Thirty persons from CARICOM member states were recently trained in renewable energy technologies and utilization when they participated in four technical sessions at a workshop that focused on solar cooling and heating systems, photovoltaics and wind energy.
The workshop, from May 9-11 in Bridgetown, Barbados, was titled SATIS 2012: Sustainable Alternatives for Tropical Island States, a training workshop on Renewable Energy Technologies, said a press release from the CARICOM Secretariat at Turkeyen.
It was hosted by the Caribbean Solar Energy Society with key sponsorship provided by the Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarollo (AECID) (representing the Government of Spain). SATIS 2012 was supported by the CARICOM Secretariat and the Organization of American States (OAS).
According to Caribbean Solar Energy Society (CSES) President, Dr. Indra Haraksingh, the aim of the SATIS series is to bring together persons interested in sustainable energy for the Caribbean region to present and discuss ongoing work in renewable energy resources and technology with relevance to the Caribbean. The first conference of the SATIS series, which was organized by the CSES, took place in Barbados in 1994. After seven conferences, eighteen years later, the meeting returned to the site of its origin.
In the feature address at the workshop’s opening ceremony, Minister in the Office of the Prime Minister with responsibility for Energy, Senator Darcy Boyce, outlined the government of Barbados’ plans and initiatives in keeping with its thrust towards increased deployment and use of sustainable energy.
He stated that the government aimed to increase the percentage of renewables in the energy mix to 30% within the next 30 years, primarily through waste-to-energy programmes, solar and wind energy systems.
He also announced that 19 government buildings would be retrofitted for efficient energy use as well as outfitted with photovoltaic panels to demonstrate to businesses that renewable energy could be an economically feasible option.
Other initiatives which the Barbados government was considering to stimulate the use of renewables include a 50% rebate on land tax for properties used to produce energy and the development of a curriculum for certifying persons in the design and installation of renewable energy systems, the release stated.
Ambassador of Spain to CARICOM, Joaquin de Arístegui LaBorde also addressed the opening ceremony, informing the audience that Spain was one of the world’s largest investors in sustainable energy and 37 per cent of its electricity consumption was met from renewable energy sources.
He noted that his country had “a wealth of experience in the most problematic areas of renewable energy: cost-effectiveness, technological challenges, and raising public awareness and acceptance of renewable energy systems”. He reaffirmed his government’s commitment to lending its expertise to countries and/or bodies within the region interested in advancing the use of renewables.
The CARICOM Secretariat was represented by Joseph Williams, Programme Manager, Energy, and the OAS by Kevin de Cuba, ECPA Caribbean Initiative Manager, Division of Energy and Climate Change Mitigation.
The workshop was especially timely, coming on the heels of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) High Level Conference of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) on Achieving Sustainable Energy for All.
Attaining the goals endorsed at this meeting will depend on having a critical mass of persons trained in effective renewable energy development and utilization, the release noted.
Three of the four workshop facilitators were regional experts in their fields, while the fourth, a lecturer and expert in Solar Cooling technology, was from the Netherlands.
The workshop also included a field trip to one of Barbados’ recent photovoltaic installations at the National Oil Company’s office location, the release concluded.
