The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) will fund a pilot project in partnership with the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs of T&T to enhance the renewable energy and energy efficiency potential for the Caribbean twin-island republic, IDB principal energy specialist, IDB principal energy specialist Natacha Marzolf said on Monday in an e-mail to the Business Guardian. She said: "This pilot project-most likely to be implemented in Tobago-is part of a larger technical assistance grant focusing on introducing cleaner energy in the country and which consists of:
(i) providing support to build a Sustainable Energy Matrix for the country;
(ii) promoting renewable energy and energy efficiency potential, and
(iii) encouraging conservative use of fossil fuels
"For this technical assistance grant, the T&T Government is contributing US$140,000 in kind-office space and staff support-to the project, while the IDB is putting US$700,000 in financial resources." The Centre of Partnerships for Development (CAD), one of the consultants that the IDB has engaged for this project, already has as its local address an office at the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs' 15th floor premises on the International Waterfront in Port-of-Spain. In total the project is worth US$840,000 or $5.376 million. Of the US$700,000, approximately US$500,000 or 390,000 euros will go to a consortium of consultants comprising two consultants from Spain and one from Germany, CAD Dr Director Fernando Casado and Marzolf concurred during the launch of the programme in Port-of-Spain recently.
The consortium comprises CAD, and LKS Ingenieria S Coop of Spain, and Projekt-consult GmBH of Germany. The consultant from Barcelona, CAD, had November 23 previously announced through Spanish news EFE that it won the bid for the consultancy to help T&T "reform its energy system." CAD said the objective is to help the country to establish a more sustainable energy mix for T&T and to reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. At the launch, CAD's Casado said the project is expected to last 16 months. In its media brief, the Energy Ministry said the launch of the Sustainable Energy Programme signals "the official start of development on a Sustainable Energy Matrix for T&T," with the help of the consultants. The consultants will provide policy and technical support to the ministry in the areas of renewable energy and energy efficiency. "Since August 2012, three technical missions have been conducted with various stakeholders in T&T, laying the foundation for the eventual creation of a sustainable energy framework for this country," the ministry said.
Elements of the Sustainable Matrix
The Sustainable Energy Matrix to be developed comprises four main components: 1. preparation of the sustainable energy programme and capacity building; 2. provision of technical assistance to the government in the area of energy efficiency and policy support; 3. exploration of alternatives for renewable energy funding and for a renewable energy pilot programme; undertaking of specific studies and preparation of support material At the launch, Energy and Energy Affairs Minister Kevin Ramnarine said that while T&T has electricity ten times cheaper than the rest of the Caribbean at US$0.04-US$0.05 per kilowatt hour, 99-100 per cent of the country's electricity is powered by natural gas, and this needs to be diversified. He said the World Bank ranks T&T as one of the most energy inefficient countries in the world.
He said this is due to old equipment at Point Lisas (30-40 years old), simple cycle power plants, and the lack of a culture of energy conservation in T&T. He said the Government is working to broaden its energy mix and announced that the Government will next commission a windresource assessment study. This will generate a wind map that will show scientists what parts of T&T can harvest the most wind as renewable energy. Ramnarine said there is provision in T&T's production sharing contracts (PSCs) with oil and gas operators, for research and development (R&D) to be allocated funds. He said government is going to start "to tap into that R&D fund for what it was originally intended to do."
Local content
Meanwhile, award-wining Arthur Lok Jack Graduate School of Business (GSB) sustainable energy management programme director Dr Zaffar Khan was demanding an explanation from the Energy Minister on why the school was left out of the ministry-sponsored pilot project with the IDB. He said the Lok Jack GSB, which on October 17, 2012, won a global innovation award from the United Kingdom Association of MBAs (AMBA), could have done the energy matrix and framework for the country, and questioned why the school was bypassed and he (Khan) not invited to the launch. "We have the expertise here. I don't know why the ministry went looking for foreign expertise," he said, "and the ministry has a local content policy, so that is the problem with the ministry."
He said the ministry could not claim ignorance of the expertise at Lok Jack GSB because permanent secretary (PS) Vishnu Dhanpaul of the ministry, on November 26, spoke at a reception to celebrate the international award bestowed on Lok Jack GSB. He said both the PS and the energy minister are alumni of the Lok Jack institution. CAD's Casado said in response to a Business Guardian e-mail enquiry: "Satisfaction with the T&T Ministry of Energy so far (has been) very positive. I believe the Ministry of Energy team with which we are working, under the supervision of Randy Maurice and Randy Ramadharsingh, have been very supportive of our work, and we have created a joint team with them which is working with enthusiasm on this issue. "Actually, they have agreed to provide us with office space for our local consultant responsible of the project, Lauren Mia Britton, and I believe that we are creating the needed.
Solar applications
Another local consultant, Ian Smart, chief executive of Smart Energy Ltd, said: "I have been invited to technical meetings, but I (still) hope to be contracted in an official capacity." He said he hopes to see more local content in the project. Asked what components of the sustainable energy programme could have been done by locals, he said the solar integration, capacity building, awareness raising and energy efficiency assessment and implementation. He said Smart Energy Ltd has designed and installed off-grid solar applications for various locations across T&T, including an ecolodge in Tobago, and, he said, it has also locally assembled solar street lights. Smart Energy Ltd has also taught a series of short courses in renewable energy, solar energy and energy efficiency at the School of Business and Computer Science (SBCS), he said. "We have conducted energy audits for commercial and residential buildings," Smart said.
He said his company has been raising awareness in renewable energy and energy efficiency through presentations at different events and institutions via different media such as newspaper articles, radio programmes, social media. Smart Energy Ltd also collaborated with sustainTT to present a documentary film "4th Revolution" at the Green Screen event, he said. Smart said his company is "very unique in that it has touched on teaching, advocacy for renewable energy and energy efficiency, solar installations, light manufacturing and consultancy. No other company is doing this combination, but there are other companies that do similar aspects." Lok Jack GSB's Khan said he thinks the ministry did not do a very thorough search locally before going abroad. "That's one of the major problems," Khan said.