EARTH University-La Flor Offers Course on Small-Scale Hydroelectric Energy Production Systems

Filed Under: EARTH News
Date: March 22nd, 2012

This past Friday, March 16, a course on small-scale hydroelectric energy production systems concluded at EARTH University’s La Flor campus in Liberia, Guanacaste. This joint initiative was yet another on which the University collaborated with the National Learning Institute of Costa Rica (INA, in Spanish).

Course on Small-Scale Hydroelectric Energy Production Systems participants

Thirty people participated in the course, including Mr. Rafael Gallo Palomo, owner of Ríos Tropicales, a whitewater rafting and sea kayaking company. He commented: “The course was really beneficial, I now have better ideas of how to apply the hybrid energy techniques I learned in my private nature reserve, which lacks electricity.”

The course was taught by engineer Gustavo A. Jiménez Soto, who holds a degree in Industrial Maintenance from the Technological Institute of Costa Rica, as well as a Specialization in Wind Energy Evaluation from the Netherlands Energy Research Foundation.

The course lasted three days. Topics covered included hydrology, design and selection of small energy center components, interconnectivity and financial analysis. In addition to taking part in the theoretical learning component, participants also had the opportunity to visit the CoopeGuanacaste’s Canalete Hydroelectric Plant. Mr. Gallo Palomo added that the tours of the hydroelectric plant contributed greatly to his learning, as he could see a functioning system.