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Solar Agro-Processing Power Stations
Overview
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Innovator |
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Project |
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Location Applied |
Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Vanuatu |
Many small, rural villages and towns are off grid, with limited or no access to reliable sources of electricity. Agro-processing is a productive end use of electricity for which a large gap currently exists. These small villages typically do not have access to a diesel mill for crop processing, and must rely on manual processing, or travel long distances to use a mill.[1]
Clean Energy Solution
VIA plans to install solar mills in villages in Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, and Vanuatu. These mills will deliver services to up to 10,000 households. Small mills will be installed, with an appropriate capacity for the village, through a microfinancing program. The mills will be used to process staple crops, such as rice, corn, and cassava, that require processing before eating, and make up the majority of the diet of rural villagers.[1]
Impact
Use of solar mills will increase productivity for rural , while the processing required. The time saved in manual labor can be redirected to other efforts that will increase income, particularly for women who are the primary source of labor for agro-processing. Cost savings will be realized in the reduced consumption of diesel fuel, and reduced time spent traveling to mills in remote villages.[1]
Organization
Village Infrastructure Angels (VIA) was incorporated in 2012 with the mission to make poverty-alleviating infrastructure affordable to everyone through long-term loans.[1]
Progress Update
From a target of 200-500 solar mills, VIA and its main partner, Project Support Services, have delivered over 100 solar mills to market to date, and have more shipping to various countries. From a target of $3 million of investment to be mobilized over the award period, VIA has secured over $500,000 and has over $1 million more in the final stages of negotiation, which will enable fast progress in 2017. The solar mills were launched at Intersolar in Munich in June, which has raised interest from more potential partners beyond the original Asia-Pacific focus geography, and the first solar mills have now reached Africa.[1]
Further Reading
- Indonesia Energy Situation
- Papua New Guinea Energy Situation
- Philippines Energy Situation
- Solar Energy
- Website Powering Agriculture Homepage, Winners/ Innovators
- Powering Agriculture: An Energy Grand Challenge for Development
- Powering Agriculture Newsletters
- Website Village Infrastructure Angels
