The Officer of Renewable Energy Regulation at the Energy Commission has assured that innovative projects presented in the Renewable Energy Challenge will not be abandoned after the competition.

Bernice Nortey stated that these projects will have a future beyond the event.

In an interview on JoyNews’ The Pulse on Wednesday, September 25, Madam Nortey revealed that the Energy Commission has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) to refine the most unique projects from the competition and prepare them for market commercialisation.

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 “It is not just a project-based challenge where you come, win and then your project becomes a white elephant,” she assured.

She added that the competition is not just about winning a prize, but about creating projects that address real-world problems to benefit humanity.

Madam Nortey also highlighted that the judges will come from industries, the Ghana Education Service, and technical institutes, and expect students to demonstrate that their projects are not just theoretical but can be practically implemented.

She expressed optimism that the final project from the 2022 competition would be unveiled at the upcoming grand finale.

The final competition, to be held on October 8 at the Accra International Conference Center, will see schools like Kpando SHS, Ola Girls, Ahantaman Girls SHS, Dabokpa Technical Institute, St James Seminary, and Obuasi SHTS competing.

The finalist schools have demonstrated their readiness and enthusiasm for the Renewable Energy Challenge, with high hopes of standing out and excelling in the competition.

The Renewable Energy Challenge seeks to promote creative thinking and provide mentorship to students in the second-cycle institutions and also extend to them the platform to exhibit their innovative projects.

The competition seeks to encourage students to think critically and creatively about how renewable energy can be harnessed to mitigate the impacts of environmental issues.

This year's competition is focused on innovative renewable energy solutions and on the theme “Application of Renewal Energy Technologies in Solving Land Degradation and Water Pollution.”

According to the Energy Commission, the choice of the theme is for the students to come out with solutions that could aid end the menace of land degradation and pollution of water bodies.