Electricity and Water Affairs Minister Dr. Abdulhussain Mirza yesterday awarded certificates to the participants of a training programme for solar system engineers for contractors and consultants.
The second of this year’s course was held at the Electricity and Water Authority’s Training Centre in Sitra.
A total of 46 contractors and consultants, of the 92 who took part in the intensive training programme, held over a week in June, in cooperation with the Sustainable Energy Unit, passed.
The ceremony was held in the presence of the United Nations Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative Amin Al-Sharqawi and a number of officials. The programme is an important part of the strategy for implementing and encouraging the use of renewable energy in Bahrain.
The minister said their interest in renewable energy comes from the interest of the wise leadership to encourage the use of clean energy in Bahrain for achieving sustainable development and is part of the steps that Bahrain seeks to achieve towards fulfilment of its national goals related to renewable energy and energy efficiency. The minister also thanked the officials of the Electricity and Water Authority, the Sustainable Energy Unit, and the consulting company for their cooperation.
Mr. Al-Sharqawi congratulated the course participants for being trained in the installation and maintenance of photovoltaic solar panels, which, he said, would contribute to the creation of new jobs in the field of modern technology transfer to Bahrain, as well as in the field of installation and maintenance as part of which the people would be able to install solar panels at their homes and in factories. He said the United Nations Development Programme is supporting the Sustainable Energy Unit by providing the necessary technical expertise to achieve the objectives of the National Energy Plan.Mr. Al Sharqawi said he is confident that 5% of new energy will be achieved by 2025 as a promising sector and will help Bahrain attract new investments, creating jobs for young Bahrainis.
Al-Sharqawi affirmed that these activities are one of the most important supporting steps that will strengthen Bahrain’s steps towards realizing the national energy ratios adopted by the Council of Ministers at the beginning of 2017 and realizing its international commitments, including the objectives of sustainable development, energy efficiency and renewable energy. He expressed the hope that the United Nations would continue to cooperate with the Sustainable Energy Unit to provide technical support to achieve the objectives of national plans and sustainable development goals.
He noted that the goals of sustainable development are equally important for both developed and developing countries until 2030. These provide an opportunity to respond to the aspirations of the world’s citizens for a more peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world and future. This has also been reflected in the five pillars of sustainable development: prosperity, partnership, peace, planet, and people.
On their part, the contractors and consultants expressed their thanks and gratitude to the minister and the officials responsible for organizing the training programme to provide them with the opportunity to obtain an approved certificate to complete the licensing procedures for installing and connecting the solar energy systems in the government electricity network.
The names of contractors and licensed consultants will be announced on the website of the Electricity and Water Authority in the near future so that people can consult and deal with them in everything related to the installation of solar systems, whether at homes or public facilities.
Interested institutions and individuals can also be consulted.
Further details can be obtained from the www.seu.gov.bh website.