Aptech Africa recently designed, supplied, installed and commissioned a hybrid solar system for five health facilities in Sierra Leone. The solar system is composed of roof-mounted 8.175 KWp of solar panes and 19.2 KWh of ALLPARK lithium-ion batteries. The solar system was expected to be integrated with a Victron Venus GX for remote monitoring to help us collect daily information regarding solar power generated, solar power consumed, battery capacity, grid consumed and other sources of power used, but due to network inaccessibility in some of the sites, this proved to be difficult. Another challenge faced while installing the system was poor roads which caused delays in moving from site to site. The roof condition was also poor due to corrosion from seawater. We will need to check the roof condition every six months to avoid collapsing.
The system is providing energy to the health facilities located in Bonthes District. The new system has been installed to decrease the client’s carbon footprint, create a reliable power supply and eventually, lead to the saving of many lives.
