A solar power plant was installed in Sumy for the Central City Clinical Hospital. Its capacity is 60.0 kW. The power plant will guarantee greater energy security for the medical facility: the sick and wounded will continue to receive care regardless of possible russian attacks and sudden power cuts.
The funds for the installation – 27 500 euros – were raised by the NGO Ecoclub together with donors from Poland, the Czech Republic and Germany. The remaining part – 18 600 euros – was allocated from the municipal budget.
The Central City Clinical Hospital in Sumy is a multidisciplinary facility with about 400 patients a day: doctors perform up to 30 surgeries and more than 100 X-rays. Therefore, the lack of electricity threatens the lives of patients.
“The X-ray equipment has a lot of power and suffers from power surges. In winter, during power cuts, we had to stop working and send patients for examination using other equipment. We also used mobile X-ray machines. It is crucial for us to ensure a continuous treatment process in the event of a prolonged power outage. The installed solar power plant will help ensure the functioning of the operating and intensive care units,” says Valentyna Dominas, director of the Central City Clinical Hospital in Sumy.
The solar power plant is be paired with a generator. Therefore, its operation will help save money on fuel. According to preliminary estimates, the planned energy savings will amount to 11 792 euros per year (at the current tariff). The funds will be used to implement energy efficiency measures in other medical facilities.
“The city is located close to the russian border, and the region is constantly shelled. With these pilot projects – the installation of solar power plants at municipal institutions – we want to establish long-term cooperation with NGOs that help municipalities become energy independent. Ecoclub is such an organisation. We are aware of successful projects in other Ukrainian cities and towns and hope that Sumy will become one of them,” says Maryna Dranichenko, Head of the Department of Ecology, Energy Saving and Energy Payments at Sumy City Council.
The next step in Sumy is to install a power plant for the St Zinaida Children’s Clinical Hospital. It will provide patients with 24-hour hot water supply. Another power plant will be installed at the city greenhouse with Red Book plants.
Last December, Ecoclub installed a solar power plant for a hospital in Zhviahel as part of the Solar Aid For Ukraine project. As of mid-May, the station had generated about 10 thousand kWh of electricity. In June this year, other power plants were installed for hospitals in Zhytomyr and Dubno.
“Ukrainian municipalities start rebuilding even during the war. Ecoclub helps them implement energy independence projects. A total of eight power plants will be built by the end of the summer for water utilities and medical institutions from different regions: Rivne, Zhytomyr, Kyiv, and Poltava,” says Dmytro Sakaliuk, an expert at Ecoclub.
Solar Aid for Ukraine project aims to contribute to the energy security of municipalities by installing solar power plants for hospitals and water utilities. Ecoclub has received about 200 requests from municipalities in Ukraine, so we continue to help them find funding, partners, and provide expert support for project implementation.
Contact us for more information:
Julia Guziy, communicator of the NGO Ecoclub
+380687589889 , julia@ecoclubrivne.org