LocationsVisiting a “Near Zero Energy” House in Nurafshon
May 6, 2022
May, 6, 2022, Tashkent – One of Uzbekistan’s first “Near Zero Energy” buildings, erected at the Nurafshon city of the Tashkent region, demonstrates how modern technologies and construction methods can both help limit CO2 emissions and reduce energy costs for inhabitants. The house design can independently generate electricity and thermal energy using photovoltaic technology, minimizing its reliance on the power grid and public natural gas supply, and mitigate the impacts of climate change by helping reduce national consumption of fossil fuels.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) arranged a study tour to this site for students from various Tashkent City universities, to learn about advanced energy efficient and low-carbon technologies which can be used in residential buildings.
The demonstration building’s envelope has been designed and constructed with consideration of Central Asia’s climate, and the means available to make efficient use of shared energy resources while independently generating electricity on-site. Attending students were familiarized with the building’s unique energy efficient design, and with renewable energy technologies installed at the site.
The use of modern insulation in the house’s external walls plays a significant role in decreasing heat loss in the winter season while effectively cooling the building in the summertime, thereby making substantial electricity cost savings. Photovoltaic panels for power generation and solar panels for water heating have both been installed on the house’s rooftop. Electricity generated by PVs is consumed for the house’s internal needs, but its deficiency or excess, if any, will be balanced by the grid.
“The construction of buildings using energy-efficient and low-carbon technologies will help preserve our natural environment,” said Darya Shim, a student of the Yodju Technical Institute in Tashkent. “Houses with near zero levels of energy consumption will not only reduce utility bills for residents, but will also help counter climate change and be environmentally friendly.”
This tour was organized within the framework of the regional project ‘Policy action for climate security in Central Asia - Phase II’, implemented by UNDP in cooperation with the Center of Hydrometeorological Services (Uzhydromet) of the Republic of Uzbekistan, and funded by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO). The project plans to conduct additional study tours and interactive climate-related activities, to engage interested students in matters related to climate change.
