between these AREP Terms and other AREP terms and conditions posted for other areas, sites, applications, services, or content, the latter terms and conditions will take precedence with respect to your use of/or access to that area of the site, application, services, or content.

 AREP Installations Directory, Collected Data and Data Usage

The AREP directory is an online service provided to the public which lists the installation data of solar PV sites, the contact details of industry stakeholders and individual role players, information on events, training, and other information which may be useful to further the interests of the renewable energy sector. 

The AREP mailing list is an AREP-owned and managed email database.

The AREP quality assurance program or, PV Performer platform/ program, or the P4 program/platform is a quality assurance platform that measures the performance of industry individuals and companies based on a number of metrics.

The AREP website and its associated platforms are available in the public domain and this means that all information provided on these platforms becomes available to anyone who makes use of AREP services and/or platforms.  

AREP retains the right to use 

  • and share any public information as it sees fit, including information provided for such purposes to the Association by users of any of its platforms, sites, services, and by its members.
  • collected data, whether from its directory, mailing list, membership database, surveys, or any other source or collection, to further the interests of the renewable energy industry on the basis of ethical standards.  Use of member data may include but is not limited to AREP granting access to a specific selection of its members’ data, to specific industry stakeholders with the intent and purpose of furthering the interests of both the member, the stakeholder, and the industry at large.  
  • and share its collected data whether public or private, for the purpose of reporting on industry trends on the basis of ethical standards. 
  • its collected data whether public or private, for the purpose of dispute resolution which may include but is not limited to cases investigated by the Energy Industry Ombudsman of South Africa (EIOSA), any legal obligation, or so ordered by a court of law.

By publishing information on any AREP platform, and or signing up to any of our services, including but not limited to our memberships and mailing list,  you agree that all information as provided may be used as explained above.
By submitting or posting information you also agree that you are authorised to do so.

AREP cannot be held responsible for any loss of income or any other loss or damages incurred, including and not limited to reputational damage, due to the publishing of any information shared with AREP and our subsequent use thereof.  

The AREP P4 Accreditation Platform

The AREP P4 accreditation platform/ program is a quality assurance program/ platform that measures the performance of contractors based on a number of metrics. Candidates using the platform are scored using theoretical testing and practical installation inspection metrics, and the score determines a level of activity within the solar PV sector or technical knowledge. Activity may be linked to “risk” but not to financial credibility. Only contractors that have passed P4 Level 2 certification and agree to participate in the program will appear on AREP’s directory of P4 accredited contractors.

An AREP P4 accredited individual would have:

  1. Agreed to a specific standard of installation according to a visual evaluation linked to a SABS or IEC standard. (SABS is moving towards IEC standards)
  2. Passed a theoretical online test
  3. Passed an installation evaluation
  4. Submitted data to the AREP directory
  5. Agreed to the AREP code of conduct and standard of behaviour according to the AREP constitution.

An AREP P4 accredited Company would have:

  1. Agreed to a specific standard of installation according to a visual evaluation linked to a SABS or IEC standard. (SABS is moving towards IEC standards)
  2. Passed an installation inspection done according to the standard of the AREP Hybrid Test Report.
  3. Submitted data to the AREP directory
  4. Agreed to the AREP code of conduct and standard of behaviour according to the AREP constitution.

The aim of the P4 platform is:

  • to develop and improve industry standards and reduce stakeholder risk, 
  • to build a database of reputable solar PV contractors that are actively involved in the sector,
  • to promote these contractors to developers, end-users and organisations interested in acquiring solar PV contractors that offer good quality service, with the least amount of risk based on standards and a transparent frame of reference which includes feedback from clients (based on social media responses), evidence of existing projects and theoretical evaluations.

By agreeing to the terms and conditions, you agree and understand that AREP

  1. Does not provide project opportunities
  2. Is not a lead-to-business platform
  3. Does not adjudicate projects
  4. Is not in control of organisations looking for contractors involved in the PV sector
  5. Cannot be held accountable if contractors are not awarded a specific project as a result of a client or user’s interaction on the AREP websites, domains and subdomains.
  6. Cannot be held liable for any loss or damages due to negative reviews posted by users of the AREP platforms and services.

AREP Tests and Test Platforms

The purpose of the AREP test/tests, including but not limited to the P4, is for candidates to test their knowledge of renewable energy systems or technology. Under certain conditions candidates might be required by prospective organisations or clients to take the test as a measure of testing theoretical knowledge on the subject of solar PV technology.

It is expressly agreed that AREP cannot be held liable for the performance or theoretical knowledge of any of its members, test candidates, P4 certified practitioners, nor individuals or organisations participating in AREP services and mechanisms. 

Formal qualification

Passing the test does not grant any credit towards a formal qualification and it is not the intention of AREP to register the test or course materials against unit standards or to convert any part of the material into a formal qualification. Formal qualifications however may form part of the future requirements in order to participate in the AREP quality assurance mechanism/platform and this may be limited to certain countries or regions.

