The UNISON Group participated in a round table discussion on the problems of heat supply in small and medium-sized cities, organized by the Ministry of Economy of the Kyrgyz Republic. Representatives of public utilities (Kyrgyzzhilkommunsoyuz, Bishkekteploset, etc.) were invited to the event.
It was noted that at the moment the municipal system of most cities of the country is in a deplorable state. Many apartment buildings are disconnected from central heating, which negatively affects the construction of residential buildings. The existing boiler houses and pipelines of heating networks have fallen into disrepair and need to be completely renovated.
To get a clear picture of the current state of heat supply, it is necessary to carefully study this issue, with the help of donor and expert organizations with experience in the energy industry. During the meeting, Nurzat Abdyrasulova, Director of UNISON, spoke about UNISON's activities in the field of consumer protection of thermal energy.
“In our practice, there are many cases of illegal actions on the part of heat suppliers who provide low-quality services to the public. The temperature regime of the supplied heat is often not respected, and on the other hand, energy-saving measures that could reduce heat losses are also not taken. The population is poorly informed about their rights and responsibilities, which often leads to various kinds of conflict situations,” N.Abdyrasulova summed up.
In her presentation, N.Abdyrasulova also demonstrated a case related to the provision of heat supply to apartment buildings in the city of Karakol, which for many years have been unable to obtain justice from heat energy suppliers. The level of heat supply to the Karakol thermal network does not exceed 7-8 degrees Celsius, whereas according to GOST requirements, the temperature regime in residential premises should be at least 18 degrees Celsius. Despite this fact, suppliers require tenants to pay the full cost of their low-quality services.
As the head of the UNISON Group says, an integrated approach is needed to solve problems in the energy industry. It is necessary to create a dialogue platform for negotiations, improve the legislative framework, and launch mechanisms to stimulate business to invest in infrastructure development. This practice has long been successfully used in foreign countries. And by widely informing the public about energy conservation issues, it is possible to change people's habits towards a careful attitude towards energy, which will help homeowners create comfortable conditions in their homes.
The KyrSEFF Sustainable Energy Conservation program, implemented by UNISON Group, was proposed as a successful model for implementing energy conservation in apartment buildings. It is a flexible financing system that involves concessional lending with grant support of up to 35%, and the provision of technical assistance to achieve high energy efficiency results. The round table was held with the support of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ).
