Renewable energy to replace diesel-fuelled power in Tuvalu
With the support of the European Union, three islands of Tuvalu will soon be able to enjoy 24-hour electricity produced by solar power.
Transcript
With the support of the European Union, three Islands of Tuvalu will soon be able to enjoy 24-hour electricity produced by solar power.
This clean and sustainable source of energy will allow the Government of Tuvalu to save up to 120,000 litres of diesel per year amounting to about $200,000 Australian Dollars.
The Government of Tuvalu, the European Union and CBS Power Solutions signed a contract last weekend which will see the battery-backed solar power system established within the next year.
Indira Moala reports.
The three islands of Tuvalu, Nukulaelae, Nukufetau and Nui will soon be able to access electricity 24 hours a day, as opposed to the 18 hours a day that is currently available to them. With the funding support from the European Union, the contract for the solar photovoltaic or PV systems was awarded to Fijian-based CBS Power Solutions. Andrew Jacobs who is a Pacific Ambassador for the European Union says the renewable energy sector is one of the areas the European Union has been focussing on for quite some time.
ANDREW JACOBS: We do feel that by working in the outer islands, we can really help to make quite a difference to peoples lives and certainly a difference to the economic opportunities that those who live in the outer islands have. I mean the financial side of it is very important but I think the sustainability of the sources of energy is also key. I think the logistic challenges of constantly importing diesel and the economic challenges that that represents certainly are things that we would like to enable the different Pacific Islands to avoid in the future.
Ajay Prasad, Managing Director of CBS Power Solutions based in Fiji, says they will start construction on the renewable energy systems in six weeks.
AJAY PRASAD: We plan to actually deliver to all three islands before Christmas. The whole community of villages, all three islands, they totally want to embrace the technology - for medical, for fridges and for their vaccinations. You need power basically 24 hours a day so they can enhance and improve their living standards. It's a very exciting opportunity for our company to be involved in this type of project.
Mr Jacobs says the PV systems project can be modelled all throughout the Pacific and believes the Pacific can provide a leading example for sustainable energy for the rest of the world.
ANDREW JACOBS: From the point of view of pollution and climate change, certainly the Pacific Islands are not those who have caused the climate change challenges that we have. But I think they can, with our support, provide a very strong example for the rest of the world in terms of the introduction sustainable energy sources and renewable energy.
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