A system made up of three photovoltaic power plants was inaugurated this Wednesday (31) on the Unicamp campuses in Limeira. With the capacity To generate, from sunlight, an amount of energy sufficient to supply the equivalent of 300 homes, the plants were installed in Faculty of Applied Sciences (FCA), the Faculty of Technology (FT) and the Technical College of Limeira (Cotil).
According to Neoenergia Elektro – the company responsible for the system –, the plants will provide a reduction of approximately 33% in energy consumption compared to what is currently observed. According to the company, the reduction should provide a monthly saving of around R$60 on the energy bill of the three campuses, through which people pass daily. more than 3 thousand people, including students, teachers and staff. “Our goal is to be the most sustainable higher education institution in Latin America. This is what we are working towards”, said the rector of Unicamp, professor Antonio José de Almeida Meirelles, who was on the FCA campus in the morning, accompanied by the general coordinator of the University, professor Maria Luiza Moretti.
According to the rector, the program favors a clean energy matrix and is in harmony with Unicamp's decision to align itself with the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations (UN). The installation of photovoltaic panels is directly linked to SDG 7, which deals with encouraging the use of clean and affordable energy.
The rector also said that programs of this type are viable, involving universities, the private sector and public authorities. “An event like this proves that this type of cooperation is possible”, says Meirelles. According to the rector, higher education institutions have already demonstrated that they are capable of actively participating in the country's reindustrialization process and assisting in this process in an innovative and sustainable way.
The system opened in Limeira has 978 panels. And the initiative is part of Neoenergia Elektro's Energy Efficiency Program (PEE), which is regulated by the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel). “Our duty as an organization, in addition to the economic plan, is to reinforce the social aspect of our operations. And this social duty is intrinsically linked to this partnership with the University”, said the company manager, Ricardo Gazolla. “Today, Neoenergia is a company that very latently seeks the production of renewable green energy that does not exploit the land, natural resources or people. Our objective is to produce energy that, effectively, is a social good”, he concluded.
Sustainable Development Goals
Moretti recalled that the initiative is aligned with the seventh objective of the UN sustainability program, but highlighted that this is not the only objective receiving attention from the University. “Traditionally, Unicamp has worked to improve the population’s quality of life, reduce inequality and combat poverty, in addition to playing a fundamental role in the area of education by contributing to quality professional training,” he said. the general coordinator. “Unicamp works in extension, with the community, and works towards inclusion, by reducing intolerance and prejudice. In short, it works in all areas that are currently the guidelines of the United Nations”, he highlighted.
Coordinator of Unicamp's Sustainable Campus program, professor Luiz Carlos Pereira da Silva assesses that solar energy is an increasingly relevant alternative in the world. “Firstly, it is renewable energy. The sun comes out every day, right?”, she recalled. "This is a very rapid circle of renewal. Sunlight takes just eight minutes to reach Earth. So, it is an energy that we have available in abundance. It is democratic and available throughout the country. It is an increasingly important source of the world’s energy matrix,” he said. “And, at the University, I think we have to take increasingly aggressive action to promote the energy transition. We, who have the knowledge, have to set an example. We, as an institution, are able to build partnerships like this with Neoenergia and take the lead”, he added.
The Sustainable Campus Program is a partnership between Unicamp and CPFL (Companhia Paulista de Força e Luz) started in August 2017 within the scope of the Research and Development (R&D) program and Aneel's PEE. The project aims to improve the campus infrastructure and, through the development of new technologies, transform the University's spaces into an energy sustainability laboratory.
Check out aerial images of the photovoltaic power plant system:
