Enlarge: Installation on the roof of the Beach House boutique hotel

Companies: BOS AG
Partner Institutions: Innovative Business Solutions (IBS) and the German Energy Agency (dena)
Technology and service: scalable PV-system

Together with Chile, Honduras is regarded as a forerunner in Latin America where solar energy is concerned. At the same time, however, Honduras also occupies second to last place compared with other Latin American countries in terms of its rate of electrification, just in front of Haiti.

German company BOS AG, with its local partner Innovative Business Solutions (IBS), has used these circumstances to its advantage to demonstrate the reliability of new renewable energy technologies in Latin America. As part of the Renewable Energy Solutions Programme (RES Programme), the company has installed five of its ‘HS Business 10 systems’ in hotels and municipality offices in Honduras. Each of the systems has a PV module with an output of approx. 9 kWp, plus a 10,240 Wh lithium-ion storage system and 5 kVA inverter, along with a charge controller, inverter and charging device. The facilities are adapted to their environment – regardless of whether they are autonomous or off-grid, whether they have an additional storage system or even a generator. They are an impressive demonstration of the company’s capability and the quality of German-made systems engineering.

The municipal headquarters in the local communities of Santa Fé de Colón and Juan Francisco Bulnes on Honduras’ Atlantic coast – previously not electrified – have been equipped with the systems, initially with advance financing by the development NGO Ayuda en Acción. The cost of the facilities will be paid off using the cost savings from reduced generator use. This contracting model, known as ‘pay as you save’, promises that which residents of the country’s many regions remote from the grid, or with weak connections, are longing for: reliable, round-the-clock electricity supply without expensive upfront funding.

As well as this, three additional modular, scalable ‘HS Business 10 systems’ have been set up on the islands of Roatán and Guanaja. Electricity prices on the island are extremely high, power cuts are frequent, and the supply is based predominantly on fossil fuels. On the other hand, the region’s high sunshine levels make it an outstanding location for solar systems. Two of the plants have been built at tourist resorts on Roatán: the Mango Creek Lodge – an off-grid eco lodge – and the Beach House boutique hotel. The third system has been set up at the End of the World resort on Guanaja.

On 10 October 2019, the project partners organised a press conference in the capital city of Tegucigalpa with approximately 70 distinguished guests, during which they illustrated the role of renewable energy sources in sustainable development of the country. The following day, the installations on the Bay Islands were ceremonially set in motion. The project partners demonstrated the system to the assembled guests in the presence of the German Ambassador, Thomas Wriessnig.

System Data