As government moves forward with plans to generate electricity from blended energy sources in a bid to provide stable power supply to Guyanese, a study is currently underway on the possibilities of a smart electrical grid.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo told a press conference at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Monday that the government is working on the project and is hoping to have in place by 2024, when electricity generated from the Wales gas-to-shore project and the Amaila Falls hydropower project come into play.
Further, he indicated that US$80 million from Inter-American Development Bank that was earmarked for the Amaila Falls hydropower project will be redirected to the creation of large solar farms.
In addition, he disclosed that it is the administration’s plan to triple the installation capacity on the electrical grid.
According to the Vice President, it is projected that electricity demand will be greater by 2024 and so provisions are also being made to have the amount of power that comes through private generation to go into reserves and be used to meet demands.
“A lot of the demand now in the current situation is met by private generations so we assume in the future when the power becomes more feasible and the cost is cut by half by 2024, soon as the gas-to-energy comes on stream business and consumers… people will come on to the grid. So, therefore, we have to cater to that and that is why we are planning to triple installed capacity,” he added.
He pointed out that the current grid has several problems, which has been the reason for power outages across the country. However, it is hoped that the issues can be fixed and the grid configured to accommodate an influx of electricity from the two mega projects.
“So we are now doing a study to have an overall improvement of the grid so that when all of this power comes in… the grid can handle it and its stable and we don’t have all these blackouts…” he explained.
Faulty transformers from the grid will also have to be replaced, Jagdeo related.
At the same time, he disclosed that the government is looking at being able to monitor the grid from an office and easily detect and identify faults and errors on the system.
“The next big thing we’re working on [is] a stable smart grid… where fiber will be on all the electricity lines, that you can sit in a control room and know [where there is a problem] without having to send a crew out, and get a report when there is a power outage, any part of this country… That is the next phase we are working on now,” he added.
Jagdeo posited that the smart grid will not only improve the efficiency of the power supply but will also work in favour of Guyana’s decarbonising goals.
“… if it is done well, it can help to reduce transmission losses. Transmission losses mean less carbon too, because the less power you have to produce. So, that in itself is a decarbonising option. You know, just resealing some of the existing transmission lines can cut the losses significantly,” he explained.
With the mega power projects set to come into play by 2024, it is government’s intention to reduce the cost for power supply by 50%.
The vice-president pointed that the PPP/C led government is not just working at the planning level, but at the implementing level as well. “We are working and plans we are implementing now, we are not talking about strategies now because strategies do not bring benefits to the people.”
In the same breath, he reminded that government is actively working on smaller remote renewable energy projects to benefit those persons who reside in the hinterland and cannot be connected to the national grid.
Renewable energy projects are being done in Moco Moco, Kumu, Bartica, Kako, Leguan, and Wakenaam.