Test Specifications and Information

Please ensure that the device you will be using to take the test, is plugged in or has sufficient battery capacity in order to complete the test. Time allocation for the first attempt to pass the test is limited to a maximum of one hour, decreasing with every subsequent attempt.  The current average time taken to complete the test is 30 minutes.

The test environment is not a proctored test environment and can be considered to represent an open-book type exam.

Costs of Accreditation

Please see our pricing schedule for costs associated with the various tests and accreditations. Annual testing may become a requirement in order for continued use of the AREP Quality Assurance Platform.

Number of attempts to take the test

Candidates are given 3 attempts where the Pass/Fail criteria is 80%. Pass/Fail criteria remain 80% regardless of the number of attempts.
Following the third failed attempt:

  1. Candidates will have to prove that they have attended a PV course in order to improve their theoretical knowledge before they can re-apply to take the test. Any PV course can be taken in order to qualify to write the test again provided that the course will enable the candidate to pass the online test.
  2. Candidates will have to re-apply, make payment, and submit a certificate of attendance for a Solar PV training course in order to retake the test.

Second round – Course Attendance

If the candidate’s application to retake the test is successful, they will be given another three attempts to pass the test. 

If the candidate fails these attempts; any subsequent applications to retake the test will have to be accompanied by evidence of having personally been involved in at least 3 solar PV installations. This will be referred to as a portfolio of evidence.

Third round – Portfolio of evidence

The following details for each installation should be included in the portfolio of evidence which can be provided with the use of a Portfolio of evidence spreadsheet:

Testing standards

Tests have been developed based on IEC standards which are being adopted in various African regions and include other relevant standards for the respective regions, including SANS standards for candidates writing tests in South Africa, as a mixture of SANS and IEC standards are currently applied in that region.

In South Africa, SABS is moving towards IEC standards and IEC standards are being converted into SANS standards, hence, a good knowledge of IEC standards should suffice for the purposes of passing the test for candidates based in this region.

AREP cannot be held liable

It is expressly agreed that AREP cannot be held liable for any losses or damages due to test results, as AREP does not

  1. Grant or decline projects
  2. Guarantee career advancement
  3. Provide or guarantee employment to candidates that have passed the test.
  4. Warrant or guarantee any increase in job opportunities or prospects of candidates passing the test to become eligible for certain positions of employment
  5. Guarantee that candidates that have passed will receive any job offers;

nor as a result of use of AREP  platforms or services.

Privacy 

When taking the test or when an inspection is held, candidates and companies agree that the AREP P4 accreditation program/ platform is a means of testing theoretical knowledge or practical installation quality, as the case may be.  AREP retains the right to share test and inspection results with service providers, financiers, consumers, and other stakeholders with a keen interest.

It is agreed that AREP may issue a performance certificate to interested parties containing information related to a candidate or organisation’s performance in the sector, which may contain the contact information of the individual or the organisation linked to the individual that wrote the test or whose work was inspected.

Where the candidate has not passed testing or inspection, AREP expressly retains the right to share failed test results with parties directly impacted by such results, as well as industry stakeholders with a keen interest. It is further agreed that AREP may share the test results when a 3rd party is known to the contractor to be paying for the tests/certificates as a means of assessing theoretical knowledge.

AREP will treat performance certificates with care and endeavour to ensure that the intended document reaches the intended recipient. Contact information contained in a performance certificate is not deemed to be confidential information and will be treated with care and respect. Information contained in performance certificates may contain contact information used as a means of confirming the identity of the candidate or organisation.

AREP cannot be held liable for attachments or documents that are circulated by parties outside of AREP which may contain sensitive information.

Use of personal information

It is expressly agreed that AREP may:

  1. Store personal information and test results in its database.
  2. Make that information available to external parties, third parties or any other organisations and or individuals looking for candidates that possess good knowledge of solar PV equipment and standards by issuing a certificate that contains a collated version of information at the disposal of AREP.
  3. Notify a candidate when a certificate is issued and that it has been requested

Form of communication

It is agreed that email is an acceptable method of communication. AREP undertakes to take due care to ensure its communications reach their intended audiences, however, AREP cannot be held liable for emails not received, accessed, or read nor any loss or damages stemming from such event.

Updates

AREP retains the right to amend add, improve, remove, adjust or change any of its platforms, services, and content, including the test platform(s) and inspection procedures, and to adjust or change test questions and answers, inspection standards, and add or remove any content as may be required from time to time.  

AREP expressly retains the right to amend any and all of its Terms and Conditions at any time without prior notice, according to our discretion.

When AREP circulates notices of any changes it is agreed that such notice is voluntary and does not create a future obligation to do so.  It is agreed that AREP may use email as a sufficient means of communication and cannot be held liable for non-delivery of emails to a recipient, even though delivery by e-mail may not be a guaranteed means of ensuring that recipients did in fact receive the notice of changes and amendments made. 

Contacting service providers using AREP platforms

AREP aims to provide a platform that reflects certain parameters by which candidates and organisations can be measured through the use of what is deemed to be a transparent, predictable and fair mechanism developed by AREP. 

AREP has no control over any services offered and work conducted by contractors that have signed up to the AREP platform, and all work is conducted outside of the control of AREP and the quality assurance mechanism.

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