Due to the rapid growth of the popularity of solar energy in Ukraine, there was a shortage of workers in the industry, in particular solar power plant installers, and high-quality training of specialists. In response to these needs, Repower Ukraine Foundation conducted a training for the adult population “Solar Power Plant Installer: Technologies and Prospects of the Solar Energy Market”.
The training was held in an online format and consisted of three lectures:

1. The State of the Solar Energy Market and Development Prospects;
2. Calculation of the Economic Efficiency of Solar Power Plants;
3. The Market and Technologies of the Future in Solar Energy.

It was attended by 25 participants. The topics were interesting to them, so they asked many questions even before the QA session.

Overview

Solar energy is a new industry that is growing rapidly. On the one hand, this speaks of its prospects, and on the other hand, not much people know enough about it to be interested in working in it. Therefore, the training “SPP Installer: Technologies and Prospects of the Solar Energy Market” aimed to cover interests of two different categories of attendees:

1. People who are already interested in solar energy, therefore, want to receive confirmation of their beliefs about the prospects of solar energy.
2. People who have minimal knowledge about this industry and want to be convinced

For both categories, it is important to hear undeniable facts and learn about the current state of affairs from people who work in the industry.

Tasks

• to explain the details of the solar energy market;
• describe the prospects for the development of the industry and key economic indicators of the industry;
• to emphasize the importance of the profession of a solar power plant installer;
• to inspire people to work in the solar energy industry.

Results

1. We explained the details of the solar energy market, the prospects for the development of the industry and key economic indicators of the industry:

• a green transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy;
• a green tariff for the sale of electricity generated by solar power plants;
• reducing electricity costs for households and enterprises due to the installation of solar power plants;
• creation of new jobs.

Interesting fact from the lecture: As of mid-2024, there were 408 nuclear reactors operating in the world, with a total capacity of 367 GW. At the same time, the installed capacity of solar power plants reached about 2 TW, which is almost five times higher than nuclear. Source: Ecoaction with reference to the World Nuclear Industry Status Report for 2024 (WNISR)

2. We also made a review of the shortcomings of the solar energy sector. This is necessary for transparency and creates a realistic, rather than idealized, view of the industry;

3. We considered the parameters that affect the economic efficiency of solar power plants, in particular three methods that allow us to assess the financial profitability of the project:

• Payback Period: determines how many years it takes to return the initial investment;
• NPV (Net Present Value): shows the economic benefit of the project taking into account the time value of money;
• IRR (Internal Rate of Return): assesses the profitability of the project in the form of an interest rate.

4. In practice, the participants were taught to calculate the payback of solar power plants. This gave both practical skills and demonstrated that solar power plants are truly profitable.

This project is implemented by the Regional Center for Vocational Education of Innovative Technologies in Construction and Industry and the Repower Ukraine Foundation with the support of Switzerland through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) within the framework of the Economic Resilience Program for Ukraine (ERP). The program is implemented by the ERP consortium, which includes Mercy Corps, Right to Protection, Helvetas Swiss Intercooperation and JERU (Joint Emergency Response Ukraine of Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide).