Imatranajo, the largest and most traditional road racing event in the Nordic countries, which was postponed this summer due to the corona pandemic to the beginning of July 2022. Imatranajo has on 12 August 2021 entered into a co-operation agreement with Afstor Oy in Lappeenranta, which develops solar electric cookers.

The aim of the cooperation is to compensate for the carbon dioxide emissions generated in Imatranajo. Through the collaboration, deforestation and wood burning will be reduced by expanding the use of Afstor solarcookers in non electrified and remote village communities across Africa.

Using one Afstor solarcooker for one year reduces CO2 emissions (CO2) by an average of the same amount as driving a fossil fuel car for about 55,000 kilometers.

Using just one Afstor solarcooker for one year reduces CO2 emissions so much that even several Imatranajo races can be held as “carbon neutral” or perhaps better off with carbon offsets. – In any case, the more Afstor solar cookers in use, the less CO2 emissions there are in the Earth’s atmosphere!

Afstor solarcooker system is revolutionary

Imatranajo looks strongly and confidently to the future and wants to be in the vanguard to show that things can be thought, done and implemented in a completely new way in a sustainable and responsible way.

Imatranajo is a Finnish competition of the International Road Racing Championship (IRRC), an international motorcycle street series, organized by Imatran Moottorikerho ry together with Imatranajo Oy, which operates under its auspices.

Afstor Oy, which specializes in photovoltaic systems, has developed an intelligent photovoltaic solution for remote village communities without electricity. A access point designed by the information technology company Karugrid Oy is integrated into the system, which enables data transfer from the amount of carbon load compensated by the cookers.

The Afstor solarcooker system includes an induction cooker, solar panels, an integrated battery, a light, an hour meter, a acces point station and a CO2 monitoring page to which information on the compensated carbon load is transmitted. 

• It is vital for Imatranajo to be able to reduce its CO2 emissions. Our cooperation with Afstor Oy is not only aimed at reducing CO2 emissions, but also gives African children, especially girls who are generally responsible for housework and firewood gathering, the opportunity for a whole new different future, says Martti Solja, a representative of Imatranajo. 

The concentration of carbon dioxide in the Earth’s atmosphere has reached a new record, despite the fact that restrictions related to the coronavirus have reduced carbon dioxide emissions caused by human activities.

• By sharing information and acquiring photovoltaic cookers, we can do great climate work together, says Ari Piispanen, CEO of Afstor Oy.
  

The Afstor solarcooker system is also trusted by the Ambitious Africa community, which aims to export Nordic startup know-how to Africa.

• I got acquainted with the photovoltaic system developed by Afstor Oy, which operates under the leadership of Ari Piispanen, last summer. That’s when I found that this complements very ambitious African action. The use of Afstor Oy’s equipment enables young people to no longer have to collect trees, but they have time to study, says Peter Vesterbacka, who is an active member of the community.                                                                                                                                          
• The Afstor photovoltaic system is revolutionary because it allows the life of an African family to change from the Stone Age to the Digital Age and afforest Africa. The hardware is quite simple, it includes solar panels, a battery, an induction hob and a power outlet for lighting and charging the mobile phone. This allows you to plant trees or do anything more productive.
  

Karugrid’s telecommunications connection and digital service platform integrated into Afstor’s sludge enable the villagers to spend time in a new way, for example, planting trees and training. The stove creates conditions for village schoolchildren to go to digital schooling in places where there is no school or which is far from the nearest school – or where schooling is blocked due to the corona. In the future, the time spent collecting rye may be schooling in one’s own home environment.

Want to know more:

Martti Solja, Imatranajo Oy, 040 500 3626, martti.solja@imatranajo.fi 

 

Ari Piispanen, Afstor Oy, 0400 759 062, ari.piispanen@afstor.com