Update: April 2006

Hurricane BETA

On October 30^th, 2005, the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua was struck by Hurricane BETA.  BETA made landfall just north of Bluefields, near the town of La Barra.  In anticipation of the storm, blueEnergy lowered its turbine at the INATEC campus in Bluefields.  blueEnergy was unable to send word to Punta de Aguila, the site of its second installation because the sea was so rough there was no transportation operating along the coast.  The turbine was left standing and luckily Punta de Aguila was not strongly affected by the storm.  blueEnergy’s third installation, located north of Bluefields in Pearl Lagoon, was also left standing.  While Pearl Lagoon felt significant affects from the storm, the turbine did not suffer any noticeable damage.

More about BETA can be found here

Home Energy System Loans (with ADEPHCA) & Installation

blueEnergy began discussions with ADEPHCA, a local nonprofit micro-credit organization, back in the summer of 2005 about providing micro loans to households in the Rama community of Punta de Aguila to finance the purchase of home electricity kits. The kits, assembled by blueEnergy, consist of a deep-cycle battery, wiring, lights, a battery box, and a low-voltage disconnect device and represent a complete solution for basic home electrification.  ADEPHCA agreed to run a pilot project with loans for three households and blueEnergy worked with the community to select the recipients.  The loan contracts were drawn up and signed in December with the hopes that the systems could be installed in time for Christmas.  However, foul weather made the sea impassable and installation was delayed until late January 2006. 

[Pictures]

[A volunteer's perspective of this adventure]

Upgrade to the Electrical System at Punta de Aguila School

While in Punta de Aguila for the installation of the home electricity kits, blueEnergy technicians also upgraded the electrical system at the community school.  The technicians installed a dedicated 35 W solar panel and a low-voltage disconnect device for the school battery.  The solar panel was already in the community when blueEnergy began working there in 2004, but was broken.  blueEnergy had the panel refurbished in Managua and returned it to the community.

The regional government is in the process of building a new school, with a concrete foundation, in the community of Punta de Aguila.  blueEnergy will work with the community to bring electricity to the school once the structure in complete.

New Partnership Agreement Signed with IPCC-INATEC

blueEnergy and IPCC-INATEC renewed and expanded their partnership agreement in January 2006.  The new agreement established a framework within which blueEnergy and IPCC-INATEC can work together to build a sustainable solution to the energy needs of the Caribbean Coast of Nicaragua.  IPCC-INATEC is a strong local institution and is pivotal to blueEnergy’s success in the region.  Beyond providing blueEnergy with shop space, technical support, and transportation services, IPCC-INATEC’s students represent a significant portion of the future technical capacity in the Bluefields area; and being located on the campus gives blueEnergy tremendous access to these students.

Turbine Testing Program

blueEnergy launched its turbine testing program in December 2005, with the arrival of long-term volunteer Christian Casillas.  The testing program seeks to characterize the performance of blueEnergy’s turbines by studying the relationships between alternator RPM and voltage, alternator RPM and power output, and turbine power output and wind speed.  The testing program will be continued indefinitely to ensure that the turbines blueEnergy produces meet expected performance levels.

[Shop Pictures]

Nicaraguan Office / Staff House Move

blueEnergy moved office and house locations in mid-March of this year.  The new location is a two-floor building in the same neighborhood of Barrio San Pedro and has twice the square footage of the old location.  The move is a big upgrade for blueEnergy and will allow it to expand its administration capacity and to host more volunteers more comfortably.

[Pictures of the New Office / House]

Edgerton Foundation Grant

The Edgerton Foundation approved a grant to blueEnergy in March of this year.  The grant is to greatly expand blueEnergy’s model hybrid energy system on the IPCC-INATEC campus and to engage and train students on the entire life-cycle of the system.  The energy system will supply backup power to core administrative offices on campus during the frequent blackouts experienced in Bluefields, and will also supply primary energy to blueEnergy’s shop when grid power is on.

We would like to take this opportunity that once again thank the Edgerton Foundation for their generous support of our work.

Echoing Green Finalist

Mathias Craig, blueEnergy’s executive director, was selected in March as a finalist for an Echoing Green Fellowship.  Echoing Green is a foundation that supports social entrepreneurs and their efforts to develop new solutions to society’s most difficult problems.  Being selected as a finalist is a great accomplishment as only 20 were chosen out of the original 950 applicants.  Mathias will be in New York City from May 4^th to 6^th  to participate in Echoing Green’s Selection Weekend, where 10 to 12 finalists will be selected for 2-year fellowships.

You can read more about the Echoing Green Fellowship finalists here

Tax-Exemption in the District of Columbia (DC)

Ashley Krupski, blueEnergy’s new executive assistant, achieved a major milestone for blueEnergy in January of this year by obtaining tax-exemption in the District of Columbia (DC).  This designation does not have an effect on the tax-deductibility of contributions made to blueEnergy,  which was previously established by blueEnergy’s federal tax-exemption ruling in October, 2005, but it is a major administrative milestone.

New Website