Dear Editor,
Deputy Prime Minister of Barbados, Mia Mottley, was reported to have said, “Barbados has set a target that by 2025, 40% of its energy use will be renewable. Already Barbados has one of the highest per capita solar water heaters usage in the world.” (Stabroek News, September 27, 2007). Barbados therefore has seen fit to use a resource it has in abundance (solar) to meet a need for hot water caused by its Tourist Industry. The systems are unsophisticated with a solar panel that generates heat which is transferred to water in a tank. The manufacturers of these systems are even exporting them and those dotting the roofs of Guyanese homes are very likely imported from Barbados.
Guyana has a similar abundance of solar energy but instead of a need for hot-water, it has a need for affordable power. One solution is the installation of photovoltaic power systems. Photovoltaic (“PV”) systems use a different type of solar panel which converts sunlight directly into electricity. The power generated can then be stored in batteries for later use or delivered to a Central Utility Power Grid. Because of the high upfront costs to acquire and install, their application has been limited to remote areas where Utility facilities are not available.
Guyana is ideally suited for the take-off of this technology. Its location in relation to the equator guarantees high solar irradiance and insolation year-round, thereby resulting in more efficient power production. Its cost of producing power by technologies which rely on hydrocarbons has to be one of the highest in the region, thus making the current process inefficient. Utilization of PV technology would benefit the country from lower-cost power production, reduced pressure on foreign exchange rates, and increased employment in a technical field requiring assemblers, designers, and installers. Further, as a renewable energy resource, its employment should qualify for carbon credits in markets fast developing for such a commodity.
The role of Government is essential in moving, promoting and coordinating this market. This would require a plan for:
1. promoting the technology to the public
2. removing all duties on systems which include panels, deep-cycle batteries, cables, controllers, inverters, chargers and their components. Currently, systems are zero-rated for VAT
3. incentivising manufacturers to assemble systems including panels which assembly is not much more difficult than that of aluminum-framed windows
4. training workers in designing and installing systems
5. incentivising consumers to install PV systems through say, an income tax deduction
6. getting financial institutions involved to provide financing to cover front-loaded costs, and,
obtaining agreement from the Electric Utility to buy-back excess power from PV systems.
Such planning and the establishment of energy objectives should rightfully be domained in the Guyana Energy Agency but unfortunately, this entity seems distracted by fuel marking.
If a sensible plan is developed and implemented, Guyana could become a producer, user and exported of PV Systems creating wealth and jobs, and certainly rival Barbados for its saturation of solar hot-water systems.
Yours faithfully,
Louis Holder
