March 17, 2026 | 10:02 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - At 10am at Wali Barokah Islamic Boarding School in Burengan, Kediri, East Java, the sky is clear and the sun begins to burn. On the third floor of the school building, the air feels warm. The hum of an inverter—an electronic device that converts direct current (DC) into alternating current (AC)—from a small control room on that floor echoes alongside the rhythmic recitation of Qur’anic memorization by students from the hall next door.
The inverter forms part of an installation of 640 solar panels mounted on the roof above the room. The panels were installed in 2018 and have since become one of the main energy sources supporting the daily activities of 3,500 students and 200 teachers at the pesantren (Islamic boarding school). “Solar energy is a blessing. In the past, electricity often went out suddenly during study hours,” said Sunarto, the leader of Wali Barokah, after inspecting the solar panel installation on the fourth floor on Wednesday, March 4, 2026.
The idea to install solar panels emerged when frequent disruptions in electricity supply from the state electricity company PLN, repeatedly interfered with study activities. Alumni later raised funds to finance the construction of a solar power system with a capacity of 250 kilowatt-peak (kWp). Installing the 640 panels, which weigh about 14 tons in total, required an investment of nearly Rp11 billion (about US$652,000). The figure includes the construction of a steel roof structure that now shelters a space used for student activities.
Since the system began operating, the boarding school has cut its electricity bill by around 40 percent. Before the solar power plant was installed, the school paid about Rp150 million (US$9,000) in monthly electricity bills. After tapping solar energy, the burden fell to about Rp90 million (US$5,000) per month.
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