The shortage of energy resources on the planet and the negative consequences of climate change have prompted extensive discussions in the Ministry of Industry and Energy about the possibilities of using renewable energy sources in Kyrgyzstan. In Bishkek, government officials from the Ministry of Industry and Energy, representatives from the Central Asia Sustainable Energy Program of the European Union (CASEP), UNDP, invited experts, and coordinators from the NGO “BIOM” initially discussed the broad possibilities of using RES in Kyrgyzstan, taking into account local conditions, and then witnessed their effectiveness firsthand. To this end, they visited several RES facilities located in the capital and its suburbs. The first stop for the delegation was the Center for the Development of RES and Energy Efficiency.
The Center for the Development of RES and Energy Efficiency (CDREEE) employs a comprehensive approach to accelerating the development and sustainable implementation of green technologies and serves as a one-stop shop for information, consultations, and other services related to energy conservation and energy efficiency. The center specializes mainly in the development and implementation of biogas technologies. The participants saw the very process of converting raw materials into biogas. According to the director of the CDREEE, Alexey Vedenev, the raw material for the biogas installation is organic waste from fast food outlets “Begemot.” In a special receptacle, where raw materials are loaded daily in batches, mixing occurs, bringing it to the required moisture content, and then it is fed into the reactor. Special conditions are created there to optimize the processing of raw materials, that is, fermentation through the activity of specific bacteria. The output is biogas and biofertilizers. According to CDREEE employee Ilya Melyakov, the installation’s capacity is 7-10 tons of food waste per day. The cost of this installation is 50 thousand dollars, with a payback period of no more than a year. Such biogas installations are already available at the Sukuluk poultry farm and the Kant MIS. “The collection of manure in the republic is about 7.5 million tons per year,” says Vedenev, “This is more than 1 million m3 of biogas. This is 7 million tons of biofertilizers, and for 1 hectare of arable land, it requires 5 tons: calculate how much arable land can be fertilized! This, finally, provides biogas for household consumers – 230 thousand families! Admittedly, the heating value of biogas is lower than that of natural gas. But it is still fine for cooking.” Participants were immediately shown how a kettle heated on a gas stove powered by biogas. “It’s a pity that now is not the season and we can’t show you how huge the grapes have grown this year thanks to the use of biofertilizer. One bunch weighed 3 kg 130g,” lamented employee Akram Mansurov, warmly inviting all members of the delegation to come visit next autumn to taste the amazing harvest from the local vineyard. Next, they headed to the village of Novo-Pokrovka in the Chui region. Here, two facilities were showcased: the Baranov school-lyceum and an energy-saving greenhouse.
The Baranov school-lyceum is a pilot school for the “Energy Efficiency for a Stable Future” Project of the SPARE “Clean Energy” Program. Here, project coordinators conducted an audit of the learning conditions (lighting, ventilation, and thermal insulation) and replaced dull lighting and dried window frames with double-glazed windows with energy-efficient glass in the physics classroom and the sewing workshop. According to ED “BIOM” coordinator Natalia Bogatova, previously, in winter, students at the school froze and caught colds year after year; now they will finally learn in warm and well-ventilated classrooms equipped with energy-saving ceiling lights and presence sensors. Now the lighting in the physics classroom and sewing workshop is even across all desks and at the board, meeting the standards. “The ED “BIOM” coordinators showed us examples of what the normative educational environment should be like, equipping pilot classes with modern energy-saving lights and installing new plastic windows with energy-efficient glass,” says Ilze Purina, a representative of the Central Asia Sustainable Energy Program of the European Union. The next stop on the press tour was a household in Novo-Pokrovka, where greenhouse flower-growing and vegetable-growing have been developing for several years. This greenhouse was built with the support of the SPARE “Clean Energy” Program. The BIOMovts provided a vivid example of how a greenhouse operation can yield several benefits: profitability, balanced nutrition, and reduced dependence of the rural population on livestock products. The passive solar greenhouse was designed and built as energy-efficient. That is, it is oriented along the “east-west” axis: the length of the southern side is increased so that the sun’s rays hit as much surface area as possible. The walls facing east and west are minimized to reduce heat loss and create shadow areas inside the greenhouse.
The passive solar greenhouse consists of three main parts: walls on the east, west, and north sides, where the amount of solar energy is limited; on the southern side, it is covered by a wooden frame wrapped in plastic film; the roof, oriented northward. This passive solar greenhouse captures solar energy, retains this energy in the form of heat in the walls of the greenhouse during the day, releases this heat at night to warm the plants, has insulation to retain heat, and can be ventilated to prevent overheating. “In any case, it is always helpful to refer to good proven practices,” says UNDP expert Elena Rodina, “I liked the example of how it is possible to change the economic situation in villages by engaging in growing and processing vegetables, the shortage of which is particularly acute in cold weather.” Thanks to this event, there was a beneficial information exchange between delegates and experts in the field of RES. All participants reached a unanimous conclusion: against the backdrop of an energy crisis, which is becoming increasingly pronounced each year, adequate actions are required from the authorities. And these should be related not only to raising electricity tariffs but also to various support for the development of alternative energy sources.
Text and photo: Irina Bayramukova
