Since 2021, Solar Cooling Engineering GmbH and the Carl von Ossietzky University of Oldenburg have collaborated—supported by Efficiency for Access—to develop innovative design methods for solar-powered cold rooms. This partnership has led to the creation of practical tools and methodologies for calculating the energy demand of cooling systems and determining the corresponding solar energy requirements. In addition, the tools support the optimization of key design variables—including insulation thickness, PV and battery capacity, and the grid electricity rate for on-grid systems—based on project-specific cost parameters.
This handbook presents the best practices derived from this work, offering a structured approach to designing solar-powered cold rooms that are technically sound, economically viable, and adapted to local conditions.
The creation of this manual has been kindly funded by the Efficiency for Access Research and Development Fund, managed by Energy Saving Trust and supported by UK aid from the UK government via the Transforming Energy Access platform, and the IKEA Foundation.