Organization of Eastern Caribbean States to Explore Possibilities of Geothermal Energy Later This Month
CASTRIES, St. Lucia –The Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) Commission will later this month host a webinar on geothermal energy, saying the use of the product has been an ongoing subject of research and exploration within the sub-region.
Image courtesy of the OECSIt said that the January 25 event will be held under the theme, “Geothermal Energy: Providing Opportunities Beyond Electricity”.
The Commission said that a recent study of three Caribbean islands, Dominica, Montserrat, and Nevis, examined opportunities for geothermal energy beyond electricity generation.
“Around the world, more countries are capitalizing on their geothermal resources, not only for electricity generation from a renewable affordable source, but also to support various industries within their economies.”
The St. Lucia-based OECS Commission said that with the renewed global emission targets agreed upon at the recently concluded United Nations Conference on Climate Change (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland, it is imperative that OECS member states fully explore the use of renewable energy sources.
“These efforts are needed to achieve net zero by 2050 – a global target set at COP26 – in which the total amount of carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere equals the total amount removed. This means that the use of fossil fuels must be reduced and eventually phased out to meet this target.”
The Commission said that given the region’s vast potential for power generation using geothermal energy, and the environmental and economic benefits to be derived, it has become necessary to explore the full potential of this energy source.
“Currently, Guadeloupe is the only country with a geothermal energy plant in the Caribbean, which produces five per cent of the island’s electricity,” it said, adding that in Iceland, about 100 per cent of electricity production is from renewable energy sources, with 73 per cent coming from hydropower and 27 per cent from geothermal power.
The Commission said an estimated 85 per cent of all houses in Iceland are heated using geothermal energy and that Kenya is another country that has capitalized on the use of geothermal energy, currently generating 630 megawatts of power from the renewable source.
Geothermal heating is a major success factor for one of Kenya’s largest flower exporters, Oserian, which allows the company to sell 380 million rose stems annually, which according to the Company’s managing director would be impossible without 24-hour heating of greenhouses with geothermal steam.
“The availability of this natural resource in the Caribbean region creates the potential for OECS member states to benefit in a similar way in the years ahead,” the Commission said, asking several questions regarding the use of geothermal and the socio-economic development of the sub-region.
