Light in the heart of Transylvania - gas lamps replaced with solar panels

Published: Sunday, 30 Jun 2024

The pale glow of gas lamps has been replaced with the strong light generated by solar panel systems for 69 houses in the village of Hoghilag, Sibiu County, that have never been connected to electricity, have been helped through the program.

Residents have never had illuminated homes or access to technology (powering appliances and mobile phones) before, which is one of the reasons why children have been unable to participate in online classes during the pandemic.

257 residents whose lives have been radically changed benefited from the electrification of their houses, and the chosen solution has provided them with energy independence - with no future costs for residents who could not afford to pay bills, lacking stable or sufficient incomes. Thus, the community with Saxon roots, known for the famous tuberoses of Hoghilag, will have an improved quality of life.

With 345,000 euros from the EEA & Norwegian Grants and without any contribution from the local budget, the Hoghilag City Hall has implemented environmentally friendly technical solutions  in areas where expanding the electricity grid was not possible or residents could not afford to pay electricity bills.

The solution was the installation of photovoltaic systems that produce renewable energy and storage systems for each house, an action made possible only through accessing the EEA & Norwegian Grants!

The whole story here: