Uzbekistan has launched a unique project on building solar panel greenhouses in seven regions of the country.

The project is carried out by the Chamber of Commerce and Trade of Uzbekistan with the support of the Business Forum of Uzbekistan project by UN Development Program. Great concern of the expert community of the problems of energy efficiency of domestic agriculture is quite explicable: today the agricultural sector produces a tangible share of the gross domestic product of the country. The sector produced food valued at more than 18 trillion soums for the first nine months of 2012 alone. Besides, both agricultural products and various processing-based foods are in great demand in foreign markets. Hence, the decrease of the cost of crops and increase of their productivity would be an effective solution for two main objectives: to strengthen the country\'s food security by saturating the domestic market, and replenish foreign currency reserves by exporting those foods.

On the other hand, Uzbekistan has a huge potential in alternative energy. Experts note that the climate of Uzbekistan is very friendly for the use of solar energy since there are more than 300 sunny days per year. According to specialists, the technical potential of annual solar energy in Uzbekistan exceeds the country\'s need for energy four times. Therefore, the gradual introduction of solar energy in various sectors of the economy is highly relevant. This is especially important for agriculture because the human resources engaged in it comprise a dominating part of the country’s population.

“Traditional frame-film greenhouses are ineffective in winter,” noted Ulugbek Ahmedov, expert of UNDP project Business Forum of Uzbekistan. “Each greenhouse area of one hundred square meters consumes 4.5 tones of coal in three months of the winter period, which significantly increases the cost of production, and adversely impacts on the farmers’ health and the environment in general. We are building greenhouses in seven regions of Uzbekistan, which are supposed to be operated by the eco-friendly solar energy to reduce the cost of heating greenhouses, cut the production costs and improve the environment.”

An energy-efficient greenhouse entraps solar radiation in an amount required for the photosynthesis process. The mobile insulating ‘blanket’, which is closed over the arched roof at night, keeps the heat that has cumulated during the day inside of the greenhouse. So the microclimate in it meets the conditions necessary for the crop cultivation. This effect is achieved through the simple but effective technologies, some of which are well known. For example, three walls of such a greenhouse are built of clay, which significantly reduces heat loss. The path of the sun in winter and fall season is also taken into account during the construction to get the maximum use of its energy. As a result of all the know-how, the greenhouse needs almost no heating at temperatures above zero at the expense of external sources.

This project is not the only one in this direction. Previously, the government of Korea extended a $ 4 million grant to Uzbekistan for building pilot greenhouses. As part of the agreement signed between the two governments, the Korean side will supply special equipment, materials and vehicles. In general, it is projected to build three pilot greenhouses with a total area of 11,500 square meters in Uzbekistan. The Korean side will also assist in sharing excellence in improving the efficiency of agricultural production with Uzbek specialists. (Source: Uzbekistan Today newspaper)