Rural Electrification Experience in South Spain

Abstract

The Andalussian region, located in the South of Spain, is for its climatic features and its socioeconomic structure, a good market for photovoltaic solar energy. From 1982 on, thousands of installations were realized in this region. GOMAR SCA has installed, during the period from 1982 to 1990, more than 180 kWp of photovoltaic solar energy in the Andalussian region. The authors review the evolution of the rural photovoltaic market in this area, the acceptance for the users and the changes produced. Spacial attention deserves realized projects such as, centralized systems for small rural villages. The authors present the actual situation of these projects and the contribution they bring to the field of rural electrification.