Shell and Philips help provide light to rural communities in Egypt’s Western Desert
Mar 17, 2014
Shell Egypt has partnered with Philips Egypt to install Philips solar home-lighting systems and Philips Community Light Centres in the Haqfet Elgallas village in the Western Desert of Marsa Matruh, which currently does not have any access to electricity. Haqfet Elgallas is considered the first village with solar lighting in the Marsa Matruh Governorate.
In partnership with Shell, and under the auspices of H.E. Major General Badr Tantawy Al-Ghandour, Governor of Matruh, Philips solar home lighting systems have provided light to 15 houses, accommodating over 30 families, and one school in Haqfet Elgallas, a village that previously lived on gas-lit light bulbs.
Shell and Philips also installed two Solar Light Centres in the same village; one for a football field covering an area of approximately 1,000 square meters to allow for sports after sunset and the other for community street lighting. Both projects included the installation of eight-meter poles fixed in the ground that host four LED lights, which together consume less power than a single 60W light bulb.
H.E. Major General Badr Tantawy Al-Ghandour, Matruh Governor, emphasized on the importance of such social initiatives by multinational companies as they provide support to local communities and offer sustainable solutions to urban migration.
Tantawy added that the Governorate dedicates all its resources to assist such initiatives as they provide basic life needs for Matruh citizens, all while protecting the environment and working through an integrated system of sustainable development services.
“The idea for the project is to create areas of light for rural communities that live without electricity thus effectively ‘extending the day’ and creating numerous opportunities for social and economic activities in the evening.
The community light centres and solar lighting systems are considered an innovative sustainable solution using a new generation of highly efficient solar powered LED lighting by Philips.
Shell Egypt is proud of joining Philips in such an important project for the community”, said Jeroen Regtien, Vice President and Country Chairman of Shell Egypt N.V.
Mr. Tamer Abu El Ghar, General Manager of Philips commented “Philips has developed a breakthrough in Solar powered LED Road Lighting which offers reliable, efficient and cost-effective lighting solutions.
It’s very exciting to have the opportunity to apply our expertise in renewable and sustainable energy technologies toward such a unique development which will revolutionize the way future residential developments are constructed”.
The ‘Light Centre’ is a development project by Philips that involves the installation of 100 light centres across rural Africa by 2015, with projects already inaugurated in Egypt, Morocco, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. For more information about light centres, please visit: http://www.lighting.philips.com/main/application_areas/solarlighting/light-centers/