The Solar Energy Solidarity move led by multinational PROINSO will donate over 60kW in 2013 to a dozen solidarity solar projects to be developed in Nepal, Kenya, Guatemala, Haiti, Brazil and India. These projects are expected to benefit more than 80,000 people, adding to the six developed in 2012 in Peru, Togo, Benin and Thailand, which improved power supply for 19,000 people.

At PROINSO they said the initiative grew in 2012 because it added cooperating partners like SMA, INGETEAM and TRINA, among others. These companies donated PV products to different solar projects in the solidarity programme.

'We believe our solidarity programme will continue to grow with the collaboration of other manufacturers and companies in the solar PV industry that are interested in joining the Solar Energy Solidarity programme,' said PROINSO Marketing Manager Teresa Marticorena, who added that new solidarity projects had been proposed by cooperation agencies.

'Even engineers and technicians in the solar industry are interested in contributing their work for the development of these projects in different countries,' Ms Marticorena explained.

Regarding the six projects carried out in 2012 within the framework of this initiative, they totalled more than 18kW and benefited over 19,000 people. The goal for 2012 was to install 5kW, an amount of power that was multiplied by four to 18kW thanks to the support provided by the manufacturers involved in the projects.

NGOs, organisations, and local governments and partners also collaborated in these projects, aimed at supplying energy to meet the power demand of most underprivileged communities.

BE PART OF IT: new initiative aimed at attracting support

In addition, the people working at the SOLAR ENERGY SOLIDARITY programme announced that this Christmas season, a solidarity campaign would be launched in social media: BE PART OF IT.

The goal is to provide information on the projects being developed to all the supporters of the programme and the people interested in it. Also, social media users, organisations, manufacturers and companies in the solar PV industry will be able to put forward proposals for solidarity solar PV projects or inform on products they want to donate to upcoming projects.