How regional cooperation is helping Saint Kitts & Nevis achieve its green energy goals.

Eight years after the 2015 Paris Agreement, the world has warmed on track to be 1.5 degrees hotter by 2050. Caribbean islands have since been impacted by 10 major hurricanes costing islands billions of dollars and numerous lives. In recognition of its eighth anniversary, the United Nations Framework Convention for Climate Change (UNFCCC) will be conducting its first Global Stocktake to measure where each country stands against its commitments outlined in its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). With so much at stake, how does the Caribbean region measure against its commitments?

Dubai Expo City where COP28 will be held in November.

Every CARICOM member country is a signatory to the Paris Agreement which aims to reduce carbon emissions through the enactment of their NDC. Many islands have pledged to develop a robust green energy sector since electrification and energy efficiency remain at the forefront of their development agenda. Further the electricity sector in the islands rely primarily on fossil fuel, a major contributor to green house gases.This is crucial because a successful transition to renewable energy is one of the only measures by which small islands with minimal carbon output can make their economies more resilient to the external shocks that will become more prevalent due to climate change and make significant strides in accomplishing set NDC goals.

Although not obvious at first glance, Caribbean islands are primed to achieve their adaptation goals – not through overflowing international support as had been originally hoped, but through robust regional cooperation.

SAINT KITTS ENERGY UNIT – Needmust, Basseterre.

The Federation’s updated NDC sets its major goal as a 61% reduction in carbon emissions by 2030 with a 2% reduction coming from transportation. When asked about Saint Kitts’ progress in fulfilling its commitments, Energy Officer, Mr. Denasio Frank was optimistic although realistic about the challenges that small islands face in the green energy transition.

He explained that the Saint Kitts and Nevis Energy Policy was built upon four pillars: electrification, energy saving/affordability, environment, and energy efficiency. Climate change and an over-dependence on oil are two of the greatest vulnerabilities to energy security in the Federation. He shared that the challenges of the energy transition can be summarised in three factors: lack of material resources, lack of human resources and the changing tide of political will.

Islands in the Eastern Caribbean are extremely limited in terms of landmass and thus the natural and manufacturing resources at their disposal. This means that technologies need to be imported at a cost to local economies, causing islands to lose out one the economic boost that would come from local manufacturing.

Larger islands like Trinidad illuminate this contrast. According to the Chamber of Energy in Trinidad and Tobago, solar panel manufacturing and installation has the potential to create 2000 jobs and value to offset the 1.3-billion-dollar cost. The introduction of a project of this scope is possible because of the country’s existing industrial infrastructure, mineral deposits and low-cost electricity due to its natural gas supply. Therefore, Trinidad can utilise resources that are simply not available for smaller islands.

Being reliant on expensive material imports is not an uncommon challenge for CARICOM governments to navigate. However, the green energy transition also requires a heavy reliance on highly specialised technical expertise which is limited in our islands. Mr. Frank said, "It takes a lot of human capacity to get a geothermal project off the ground, geophysical studies, geochemical studies etc, and we just don't have any of that."

In a webinar held by Climate Tracker on July 20th, guest speaker and the Junior Minister of Environment and Climate Change in Saint Kitts and Nevis, Honourable Joyelle Clarke said that "We have to import the expertise to develop our projects, import the funds to execute the projects, then import the expertise again to review our projects to determine if they were successful. This is problematic, this is not sustainable and it doesn't lend itself to innovation, creativity or indigenous knowledge."

SAINT KITTS ELECTRICITY COMPANY LTD. (SKELEC) - Transmission and Distribution Building, Needmust, Basseterre.

SKELEC Transmission and Distribution

Although the government, through the Energy Unit, plays a major role in the energy transition, it cannot be achieved without the energy providers. Mr. Jonathon Kelly, Engineering Manager at the Saint Kitts Electricity Company Limited (SKELEC) shared what he saw as the priorities of the company when navigating the transition to green energy.

Mr. Kelly explained that although the Federation had fallen behind on its original NDC target, renewable energy is something that the Federation is working tirelessly toward because green energy also represents progress toward energy security. A burdensome reliance on fossil fuels goes directly against development aims.

Mr. Kelly further emphasised that “The D in SIDS stands for developing. Renewable energy is a capital-intensive undertaking with the capital being required upfront. We are often unable to access that kind of early-stage financing.”

