The Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) on Friday evening officially commissioned nine solar-powered LED street lights which were installed in the National Park.
According to the GEA, the installation is in keeping with the agency’s directive to encourage the utilisation of sources of energy other than that which are presently in use. The project, which cost $2,465,000, was funded in part through a grant under the Canadian Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI).
At the commissioning, the Deputy Commissioner of the Protected Areas Commission Denise Bentinck stated that the installation of the lights is very necessary as they have seen an increased demand in persons wishing to utilise the National Park at night. “In recent times, we have witnessed an increased demand in patrons to utilise the park beyond the twilight hours. This has presented new challenges to ensure that there is adequate cost efficient lighting available for the public and also security monitoring,” Bentinck said.
The commissioner then added that the programme for the provision of solar lighting began in 2017. She further stated that the commission will continue to work with its partners and will in the near future install more lights in the National Park, along with 25 solar lights in the Botanical Gardens.
Also delivering remarks at the event was the High Commissioner of Canada to Guyana, Lilian Chaterjee, who stated that she was excited to be present at the ceremony, which came appropriately after Earth Day. The commissioner indicated that Canada was pleased to be a part of the initiative by rendering support through the CFLI. “Solar power is now very clearly one of the most important solutions to the global warming crisis. Solar power provides energy independence, the fuel for solar panels cannot be bought or monopolized; it is free for all to use and once you have solar panels you have an independent source of electricity,” Chaterjee said. She then added that as a partner to Guyana, they will continue to work with the GEA by addressing the root causes of environmental vulnerability.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the GEA Dr Mahender Sharma later praised the initiative and stated that the agency has recently completed a tender to install 40 street lights in every region. “We decided to do 40 street lights in every region in 2019. So that tender was just completed. We’re at the evaluation stage and we will roll that out in 2019,” Sharma said.
He added that the initiative came about after they had installed street lights in Bartica and noticed that the region, following on their momentum, installed more street lights on their own. “We want to see that effect again, we want to see other entities seeing the initiative, looking at what we’ve done and exemplifying it in their own ways,” the CEO added.
He told the gathering that the agency has been working with a number of other organisations to undertake numerous projects in the areas of solar, wind, hydro and bio-energy. “By the end of 2019, we would’ve installed solar panels on more than 240 government buildings in the last three years alone. More than four megawatts in solar PV installed on the rooftops on our government buildings, we would’ve installed more than 20,000 LED street lights,” Sharma said, as he spoke about some of the initiatives that the GEA has undertaken.
