The State Electric Company (STELCO) will change their electricity generators to hybrid systems and provide power to some of the islands using the new systems before the end of this year, the Company said on Wednesday. Director Ahmed Niyaz said that preliminary surveys on establishing a hybrid system (an engine that can convert diesel as well as renewable energy such as wind and solar power to electricity) had already been conducted in some islands. "Providing electricity using wind and solar energy is the top priority project at STELCO now,' he said. "We have already conducted several such surveys in some islands. All engines in the atolls will be examined and surveyed.' He said that it was the aim of STELCO to establish such a hybrid system at a power house or houses before the end of the year. "Before December we believe we can establish such a system in one island or more and use it to supply power to the island,' he said. Niyaz also said that they had fast tracked the raising of funds required for the projects also. "Although the initial investment will be huge we will begin to see the benefits of renewable energy in the long run,' Nizaz said. He also said that the main reason they were looking into renewable energy as an option was because of the rising prices of fossil fuel in the world. Other than that it was also environmentally friendly, he said. "Since the price of oil is getting higher and will only get higher in the future we are taking this project very seriously,' Niyaz said. "Renewable energy and energy saving is something that STELCO will be investing in a huge way in the future.' STELCO said that they were also planning on establishing such hybrid systems in islands to which they currently didn't supply electricity to. "However our main focus currently is on those islands where we already have our own powerhouses,' Niyaz said. "Priority will be given to those islands.' He said that the project was going ahead with the full support of the STELCO technical staff and experts from abroad. STELCO also said that they were planning some training and awareness courses to make the residents more familiar with renewable energy and its benefits. The programs will also be aimed at school children, STELCO said. STELCO had said previously also that they were providing electricity to most islands at a loss, and the rising oil prices had made it a real challenge for them to make a profit.