However, there is one development that may help ease access to financing available for energy finance. Mr. Kelly and Mr. Frank shared hope in the interconnection of the two electrical grids on each respective island of the Federation. This aims to reduce the burden of financing expensive small-scale projects. “When you look at it from the economics side, it looks [sort of] prohibitive. It's like a non-starter. How is this going to pay for itself? But when you link Saint Kitts and Nevis together, however, the project looks much more attractive," Mr. Kelly said. "Implementing Geothermal in Nevis will require 10's of millions of dollars to satisfy ten megawatts in Nevis alone." However, the plant can easily be sized up at minimal additional costs and be able to provide St. Kitts with a portion of its energy requirements.

Saint Kitts' NDC outlines 10 megawatts from solar sources in Saint Kitts and 15 megawatts from geothermal in Nevis. However subsequent studies estimate an energy potential of 25 megawatts from geothermal alone. This has the potential to accelerate the Federation towards surpassing its green energy goals.

Prime Minister Mia Mottley addressing world leaders at COP27 in Egypt 2022.

Despite the hope in interconnection, both Mr. Frank and Minister Clarke had limited faith in international bodies when it came to monetary assistance. They both expressed that even funds designated for climate resilience projects can be hard to access due to slow and cumbersome bureaucratic channels and restrictions. "By the time you figure out all the forms, sometimes the deadline has already closed," Mr. Frank said.

However, Minister Clarke is optimistic about the role that the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) will play at the upcoming COP28 in Dubai due to breakthroughs last year at COP27 in Egypt in the establishment of a loss and damage fund for climate disaster financing. Since then, there have been no concrete measures following the vague agreement signed last year.

That is not to say that there is no hope for collaboration, only that the greatest assistance in achieving these energy targets may be closer than previously thought.

Collaboration is still the only way that islands can hope to fulfill their goals. However strong evidence is pointing Caribbean governments to seek help from inside our regional borders instead of at the doorsteps of powerful nations.

Trinity Business Centre Barbados - Home to CCREEE Secretariat

“CCREEE (Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency) has actually been really helpful in the energy transitions, especially with providing that technical assistance,” Mr. Frank said. CCREEE is different in that it offers targeted support to one of the three challenge areas: lack of technical expertise. CCREEE was created to directly address the perceived gaps that prevent the Caribbean region from transforming renewable energy goals into tangible action.

Coat of Arms inside the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank in Saint Kitts.

“Then we have CCREEE which is a very important coordinating entity," said Mr. Kelly, "and then you also have the OECS (Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States) and CARICOM, they also play very significant roles, so you tend to find a lot of interlinkages between those three. Then from the financing side of it, you have CDB (Caribbean Development Bank)". The bank would have helped release 17 million dollars in a contingency grant for Nevis’s Geothermal project, specifically for well-drilling.

Mr. Frank also spoke about 2022 Geothermal Congress for Latin America and the Caribbean (GEOLAC) in Mexico City, where the OECS delegation unveiled the GeoBuild Programme. It is a three-year collaborative effort combining financial resources from the European Union Caribbean Investment Fund (EU-ICF), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Caribbean Development Bank (CDB). The project also aims to address specific gaps in scientific and engineering resources.

Through conversation with these experts, it is obvious that unlike larger more developed nations who have fallen behind their targets due to complacent inaction, SIDS do not have that privilege. Caribbean islands understand that a successful energy transition is a matter of survival. Therefore, the lack of progress is due to a lack of resources and not a lack of will. The region has every motivation to achieve its energy goals but little of the capital support promised.

“…IT FEELS LIKE WE ARE MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.”

Those words were uttered by Mr. Frank who, despite everything, describes himself as optimistic about the Federation's ability to fulfill its commitments. Mr. Kelly shared similar sentiments saying, "We have to start somewhere, and I don't think that we should be held back or daunted by these challenges…I think we just need to make a significant start somewhere and try to develop some expertise locally."

Leading into COP28, there are mixed sentiments regarding the conference since many see it as a failed initiative. It is difficult not to feel like nothing has changed with the world entering its hottest temperatures ever recorded. While it seems that climate adaptation of SIDS has been disregarded by more powerful nations, Caribbean islands are prepared to unify toward the common goal of climate resilience through the transition to green energy.