Launch of the Project “Solar Schools” in Moscow
On October 2, 2019, the "Solar Schools" project was launched in Moscow through the installation of the first solar system on a school in Russia. In Moscow, two photovoltaic systems on the roof of a school were put into operation in a ceremony attended by the school principal with representatives from the German Embassy, the Swiss Embassy and the Goethe-Institut in Moscow. Three months after the first exchange of ideas on "Solar Schools" between the project initiators, ideas into energy from Berlin and the Goethe-Institut Moscow, the first two photovoltaic systems were installed on the roof of the building "Gamma" of the Moscow State School №1502 at the end of September 2019. This laid the foundation for the rest of the project.
The first photovoltaic system was provided by the German solar company SOLAR23. The system demonstrates solar energy utilization with electricity storage as a typical application in rural regions without connection to the central power grid, of which there are many in Russia, especially in Siberia and the Far East. To date, these regions have mostly been supplied with electricity via diesel generators. This is accompanied by high generation costs and environmental problems for the regions. Photovoltaic systems provide a reliable and, at the same time, economical alternative. The company is also supporting the school with a mobile solar charging station that can be used in physics lessons, for example, to explain the potential applications of solar energy to the students in their own practical experiments.
The second photovoltaic installation was contributed by the Swiss solar energy association Solarspar, the green roof specialist ZinCo and the Russian photovoltaic supplier Hevel Solar. This installation combines the concept of a green roof and a solar power system for the use in urban areas where, in addition to the production of local solar power, biodiversity and rainwater retention play an increasingly important role. The use of vertically elevated "bifacial" modules demonstrates a low-maintenance solution for arctic and mountainous regions with flat solar radiation and snow as a reflector. A similar unit was successfully tested in the city of Yakutsk in the most extreme conditions, where the performance of bilateral modules was 45% higher than the classic single-sided modules at an angle of 40° in the same location. Thanks to the inverter, optimizers and an app, the performance of the system can be tracked on a smartphone at any time.
Both systems were installed on the roof of the school: The electricity generated from both solar systems is then stored in batteries and then supplied to various consumers in the school. Appropriate measurement technology and visualizations for the generation and use of the electricity were installed and made available to the students for learning purposes. The ceremonial opening with around 80 guests took place on the evening of October 2 in the auditorium of the school building.