Osko Lodge goes green with switch to solar energy
In its quest to reduce cost of energy and also improve power supply, the management of Osko Lodge Guest House located at Ahodwo in Kumasi has installed a 20Kwh solar system to power the facility.
In spite of the huge initial investment required for the project, the management of the guest house is hopeful that the move is worth it and will pay off over time.
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The management also noted that the option was part of a grand effort to make the facility respond to calls for the use of clean energy to save the climate.
The Director of the facility, Dr Ebenezer Osei-Kofi, told the Graphic Business during the commissioning of the solar system that it was time the government supported the citizenry to opt for solar energy to reduce the pressure on the national grid and also the use of fossil fuel as an alternative source of energy.
According to him: “There is sunshine all year round in the country and it is high time we took advantage of it and use it profitably.”
He said even countries that did not have the sun throughout the year were making good use of the little they had and, thus, urged the government to support private sector businesses that were investing in solar energy by reducing the taxes on the equipment imported for installation.
Besides that, he said when more people resorted to solar energy, it would greatly reduce the country’s carbon footprints.
His solar system, he said, would be reducing close to 15,000 kg of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere every year.
In spite of the huge initial investment required for the project, the management of the guest house is hopeful that the move is worth it and will pay off over time.
The management also noted that the option was part of a grand effort to make the facility respond to calls for the use of clean energy to save the climate.
Finance
The project was financed by Ewia Green Investment GmbH based in Germany that has been at the forefront of promoting clean energy in Africa.
The Chief Financial Officer of the company, Ralph Schneider, said per the agreement, Ewia Green Investment would operate and manage the solar system for a period of 10 years, after which the system would revert to Osko Lodge.
Although he admitted that the initial cost of investment was quite huge, he said the long-term benefits outweighed the initial cost.
For instance, he said unlike the national grid where there was a price review, the cost of solar energy was fixed and after 10 years, the individual would own it.
Expansion
The Sales Director of Ewia Green Investment, Nana Kwadwo Adu-Boateng, said many companies were now subscribing to solar energy as part of the measures to cut down on the cost of running their business as energy, particularly from the national grid, was becoming very expensive.
He said the company was expanding in the sub-region and was currently in Burkina Faso and would soon be in other parts of the sub-region.