Sun in Iraq could possibly solve electricity crisis
The sun sets over Baghdad. Photo: John Moore/Getty Images
Baghdad (IraqiNews.com) – The sunny weather all year round in Iraq could provide an alternative of solar energy to solve the current electricity crisis, but the challenges of the stifling political reality in the country are constraining internal and external initiatives to invest in this field.
Iraqis are experiencing a hot summer in unprecedented circumstances this year due to frequent and long daily power blackouts as a result of shortage of energy supply to power plants that have completely collapsed more than once.
The national electricity company has been unable to provide homes and shops with their full energy needs.
Amid this crisis, some Iraqis rely on generators to meet their needs, but many families do not have the cost of the generator.
To reduce the impact of the crisis, the Central Bank of Iraq (CBI) adopted an initiative to encourage residents to install renewable energy systems and generate electricity for their homes through loans granted to those wishing to buy these systems.
The initiative was not as successful as expected because it faced major challenges represented in the weak awareness of the benefits of solar energy, the administrative fees and a six percent interest imposed by banks.
At the same time, Iraqi officials expect a significant change in the pattern of use, in favor of renewable energy, during the next five years. Their optimism stems from the fact that the current government signed major contracts in this field.
European banks expressed their desire to finance solar energy projects in Iraq, and on Monday, the Governor of the CBI, Mustafa Ghalib, met with the Ambassador of the European Union to Iraq, Ville Varjola, to discuss this matter.
Shops in Baghdad and Erbil sell solar energy systems that are installed on the roofs of homes. These panels store in their batteries the energy absorbed during the day to be used at night.
In a country like Iraq where sunny days are around 300 days a year, this area of investment is very promising.
The cost of purchasing a solar system ranges between four and five thousand USD, which is a lot of money for most families, even employees or contractors, as the salaries of the majority range between 200 and one thousand USD per month.