Somolevu Catholic School

Somolevu Catholic School is on Matacawalevu Island, in the Yasawa Group. It has 98 students and 5 teachers, and 20 students from nearby islands board at the school during the week.

This was a very difficult site. The land slopes steeply away from the school, so a ground-mounted array would have taken up prime space the school needs for getting around. Instead, the panels went on the roof of a solid new building. They don't face the ideal northerly direction, but they generate very effectively, and the generator stays silent.

Before solar, a portable generator supplied power as needed, costing the school FJ$4,000 to FJ$5,000 a year, including transport of the fuel from Lautoka. Those savings now go into education resources, which mattered all the more because the school had just got reliable internet. Without solar, fuel costs would only have kept rising, with the price of fuel and the school's need for more power to run modern education facilities.

The 5 kW system, installed in February 2022, included 15 Canadian Solar 335 W panels, an OutBack FLEXpower TWO inverter/charger, four SimpliPhi PHI 3.8 lithium batteries, a Clenergy PV-ezRack roof-mount system and various electrical works.

The school committed to spending 20 minutes each week picking up plastic – less waste, and great learning for the kids.

Lead funding came from our long-time supporter the Fiji Water Foundation, with additional funding from our valued supporters. As always, our thanks go to CBS Power Solutions for partnering with us on the installation. The students, teachers, school management committee and the whole community send a big vinaka vakalevu – thank you.