Installation of Solar Power Generation Units in a City of Dar’a Governorate

Syria’s power generation system and national electricity grid suffered a great deal of damage since the outbreak of the conflict. Consequently, the country’s power generation capacity was reduced by about 75%. Power supplies to a large number of urban and rural areas, including the target city of this project, were reduced considerably. The city’s main supply sources, a 20kv feeder grid line and 66/20kv substation, were largely affected and are currently unable to provide more that three hours of supply per day.  As a result, the city became dependent on diesel generators to provide electricity for domestic and essential public services, such as water pump stations, hospitals, bakeries, etc. Water supplies were particularly affected as pumping stations faced an uphill struggle to ensure below sufficient levels of water flow to homes and businesses. High costs and frequent shortages of diesel in the local markets became an obstacle and a continuing threat to water supplies.

Given the vital importance of water supplies for the survival of the city, the project focused its objective on ensuring the continued functioning of the only two water pump stations, upon which the city relies, and their distribution networks. Taking advantage of Syria’s great solar energy generation potential due to the high average of solar radiation rates (GHI at about 2100 KWh/M2 per year), the project aims at installing solar power generation plants to secure reliable and cost effective supplies of electricity to the two water-pumping stations. This will be achieved through the following activities and deliverables:

• Procurement, installation and operationalization of two solar power generation plants to provide the two existing water pump stations with sufficient electric power for their regular operations. With the support and guidance of a specialized engineering consultant, the project will ensure procurement of essential components, including solar panel modules with all accessories; mounting structures, inverters, solar charge controllers; batteries with all accessories, SCADA/monitoring and control systems, AC DC electrical panels with fuses and circuit breakers, distribution panels, wires and cables, lighting protection and grounding systems, maintenance and cleaning devices and tools, mechanical and electrical tools and devices, electrical testing equipment, CCTV (Security Camera System) for power plants, spare parts, protection clothing, etc.

• Training of qualified technical staff recruited for project implementation will be carried out through a well planned series of training workshops for technical knowledge and skills transfer in Jordan and on-site via video and Skype conferences.

• Maintenance and rehabilitation of two of IE’s basket cranes to be used in electric utilities maintenance. Common and specialized tools, spare parts, safety and protective clothing and equipment will be provided to safely perform preventive maintenance and emergency interventions.
• Backup of diesel generators installed previously at pumping stations will be used to supplement the energy supply when the charge state of the batteries drops and there is insufficient energy being supplied by the PV array (i.e., during limited days in winter or in case of emergency).

Through its solar power plants the project is expected to generate at least 3500 kWh/day in the worst case winter scenario, which will power the two pumping stations with five submersible pumps and three horizontal pumps, thus, securing uninterrupted electricity supplies of 10-12 hours per day.

Worth approximately Euro 4.1 million, the project will increase the time of water availability at household level from 3 to 12 hours per day. Thereby, it will improve the hygienic and living conditions of beneficiaries. This will significantly reduce the burden on women who traditionally struggle to fetch water when it is unavailable at the household tap and will improve gender welfare. It is estimated that more than 30,000 people will directly benefit from the project, which will also help reduce the price of water per unit as a result of the reduction in the generating running costs. With increased water availability through the city’s distribution network at much lower fees, the number of beneficiaries is expected to increase significantly. In addition, the expected reduction of green house gas emissions, as a result of the reduced use of diesel generators and the use of renewable energy, will advance the sustainability of the project and will contribute to numerous environmental and economic benefits far beyond its 24 month implementation period.

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