The Need for Solar Energy...
Unlike traditional Ukrainian foster families, Jeremiah's Hope does NOT receive any government assistance to care for the children in the homes. Jeremiah's Hope bears the entire financial burden to raise the children who are placed into our care. The children who live in our foster/orphan group homes are orphans and social orphans who are deprived of their parental rights. They are placed in our care until they reach the age of 18 and by being under our care, they do not have to face the harsh and cold world of government orphanages.
Each home houses 5 children along with a foster parent couple. The monthly budget for each foster/orphan group home is $1,000 US. This amount of funding provides food, clothing, educational supplies, transportation needs, medical needs as they arise and covers a very basic salary for the house parents. Our homes are heated by both wood burning stoves (in the older sections of the homes) and also electric heating in the newly added bathrooms, kitchen and dining spaces. Electric heating takes 1/4 of the monthly budget during the winter months. To date, we have been blessed to raise a little extra each winter to offset the costs, but it is a continuous need. The homes are funded through monthly donors who commit to sponsoring a child for X amount per month.
Each home houses 5 children along with a foster parent couple. The monthly budget for each foster/orphan group home is $1,000 US. This amount of funding provides food, clothing, educational supplies, transportation needs, medical needs as they arise and covers a very basic salary for the house parents. Our homes are heated by both wood burning stoves (in the older sections of the homes) and also electric heating in the newly added bathrooms, kitchen and dining spaces. Electric heating takes 1/4 of the monthly budget during the winter months. To date, we have been blessed to raise a little extra each winter to offset the costs, but it is a continuous need. The homes are funded through monthly donors who commit to sponsoring a child for X amount per month.
Our Vision for Solar and Partial Self Sustainability...
In the summer of 2017, Jeremiah's Hope consulted with two different solar companies to get bids on both the cost to install solar panels on the foster/orphan group homes properties and also the reliability of harvesting the solar energy in such a cold, snowy and often overcast climate like we experience here in Kolentsi, Ukraine. Both companies provided us with similar information.
We have been able to establish that with a 30kWt system on each foster/orphan group home property, Jeremiah's Hope would be able to harvest, on average, 46,000 kilowatt hours per home annually. This energy would then be 100% sold back to the KyivEnergo Electric grid and Jeremiah's Hope would earn an average of $7,000 US per home annually based on currently contract rates with KyivEnergo. These contract rates are set in stone through till December 31st, 2030. The income from the solar energy will provide 60% of the annual operating budget for each foster/orphan group home!
On Wednesday, March 21st, Andrew Kelly, missionary with Jeremiah's Hope, met with Mr. Dale Perry, executive of ERU - Energy Resources of Ukraine, the largest private energy firm in Ukraine. During that meeting, ERU pledged their support for this project in two ways. First, they will be providing us with legal and project specific assistance as we set this solar farm up. Second, they are giving Jeremiah's Hope a $25,000 MATCHING GIFT towards the funding that is needed to not only get one foster home set up with a solar farm but with BOTH FOSTER HOMES getting set up to generate solar energy!
Jeremiah's Hope has already raised $18,000 towards a solar farm. With the addition of this $25,000 matching gift, we will have $43,000. In order to be able to install a solar farm at each foster/orphan group home, Jeremiah's Hope will need to raise the additional $25,000 match to bring us to a total of $68,000 which will install both solar farms and a safety fence around each solar farm. The two 160 solar panel farms will move the foster/orphan group home from being 100% dependent on American support to being approximately 60% self sustaining and lessoning the homes dependence on American support to less than 40% annually.
Would you donate towards this matching gift to help move our foster/orphan group homes closer to self sustainability?
We have been able to establish that with a 30kWt system on each foster/orphan group home property, Jeremiah's Hope would be able to harvest, on average, 46,000 kilowatt hours per home annually. This energy would then be 100% sold back to the KyivEnergo Electric grid and Jeremiah's Hope would earn an average of $7,000 US per home annually based on currently contract rates with KyivEnergo. These contract rates are set in stone through till December 31st, 2030. The income from the solar energy will provide 60% of the annual operating budget for each foster/orphan group home!
On Wednesday, March 21st, Andrew Kelly, missionary with Jeremiah's Hope, met with Mr. Dale Perry, executive of ERU - Energy Resources of Ukraine, the largest private energy firm in Ukraine. During that meeting, ERU pledged their support for this project in two ways. First, they will be providing us with legal and project specific assistance as we set this solar farm up. Second, they are giving Jeremiah's Hope a $25,000 MATCHING GIFT towards the funding that is needed to not only get one foster home set up with a solar farm but with BOTH FOSTER HOMES getting set up to generate solar energy!
Jeremiah's Hope has already raised $18,000 towards a solar farm. With the addition of this $25,000 matching gift, we will have $43,000. In order to be able to install a solar farm at each foster/orphan group home, Jeremiah's Hope will need to raise the additional $25,000 match to bring us to a total of $68,000 which will install both solar farms and a safety fence around each solar farm. The two 160 solar panel farms will move the foster/orphan group home from being 100% dependent on American support to being approximately 60% self sustaining and lessoning the homes dependence on American support to less than 40% annually.
Would you donate towards this matching gift to help move our foster/orphan group homes closer to self sustainability?