“Just as you, Judah and Israel, have been a curse among the nations, so I will save you, and you will be a blessing. Do not be afraid, but let your hands be strong.” (Zechariah 8:13)
According to the United Nations, over a billion people in the world live without electricity, causing many in the developing countries of Africa and Asia to live without lights, refrigerators or computers.
Now an Israeli company, Eilat-Eilot (EE) Off Grid Hub is seeking to close the gap between developing and developed nations by bringing electricity, cooking fuel, and other benefits to those living in urban slums and distant rural areas.
According to Off Grid Hub director Tomer Weinstein, the Hub can provide services efficiently and cost effectively in countries that are unlikely to make fuel and electricity available to their citizens anytime soon.
The Kibera slum in Nairobi, the capital city of Kenya, has about a million residents. It is one of Africa’s largest slums and parts of it line the railway tracks. The slum lacks sanitation, trash removal, drainage, safe drinking water, electricity, roads, and other public services.
Weinstein explained that the Hub will do this by providing start-ups and established companies in the energy, water and agricultural sectors with the equipment that they need to showcase their products.
One example is the mass production of biogas—a fuel, such as methane, produced from the breakdown of organic matter in the absence of oxygen.
“We have a solution that produces biogas from leftover scraps of food that are too rotten or contaminated to eat, that can power cooking stoves and heating sources,” he said (Times of Israel). Light the system with a match and the processor does the rest.
“The demand for off-grid solutions is growing, especially in developing and emerging countries where electricity grids, water systems, sanitization facilities and other traditional infrastructure do not exist,” Weinstein stated. “By facilitating the development of off-grid technologies, we can improve the daily lives of millions of people living in rural as well as urban and peri-urban areas in developing and emerging countries.” (prnewswire)
EE Off Grid Hub, which is itself a startup, will be located in Kibbutz Ketura in the Negev of the southern portion of Israel.
President and CEO of Energiya Global Capital and co-founder of the Arava Power Company Yosef Abramowitz at Kibbutz Ketura’s solar field. (YouTube capture / CNN)
Kibbutz Ketura is also the home of Israel’s largest field of solar panels that generate electricity for the region. At the head of this venture is President and CEO of Energiya Global Capital and co-founder of the Arava Power Company Yosef Abramowitz, who is also working on projects in Africa.
“We are not your regular solar power developer,” Abramowitz told CNN. “We want to empower communities. The solar fields can provide revenue and give people life.”
Abramowitz has also helped bring solar energy to the Bedouin villages in the Negev, which had the side benefit of providing jobs.
Bedouin women embroider together in the Negev Desert. (Photo: Israel Ministry of Tourism / Dafna Tal)
Abramowitz is now working with the Palestinian Authority (PA). He is convinced that a major solar energy project would help Palestinians, Israelis, and the peace process. (Times of Israel)
Last year, United States Secretary of State John Kerry proposed a development budget of $4 billion for the Palestinian Authority. Abramowitz thinks that part of that could be used for the development of solar energy.
“A 1,000 megawatt solar energy generation system would be transformative for the West Bank, providing energy independence and jobs. It would cost about $2 billion, and be completed in three to five years,” he says.
