THE Government of Guyana is committed to a low carbon development trajectory which will see, in a phased manner, a reduced demand for fossil-based fuel to power the developmental needs of the country.

According to Prime Minister Brigadier (ret’d) Mark Phillips, who has portfolio responsibility for the energy sector, this will be done in a phased manner, starting from this year with an energy combination comprising of natural gas, hydro and solar power. The second phase will see the replacement of heavy fuel oil, the expansion of wind farms and the commissioning of Guyana’s second hydro-plant. The third phase, which will commence in 2032, will see the continued expansion of these projects using new energy technologies.

Guyana is already ahead in terms of the generation of solar energy, especially in the hinterland communities where a significant number of homes are powered by solar energy. Gone are the days when entire villages were literally covered by darkness as soon as the natural light from the sun begins to fade. The introduction of solar panels, thanks to the intervention of the PPP/C administration, have had a transformational impact on the lives of people from these far-flung and hinterland communities.

The fact is that solar energy is much more popular today than is sometimes given credit for. Almost every other home in Guyana now has a solar panel which is used to supplement energy from the national grid, especially during periods of blackouts when the solar panels come in handy.

Apart from the installation cost which varies according to the size and number of panels, the cost of energy is literally free, which makes it particularly attractive. This is indeed forward looking and the PPP/C administration is putting great emphasis on this form of renewable energy which along with wind and hydro-electric energy will lessen, and over time, phase out dependence on fossil-based fuel. Guyana is ideally positioned to derive maximum energy from the sun, given its strategic equatorial location which allows it to enjoy a daily average of 12 hours of sunlight all year round.

Speaking at the Energy Conference at the Marriot Hotel, the Prime Minister said that Guyana will be pursuing the establishment of a low carbon transportation infrastructure to reduce the demand for imported fossil fuels for vehicular transport. To accomplish this, the government intends to foster the development of an electric vehicle industry to substitute fossil fuels with electricity while enhancing the ability of the electric grid to integrate high levels of intermittent renewable energy.

To make this a reality, the installation of fast-charging stations for electric vehicles will be piloted in 2022 in Regions Three, Four and Six which will be supplemented with future initiatives to increase efficiency levels of vehicle consumption of fuel.

This is indeed forward looking and fully in sync with the low carbon trajectory of the economy and Guyana’s commitment to the realisation of a net-zero emission global environment. Guyana, despite its emerging oil and gas economy, already has net zero emissions due largely to its large forest cover and consequently low carbon sink, but as pointed out by President, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali, the country remains fully committed to playing its part in the global climate change mitigation efforts. Generating energy that produces no greenhouse emissions from fossil fuels and reduce air pollution is certainly the way to go.

Guyana is fully on course to create a new energy dispensation which will be based on an energy mix using low carbon energy resources such as solar, hydro, wind, biomass and natural gas. These, when taken together, will result in the generation of more than 500 megawatts of newly installed energy over the next five years, of which the gas-to-shore energy project will play a major role. The project, the construction of which is likely to commence by the end of this year, is expected to provide some 300 megawatts of power to the national grid.

This would reduce energy generation cost substantially and could likely reduce electricity costs to consumers by at least 50 per cent. Additionally, the Amalia Falls Hydropower Project, which was aborted by the previous APNU+AFC administration, will, when completed, provide an additional 165 megawatts of electricity, thereby further enhancing the energy needs of a growing economy.

The PPP/C administration must be commended for its visionary thinking and long-term plans to position the country in the direction of cheap, clean and reliable energy which is an important prerequisite for the transformational and modernisation efforts currently underway.