NO country in the world has ever been -–or ever will be — developed without energy and technology. The perpetual and regular blackouts that plague Guyana and Guyanese daily make a mockery of all the talk we have heard about the “developments” in Guyana by the previous administration.The historical incompetence and lack of imagination is easily demonstrated by the countless blackouts inflicted upon the citizens of Guyana on a daily basis. The damage caused by these blackouts affects everyone across the nation: our children cannot study, our adults cannot work, businesses suffer, household and business equipment get damaged, real investment is discouraged, and social and domestic criminals unleash terror in the darkness. The psychological wounds caused by these blackouts are inestimable; our young and our females are at greatest risk, yet no research has been sponsored or undertaken to deal with this.

In fact, there are direct links between blackouts and domestic violence, child abuse, and rape, including that quiet monstrosity called domestic rape. We would know this if we bothered ourselves to read, if we could be bothered to do even a tiny bit of research.

Under our new Government, the people of this nation must be treated with greater respect than had obtained in the past. One way to convey this respect is to put in place systems that would ensure constant, dependable, affordable and clean energy. We must attract new, cutting-edge technologies for use in Guyana; and we need to stop thinking in ordinary ways about Amaila Falls and tilting at windmills.

We have already heard the call from our government for research dedicated to finding ways to use our local resources for power-generation: sugar-cane waste, ethanol, coconut husks, “boosie” (given its cohesiveness, this can also be used for infrastructural development), rice shells, recycled cooking oil, wood, etc. This is all useful, if anyone is bothering to do some follow-up work.

The centerpiece of the nation’s energy programme could be Under Water Turrent Turbines (UWTT)! There are people (one or two maybe) who have been acquainted with international innovators, one of whom invented the UWTT. Here are some pertinent facts: Sea water is 832 times heavier than air. This means that each inch of power-generating velocity from wind turbines must be multiplied by 832 times, which then means that the power potential is enormous.

Additionally, wind turbines have been condemned by the best international scientists as requiring too much space, and are aesthetically unfriendly and land consuming. Given the constant (twice per day coastal current) and the hundreds of miles of sea water off our coast, we can embed turbines which would provide more dependable power than two nuclear plants, without the potential or inherent risks of nuclear generation. Each turbine can be set 600 feet apart, and 130 feet down. The turbines are therefore invisible and shall not interfere with any naval traffic. Nonetheless, we can have wide ultra-precautionary corridors through which large ships can enter our harbours. Because the underwater turbines are slow (given the heaviness of sea water, they operate at 12-18 RPM), they will not impact negatively on marine life nor bird life.

UWTTs are not affected by climactic conditions (unlike outdated hydro-power and solar panels). Therefore, the power is constant, invisible, clean and perpetually renewable. The technology can move this nation and its citizens into a new age. The turbines can be made to fit-for-purpose and be embedded strategically in all rivers in Guyana. This means constant electricity to all communities in all corners of the nation. They can be anchored using iron and metal waste, thereby minimising cost. This is also environmentally friendly. One notices mountains of iron waste all along the coastal strip of Guyana.

This energy source offers 100 years of predictability. We are aware that this new, cutting edge technology is being deployed now in northern Scotland and Wales, and will be fully operational by 2016.