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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: UKRAINE SOLAR SCHOOLS
HEADLINE: Ukraine Blackouts Force a Switch to Greener Energy
TEASER: Russia’s attacks have Ukraine rethinking its energy future
PUBLISHED AT: 02/07/2023 at 10:05am
BYLINE: Anna Chernikova
DATELINE: Irpin, Ukraine
VIDEOGRAPHER: Eugene Shynkar
PRODUCER:
SCRIPT EDITORS: LR, Reifenrath
VIDEO SOURCES: VOA ORIGINAL
PLATFORMS: WEB __ TV X RADIO __
TRT: 2:10
VID APPROVED BY: MAS
TYPE: TVPKG
NOTES: ))
((INTRO))
[[As Russia’s targeted attacks on the Ukrainian energy infrastructure continue, Ukraine is forced to rethink its energy future. While inventing ways to quickly restore and improve the resilience of its energy system, Ukraine is also looking for green energy solutions. Anna Chernikova has the story from Irpin, one of the hardest-hit areas of the Kyiv region.]]
((NARRATOR))
For months, the Ukrainian energy system has been the target of Russian attacks that leave homes, schools and hospitals in the dark — sometimes for days at a time.
This is encouraging Ukrainians not only to find unconventional ways to quickly rebuild energy facilities, but to consider possible alternative energy sources.
This school in Irpin is the first to get its own solar power station,
thanks to an initiative of the nonprofit Energy Act for Ukraine Foundation and the support of international donors.
Yuliana Onishchuk, foundation founder and CEO, explained that the station consists of solar panels, inverters and a system that allows the school to store solar energy and use it during power outages.
((Yuliana Onishchuk, Energy Act for Ukraine Foundation – FEMALE IN ENGLISH))
“Our main aim is to ensure that the system storages are always fulfilled with electricity [from solar energy]. In order to ensure it, we developed a technical solution that foresees that if we have a sunny day, the electricity that will be generated from the solar power plant will go to storage systems in order to fulfill them. It’s a priority number one.”
((NARRATOR))
The station's battery storage system can provide the school with a power supply for up to four hours.
The school's principal explains that the solar power station will allow schools to operate using power that is cheaper and greener than that provided by gasoline generators.
[[RADIO VERSION: Ivan Ptashnyk is head of the Mriya School.]]
((Ivan Ptashnyk, School Principal – MALE IN UKRAINIAN - VOA))
“This is a big breakthrough for education in general, that we simply become energy independent.”
((NARRATOR))
For Ukraine, one year into Russia's full-scale assault, energy security is one of its main priorities.
The foundation plans to install similar solutions in a total of 100 schools and medical institutions across the country.
One year on, the war has created many new challenges that Ukrainians face daily. But it has also created an environment for rapid innovation that is key to survival.
((ANNA CHERNIKOVA, FOR VOA NEWS, IRPIN, Ukraine))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
NetworkVOA
Location (dateline)Irpin, Ukraine
BylineAnna Chernikova
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
