Dear Editor,
Noting that “Govt (is set) to roll out 8 solar farms (33MWp) across Guyana using US$83.3M from Norway funds” made me stop and think. In fact, my mind raced to Kenya, where in the last 10-12 years, solar farming has grown from experimental technology to something nearly everyone can take advantage of. Right in the said Kenya, at one time, most smallholder farmers depended on rainfall to irrigate their crops. And this cannot work. In reality, only about 2% of farmland in Kenya was irrigated this way, and as we all know, this posed problems for the majority of Kenyan farmers. However, SunCulture, that designs, manufactures, finances and distributes solar-powered irrigation systems and services, has efficiently helped farmers over there overcome their everyday challenges by empowering them with solar power.
Guyana must follow suit, and not just because of Kenya’s transition; solar farm has many outstanding benefits. It is the logical shift. Research literature shows that ‘Solar Farms’ are an incredible source of energy and produce zero emissions. Solar farms are indeed a growing industry that does not require carbon-intensive fossil fuels to generate power. Solar Energy, as we know, does not cause pollution. It provides valuable construction and maintenance jobs and can help reduce utility bills for homes or businesses. What is quite revealing is that solar farms already offer large amounts of clean energy to homes across America, already powering some 2 million homes. Where solar farm technology is concerned, it is improving each year significantly. In fact, it is not by chance that solar farms have grown quite big in places like the US and China, and it is ever on the rise.
I repeat then that the news in Guyana is good. The inner details show that “… three of the solar farms in question will be built on vacant agricultural land at Prospect, (East Bank of Demerara), Hampshire on the Corentyne coast and Trafalgar in Mahaica-Berbice … two solar farms will be built on former mining land in Dacoura and Retrieve, while another one will be built in Block 37 … two final solar farms will be built at Onderneeming and Charity, both in Essequibo.”
Editor, outside of the financial and environmental positives of these proposed solar farms, there is another ‘drive factor’ for this up-coming initiative. Information shows that 90% of Guyanese are concentrated on the coastal plain, much of which lies at 0.5 to 1m below sea level, thereby necessitating a high level of infrastructure (sea defence, dykes, canals, drains etc.), the maintenance of which is a constant drain on the country’s economic resources. According to the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS), 39% of the population, producing 43% of Gross Domestic Product (GDP), live in regions exposed to significant flooding risk. By 2030 flooding is estimated to cost US$150m annually.
The picture is clear then: There is the urgent need to identify and develop land away from the coastal plain. Accompanying this is the fact that “… the project will enable the diversification of the local economies, and by extension, the national economy, providing a more reliable and stable form of electricity, while avoiding the volatility of the global fuel market … Further, it was noted that these projects will allow the Government to reduce its expenditure on subsidizing electricity, which can be used in other areas such as system upgrades, and improving the overall Guyana Power and Light (GPL) systems. Overall, the country stands to benefit immensely.
Sincerely,
HB Singh
