A cooperation agreement signed between Neoenergia Coelba and Obras Sociais Irmã Dulce in 2023 resulted in the installation of energy efficiency systems in the institution's units.

The Irmã Dulce Social Works (OSID) have been awarded the installation of new solar energy generation and storage systems. The equipment, installed at the Santo Antônio Hospital in Salvador, was donated by Neoenergia Coelba as part of an investment of approximately R$7 million made possible by the distributor's Energy Efficiency Program, regulated by the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel).

The new photovoltaic solar plant has a generation capacity of 850 kWp and a modern integrated system will be able to store 1,800 kWh/day. The equipment is the result of a Cooperation Agreement signed in 2023. The plant will supply approximately 15% of the hospital's total energy consumption, while the storage system will meet 70% of demand at peak times, significantly reducing energy costs during the period of highest tariffs, from 6pm to 9pm. With the project, the hospital will have an estimated saving of 1,050 megawatt hours (MWh) per year, as well as a reduction of 600 kilowatts (kW) in demand during peak hours, resulting in an annual saving of R$1.4 million in electricity costs.

"The delivery of the solar plant and energy storage system represents an important milestone in the commitment made by Neoenergia Coelba last year to the Irmã Dulce Social Works. This project materializes our efforts to bring innovation and sustainability to an institution that carries out essential work for Bahians.We are promoting energy efficiency and, at the same time, making it possible for the resources saved to be directed towards expanding the services provided to thousands of people," saysThiago Guth, CEO of Neoenergia Coelba.

The savings generated will allow the Irmã Dulce Social Works to redirect resources to other initiatives of the institution, which welcomes more than three million people a year in Bahia. OSID is also responsible for carrying out 5.6 million outpatient procedures every year, two million of which are carried out at its headquarters in Salvador alone. Among the beneficiaries are the elderly, cancer patients, people with disabilities and craniofacial deformities, homeless people, users of psychoactive substances, as well as children and adolescents in situations of social vulnerability.

"We are eternally grateful to Neoenergia Coelba for yet another gesture of love and service on behalf of those sheltered by the works of Santa Dulce dos Pobres. The new solar power plant and energy storage system that we are inaugurating today at Santo Antônio Hospital, the heart of OSID, reflect this partnership's commitment to environmental and social sustainability. As well as helping to protect the environment, this initiative will enable the Irmã Dulce Social Works, through a reduction in electricity costs, to apply these savings to maintaining the services provided to the population, especially those most in need," saysMaria Rita Pontes, superintendent of the Irmã Dulce Social Works.

Partnership with Germany

The generation system installed operates on a zero grid model, which means that it cannot inject energy into Neoenergia Coelba's network. To make the project viable, the distributor had the support of the Energy Systems of the Future Project, a partnership between the Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), through the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH, within the scope of the Brazil-Germany Cooperation for Sustainable Development.