Even if the cost of electrical energy rose in the wake of a series of crises, the power bills at the moment are by about 20% lower than last year. In normal conditions, the savings would be twice larger, Lilia Babuc, director of the Theoretical Lyceum of Arts “Elena Alistar”, which is one of the institutions that uses photovoltaic panels, stated in IPN’s public debate “Project of energy efficiency and thermal rehabilitation of buildings in Chisinau – current stage, results and future plans”.
Asked by the moderator to say how they can economize, the director said the installations generate 30 kW of electricity that enters the power distribution networks of Premier Energy when the educational institution’s consumption needs are satisfied. This way, the lyceum produces electricity and the power bill indicates its pecuniary value that reduces the bill.
“The energy produced by photovoltaic panels is measured by Premier Energy, which serves us, and the surplus is seen in the bill. Even if last year the heat prices were raised, our savings came to 400,000 lei. As the annual maintenance costs for a class with 30 students amount to 350,000 lei, we consider the saving is very important as we have 1,050 students. The institution is not very large,” said Lilia Babuc.
The saved money is used to develop the lyceum by purchasing equipment, including for the laboratories, and to extensively repair the building. The project helped to rehabilitate only the exterior of the building. The interior should also look well and investment is needed for the purpose.
The savings enabled to improve the educational process, to test new approaches in the training process. “Owing to the pandemic, we had to hold lessons in the open air. This implied unplanned costs... The needs are many in number, as are the ideas. We will surely use these resources where it is necessary the most,” stated Lilia Babuc. She noted that monitoring is very important in the execution of works and their contractors ensured works of a high quality as a result.
