SELF-SUSTAINING OFFICES FOR INTERNATIONAL AID AGENCIES IN REMOTE GEOGRAPHICAL AREAS

Abstract

Aid Organizations require reliable electrical power to conduct their operations at remote areas where problems arouse and in most of those locations the commercial power is not available or not reliable due to poor infrastructure, lack of maintenance of the grid or obsolete equipment used for power generation. Under certain conditions cost of one Kilowatt could become extremely expensive. This article presents a practical case where all these factors are taken into account, integrating efficiency in consumption, the use of alternative energy sources to avoid dependency and transportation of fossil fuels to areas where it is difficult to supply in remote areas, and the ability to transport these delegations to other areas when the humanitarian missions have been finished (recycling of all facilities and equipment). The project was completed in 12 weeks and tested for more than 15 months with excellent results in Mediterranean Europe. Renewable energy was available permanently (87.7% of the time). Keywords:Energy efficiency, Sustainable building, Renewable energy, Green offices.