Dulas solar refrigeration company based in Machynlleth, Wales (UK), has been awarded the contract for the supply of solar-powered vaccine coolers to Nigeria. Dulas will install 780 refrigerators in the sanitary facilities of this West African country.
The Nigerian government has finally chosen Dulas to supply the country with solar-powered vaccine refrigerators. The solar refrigeration company, based in Machynlleth, Wales (UK), was selected from the list of suppliers approved by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), following a tender issued by the Nigerian Ministry of Health .
Dulas will supply 780 solar-powered vaccine refrigerators to hospitals in Nigeria. This equipment should allow health institutions to better store vaccines and guarantee a better quality of care for their patients.
A project supported by the Vaccine Alliance (Gavi)
Dulas refrigerators operate in ambient temperatures between 5 and 45 degrees Celsius. The facilities are equipped with remote Dulas monitors that send alerts and emails to SMEs “if the temperature varies from the specified range”. The Dulas refrigerators, which are manufactured in Great Britain, will be delivered in two stages as per reports. Before the end of 2020, the cold solutions provider will deliver the first two batches of coolers. The third delivery is scheduled for early 2021. Fenlab, Dulas’ local partner in Nigeria, will handle the installation.
“The coolers we are supplying are essential to support the Vaccine Alliance’s ambition to eradicate disease through the routine immunization program. Our refrigerators will ensure that local Nigerian people have access to these vital vaccines, ”said Ruth Chapman, CEO of Dulas. Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) is partially funding the solar powered vaccine refrigerator project in Nigeria through its cold chain equipment optimization program. Gavi, which groups 25 countries, has already saved more than 13 million lives by vaccinating 760 million children since its inception in 2000.