Remote areas ripe for renewable energy
Remote areas ripe for renewable energy
The Energy and Climate Policy Institute for just transition (ECPI Korea) are supporting renewable energy initiatives in Xayaboury, including home solar systems which are particularly effective remote area schools and residences.
There are many places in Laos which the electricity grid cannot reach in Laos, not only in Xayaboury but also many places in mountain villages and remote areas, according to a press release from ECPI.
“Usually secondary schools in these areas have dormitories for teachers and students who would otherwise have to commute long distances,” it was noted at a renewable energy training course in Xayaboury province last Monday.
The press release also noted that even though the grid reaches many areas, sometimes local residents and schools cannot afford the money to connect to the system and have difficulty paying electricity bills.
Xayaboury Provincial Education and Sports Deputy Director Department, Mr Karbkeo Sibounheung, said “Renewable energy or solar home systems are very important to people who are living in rural areas in the province.”
“The training course will help both teachers and students understand the role of renewable energy and afterwards they will be able to fix or maintain their solar home systems by themselves,” Mr Karbkeo said.
ECPI Korea is leading the renewable energy training course in Xayaboury, which runs from May 27 to June 7, with support from Korea International Cooperation Agency.
During the training programme, participants, include teachers and students from remote areas and officials from the departments of education and sports and energy and mines, will learn about renewable energy and the basic techniques of solar power generation and pico-hydro.
ECPI is active in research and works to expand renewable energy and just transition as an alternative to climate change and energy crisis. The Institute is interested in Laos and climate justice in a poor country, supporting the installation of solar systems in local schools in remote areas of Xayaboury.
It has also supported similar projects in secondary schools in Xaysathan and Xayaboury districts, working in cooperation with the provincial education and sports department since 2009.
The renewable energy training programme was designed to expand general understanding of renewable energy sources, including the sustainable installation of pico-hydro systems.
It also aimed to educate participants on the maintenance and management of solar energy systems and ECPI's solar energy system support programme.
After this general course, the trainees from vocational schools and the Department Energy and Mines will attend an advanced training course. In the advanced course, they will install small solar energy systems in vocational schools together and also research about pico-hydro installation.
After the two week course concludes, the vocational school students will be provided support from ECPI for several months in order to monitor and manage the solar and pico-hydro systems, not only those supported by ECPI but also those local people have installed themselves.
At the opening, Mr Karbkeo thanked ECPI and KOICA for supporting the training course and said he hopes that ECPI and KOICA will continue to support renewable energy in Xayaboury.
The ECPI supporting programme in 2013 includes the renewable energy training course sponsored by KOICA, the main body which has exclusive responsibility for governmental foreign aid.
Photovoltaics Research Laboratory at Lao National University and Sunlabob will provide technical trainers as partners of this programme.
vientiane times
