Syria's Solar Boom Redefines Middle East Energy Model Amid Crisis
Syria's solar boom is redefining Middle East's energy model
Damascus has become the Middle East's most solarized city as citizens install panels to bypass a collapsed grid. Driven by war and cheap Chinese equipment, rooftop solar now supplies a third of national capacity. This grassroots revolution offers a blueprint for crisis-stricken nations while challenging Gulf states to rethink their centralized energy strategies.
They give power back to people who were for too long denied by incompetent, brutal and uncaring governments.
- Stronico
Non paywalled link
- vishnugupta
Just checked out the Google map satellite view and no kidding! The solar panels are crazy! Highly recommend exploring it yourselves. Mind blowing.
- metalman
The title would be better if it mentioned Pakistan, cleptocracy, broken institutions,and war lords and how PV appears to be the pragmatic response.
But my own experience, going off grid in Nova Scotia 15 years ago,is that at first people would ask how much it cost, and then often start a bitter diatribe against the power company, but now people are going ahead getting pannels and living as they see fit, the same institutions here now too busy and remote to enforce the regulations to (SAFTEY! SAFTEY!), disuade that.
Solar PV is inreadably fault tollerant for basic DC current off grid battery charging, and people are jimmy jamming any and all old used batteries for storage.The sense of agency derived from having stuff power up from home built systems the first time is a powerfull motivator to keep going.