Irrigation using renewable power

A project to pump water from artesian wells using renewable power will be completed next month.

“We will operate a 125-horsepower pump using photovoltaic cells and shut down the diesel-run generators,” said Joseph Sadaka, General Manager of Elements Sun & Wind, the company carrying out the project. The cells will generate around 140 kilowatts of power.

Pumping underground water using diesel motors is the highest expense to farmers. According to Sadaka, the pilot project is the first of its kind in the local agricultural market. The client is a farmer in the Bekaa. The low cost of the project, estimated at $300,000, will help his client cut down on irrigation costs.

The project will help irrigate 300 donums (300,000 square meters) of agricultural land. “The installations don’t require a lot of space since they have been made on a small lot of 1,000 m2,” he said.