A new solar project in Syria is saving lives by providing a hospital with reliable access to electricity.

The Union of Medical Care and Relief Organisations’ (UOSSM) 480-panel project is the first of its kind in the country and aims to reduce the hospital’s dependence on diesel generators, following major sections of the country’s electrical grid being destroyed during the last six years of conflict.

The solar installation at the unnamed facility has a capacity of 127kW and features 288 batteries capable of storing 720kWh of power.

Until now, shortages of diesel have frequently jeopardised the lives of patients and resulted in the price of diesel fuel skyrocketing.

The project is expected to save more than 7,000 litres of diesel per month and reduce the monthly energy bill of the hospital by up to 30%.

The system can fully power the intensive care unit, operating rooms and emergency departments during outages.

The UOSSM plans to deploy solar systems in five more of the country’s vulnerable medical facilities.

Dr Anas Al Kassem, Chairman of UOSSM Canada and War Surgeon, said: “Incubators, respirators and other life saving equipment need stable access to power. Many patients have died from simple power outages.

“The solar project was desperately needed. I am over joyed that the project is running at full capacity and saving lives.”