Home: Renewable Energy News: SMA Inverters Helping To Power Ethiopian Health Care

Renewable Energy News

TUESDAY 10 AUGUST, 2010 |

SMA Inverters Helping To Power Ethiopian Health Care

by Energy Matters

SMA Solar Technology AG has announced completion of its participation in a project to deliver 100 stand-alone solar power systems to health care facilities in Ethiopia.

Most of the 80 million residents of Ethiopia live in remote areas without access to a reliable power supply. The "Access to Modern Energy Services Ethiopia" (AMES-E) project, an international effort coordinated by Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ) GmbH, helps to improve the electricity supply situation in rural and remote parts of the country.

SMA delivered its Sunny Island and Sunny Boy inverters for 50 systems at the end of last year and an additional 50 recently. The inverters will play a crucial role in 1.5kW off grid solar power plants, which have been provided complete with deep cycle batteries, to generate clean and reliable power for equipment such as microscopes, centrifuges, refrigerators and sterilizers in the medical clinics.

Volker Wachenfeld, SMA Vice President Off-Grid Systems said the connection to a stand-alone solar power supply for the medical clinics will ensure access to a better quality of medical care.

SMA have also provided training to local operators in order to ensure the equipment can be maintained as independently as possible.

SMA inverters are a popular choice in Australia for home solar power systems. With over three gigawatts of inverters installed globally, SMA is a world leader in solar inverter technology and manufacturing, with divisions in nine countries on four continents. The SMA group of companies employs more than 5,000 people.