The solar station in southern Lebanon…a self-financed project that Israel turns into rubble – Energy

The solar station in southern Lebanon – located specifically in the town of Tayr Harfa – was out of service, after it was completely destroyed by Israeli forces in a bombing that targeted the area as part of the attacks it constantly launches on targets affiliated with the Lebanese Hezbollah.

The bombing of the station led to depriving the residents of the poor town of their basic rights to pump water from one of the wells, using cheap electricity generated from solar energy, forcing them to return to using expensive diesel generators, according to reports seen by the specialized energy platform.

The Israeli forces had bombed the solar station project in southern Lebanon in early November (2023), according to what one of the project engineers, called Qasim Gharib, stated to the magazine website. BV Magazine (pv magazine).

As a result of the bombing, the solar station, located 5 kilometers north of the Israeli border, turned into a small pile of scrap metal.

“I am currently thinking about ways to rebuild the solar plant in southern Lebanon,” said Gharib, who works as an assistant professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Energy at the American University of Beirut.

He added: “We cannot bear the consequences of failure, and people are now filled with fear because they fear for their lives.”

A dream turned into a nightmare

Gharib was born and raised in the town of Tayr Harfa, but he currently lives in the Lebanese capital, Beirut. He and some of his friends came up with an idea to build a 100-kilowatt solar array on the outskirts of the town the year before last (2021).

The solar station project in southern Lebanon was motivated by the urgent need to provide the townspeople – most of whom are farmers – with clean water, according to what Gharib said and was monitored by the specialized energy platform.

Gharib added: “The collapse of the government that occurred two or three years ago in Lebanon means that we can no longer afford to buy electric generators, especially the poor,” referring to the crushing economic crisis that struck the Arab country in 2019, and plunged many into the quagmire of poverty. , leaving them suffering from constant power outages.

Villagers relied on renting diesel generators to pump water, or even buying expensive water, to meet their household needs.

Self-funded project

Motivated by the urgent need for cheap water, those in charge of the project developed a plan to build a solar power station in Tair Harfa to operate the water pumping process, and they actually succeeded in collecting 80% of the total cost of the project, amounting to $130,000, through fundraising through self-efforts.

But those in charge of the solar power station secured the final part of the financing for the project through a loan from the owner of a local company.

Indeed, the project entered into implementation, and the solar station in southern Lebanon was operated in September 2022, according to information collected by the specialized energy platform.

In this regard, Assistant Professor of the Department of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Energy at the American University of Beirut, Qassem Gharib, said: “People were happy,” adding that the move was “absolutely unprecedented.”

He pointed out that the town’s residents “used water to meet the needs of families in general, and to irrigate the small gardens they owned, but the solar station in southern Lebanon has also ignited a revolution in the way a community obtains water and electricity.”

Gharib said that more than 400 families in the village had paid $3 per month to obtain this service, in statements followed by the specialized energy platform.

water pumping

The solar station in southern Lebanon, built on top of a hill, consists of 200-watt and 540-watt solar panels, which capture solar energy to generate clean electricity that is mainly used to pump water from a well located 300 meters underground and deliver it to the village.

The solar station is operated from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the summer, through a control room attached to the site.

But on November 3, 2023, the unthinkable happened when Israeli forces destroyed the solar station in a military operation targeting the area, according to what Gharib said.

He continued: “We spent a year building the station, but it probably only took a second for it to collapse,” adding: “There is no doubt that it was bombed by Israeli forces.”

The Israeli army often uses its military aircraft to strike targets belonging to the Lebanese Hezbollah on the outskirts of Lebanon, according to what was published by the agency. Reuters.

rebuild

Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Advanced Energy at the American University of Beirut, Qassem Gharib, launched a campaign called GoFundMe, in an effort to raise another $130,000 to rebuild the solar power plant in Teir Harfa.

However, Gharib knows that with the ongoing Israeli war on the Gaza Strip and the stressful economic conditions it imposes, many people may not think about donating money to rebuild the solar plant in southern Lebanon.

In this regard, Gharib said: “We are the only ones launching campaigns to collect money because we know the consequences,” noting that “the consequences are very disastrous in terms of how to rebuild the station.”

However, Ghareeb said it was good that the area was seeing rain at the moment; This helps residents fill their containers, thus sparing them the need to pump water with electricity generated by diesel fuel.

But he pointed out that the weather is not always favorable, explaining that the construction of the solar station in southern Lebanon “took all of last year.”

He concluded his statements by saying: “I fear that construction will take longer now.”

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