by David Gumbs, RMI Islands Co-Director, and Dr James Fletcher, Managing Director of Soloricon
Across the Caribbean, with the exception of oil-rich Trinidad and Tobago, electricity is among the most expensive in the world — and it is only getting more expensive.
In Grenada, prices have increased more than 75% since 2015.
In the Caribbean, the price of electricity rises and falls with the cost of oil. This is because almost all of our electricity is generated by burning imported fossil fuels. Just as dependence on imported food creates food insecurity, dependence on imported oil creates energy insecurity.
However, this does not have to be the case. There is a solution. We can be self-sufficient, energy secure, and own our local energy resources.
Millions of tourists come to our shores because of our year-long sunshine, beautiful beaches, and picture-perfect natural environment. We can use that sunshine to generate not only tourism dollars, but also our own electricity.
The electricity we produce on our islands from renewable sources like solar will not only be cheaper but will also increase our energy security by removing our dependence on imported oil. Additionally, it will help us to reduce our carbon footprint and continue to lead by example in the global fight against climate change. Ultimately, harnessing solar power unlocks the ability for everyone to access affordable, clean, resilient energy, and eventually, cheaper and cleaner transportation.
This is not a hypothetical idea — there are already several solar projects being built all over the Caribbean that are generating cheaper, cleaner energy. For example, a recent solar project in Montserrat that brought the island to 50% renewable energy is projected to cut electricity generation costs by more than $EC47.2 million over the project’s lifetime. We just need more political and utility commitment to these projects.
In Grenada, transitioning to cleaner energy, including battery energy storage systems, will save the electric utility up to 50% on energy costs. In other words, solar is not only better for the Grenadian environment, but it is also cheaper. Installing a stand-alone battery energy storage system in Grenada can reduce fuel costs by 5–10%. These savings can be increased substantially by transitioning to renewable energy, which can cut generation costs by up to 70% while building resilience and reliability in its daily operations.
Given the increasing intensity and frequency of hurricanes in our region, it is critical that we incorporate microgrids that can reduce outage times during and after hurricanes. When a large power grid goes down during a storm it can take weeks or even months to get power restored. Right now, in the Bahamas and Puerto Rico, solar microgrids with battery storage are being built to withstand or come back online quickly after intense hurricanes. These microgrids have increased grid resilience and have lowered generation costs.
Large-scale adoption of renewable energy will create a variety of new jobs — for managers, electricians, civil engineers, electrical and mechanical engineers, plumbers, machinists, heavy equipment operators, technicians, metal workers, construction workers, designers, and salespeople.
By moving toward a renewable energy-based electricity system, we will eventually make transportation cheaper. Electric cars, trucks, and buses are becoming increasingly accessible as advancements in battery technology and growing e-mobility markets continue to drive costs down. Many major car manufacturers have set targets for stopping the production of internal combustion engine vehicles and moving completely to electric vehicles. Already, in Bermuda, an all-electric powered public bus fleet is being deployed across the country and the entire public transit system will be fully electric in the next 8 years. If we can make electricity cheaper, electric mobility options will be more affordable for everyone.
The time is now for us to harness the sun to generate our own electricity right here in the Caribbean. It will make electricity cheaper, create jobs, make us more resilient during storms, help us decrease the emissions of dangerous greenhouse gases, reduce air pollution, and give us energy security. We must act today to promote and adopt more affordable, home-grown renewable energy solutions.
We cannot afford to wait.
There needs to be a rational set of decisions, i have nothing against small scale local solar, but its not going to ever be the solution for Grenada, the panels etc are too fragile, and any large scale implementation will swallow some of the best farming land.
Offshore wind or wind in the mountains is the solution. The towers are normally made to take hurricane conditions – because this is common in places like the north sea, also Grenadas entire consumption only equates to maybe 25 towers, which is a small part of 1 facility in europe.
The 50 million us wasted on giving away Grenlec then repurchasing it could have funded an entire renewables solution – though this would have to be based on wind in the main. Thank you NNP and we all know the guilty parties.
I was present in St. Martin and Puerto Rico during the hurricanes of 2017. Walking through various areas of both islands seeking potable water and food, I saw no solar panels that survived the flying debris. Lots of broken glass and twisted frames. Until some method of protecting the panels from flying debris is successfully developed, expect comp!she replacement of all panels after a major storm.
Totally agreed. However, the failure of others should be lessons to improvise.
When say leader, it implies adapting the solar technology to suit our environment.
It’s amazing how regional governments continue to drag their feet on totally embracing solar energy.
I can’t understand why region continue yo be followers instead of leaders.