The EnerSHelF project foresees the installation of measurement equipment related to the use of solar PV energy in health facilities in three locations throughout the country. At this stage of the project, the locations of the three health facilities were set. The three health facilities differ in the number of beds for patients and the health service offered. Hospitals have more beds and offer more services than health centres.

The St. Michael’s Hospital and the St. Dominic Hospital are in the “Deciduous Forest” climatic zone, which is warm and humid. The Kologo Health Centre is in the “Guinea Savannah” climate zone, which is hot and dry.

The geographical distribution in different climate zones will allow the acquisition of various data during field experiments. Technical field measurements will be carried out to collect real measured profiles of electrical load and supply of facilities, as well as weather data.

To better understand the demand of health facilities in Ghana for PV energy solutions and their challenges in obtaining and maintaining reliable energy access these site specific activities will be complemented by a comprehensive survey among Ghanaian health facilities at a later stage of the project.

Saint Dominic Hospital

The St. Dominic Hospital – established in July 1960 – is a 357 bed capacity facility in the urban area of Akwatia. Akwatia is located in the Denkyembour District of the Eastern Region in southern Ghana and has a population of approx. 25,000 people. The existing PV system will be complemented by a load measurement system, an automatic weather station, a dust sensor, a radiation sensor with module temperature detection and a cloud camera.

Kologo Health Centre

The Kologo Health Centre is a public health centre in the Upper East Region of Ghana. It offers general health services. The facility has about 11 beds, a maternity, OPD, detention rooms, dispensary, delivery room, vaccine storage, etc. Kologo is a small, rural village 20 km south of Navrongo, near of the northern border of Ghana. A PV system will be set up, complemented by automatic weather station, a dust sensor, a radiation sensor with module temperature detection and a cloud camera at the PV system. There will be also measurement equipment for load profiles.

Saint Michael’s Hospital

The St. Michael’s Hospital – established in 1958 – is located in the small town of Pramso around 20 km in the southeast of Kumasi, the regional capital of the Ashanti Region. The hospital has 99 beds, which include medical, surgical, paediatric, maternity and opthalmic departments, with approximately 60,000 outpatients appointments each year. In addition to the services provided at the hospital, there are mobile clinics operated by the hospital that visit five outlying villages every month to bring maternal health and general medical consultations within close proximity of the communities that the hospital serves. The St. Michael’s Hospital will be equipped with an automatic weather station and a measurement device for load measurement. A PV system is already in place.