It is the way of the future for region: SPREP

Asterio Takesy
The recent dramatic increase in the cost of fuel has left a powerful impact on lives in the Pacific.

In the past few months, the electricity tariff has increased by about 20% in Tonga; the Marshall Islands is currently in a state of economic emergency tied to the soaring cost of fuel; the Solomon Islands government recently spent more than US$400,000 in an attempt to overcome frequent power shutdowns in Honiara; and bus owners have protested demanding a fare increase in Fiji.

Virtually everything we buy is affected - from the price of a fast food lunch to the new fees and weight restrictions introduced by airlines.

As I write this, oil prices have slipped somewhat from the recent highs. Nonetheless, now more than ever, we in the Pacific need to focus on development of renewable energy sources and improved energy efficiency.

Solomone Fifita is the Manager of SPREP’s project focusing on removing the barriers to the widespread utilisation of feasible renewable energy technologies in the Pacific-the Pacific Islands Greenhouse Gas Abatement through Renewable Energy Project (PIGGAREP).

He believes the Pacific region should not simply be focusing on renewables as a ‘knee jerk’ reaction to the impact of rising fuel prices, but instead focus on committing to renewable energy as a future way of life for the region.

The last time there was this much interest throughout the Pacific in renewable energy was during the oil crises of the 1970s.

At that time many Pacific islands adopted alternative energy technologies with very promising results—at one time more than half of the electricity generated in Fiji and Samoa came from renewables.

The intervening years have seen this promising start erode as fuel prices came down from these historic highs.
It’s hard to imagine what could have been accomplished, 35 years later, if this early momentum was maintained.

There clearly is potential—think of the wave and OTEC energy that could be derived from our vast ocean resources, but that remains virtually untouched.   

The key energy problem we face in the region is a consequence of putting all our eggs in just one basket: that of expensive and polluting fossil fuel.

Clearly, we need to look at alternatives but it’s important that we don’t view renewable energy as just a “quick fix” for high prices but rather as the foundation of our future energy policies.

We all know that a fossil fuel energy path is not sustainable.

Regardless of where prices go from now in the current crisis, we need to invest in renewables now to better deal with the many crises in petroleum markets that invariably will come.

Fortunately, these long-term commitments to renewable energy are now being forged in the region. To cite but a few examples, the Fiji Electricity Authority has a vision of becoming a completely renewable energy power utility by 2011; the power utility in Vanuatu (UNELCO) has a target of generating 25% of its electricity from renewables by 2020; and Samoa aims to increase its current share of renewable energy by 20% by 2030.

While our global footprint is small, in the islands we feel it is essential that we take the lead in embracing renewable energy as a strong signal to the rest of the world.

There is currently a flurry of activity in this regard. The Cook Islands will be carrying out a topographical and geo-technical study of a possible wind farm on Rarotonga.

Consultants are studying how best to establish a Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Unit within the Tuvalu Electricity Corporation.

Households in Niue are currently replacing their electric water heaters with solar water heaters and experts will conduct a study on progressively introducing renewable energy into the country’s existing generation and distribution networks.

A consultancy firm will soon begin a wind power feasibility study in Nauru.

The staff of the Kiribati Solar Energy Company Ltd. is undergoing training on the latest solar utility management software. These are but a few of the encouraging initiatives now underway in the region.

Clearly, governments need to make the long-term commitments to pursue a renewable energy path.

That is the first step toward working with our development partners to begin tapping the vast potential that the region has for renewable energy.