Guyana ranks second lowest in Region for renewable electricity generation – 2024 Report

Jun 24, 2024 News

Kaieteur News – Guyana has been ranked the second lowest country in Latin America and the Caribbean Region for power generation using renewables, a new report from the Development Bank of Latin and the Caribbean (CAF) shows.

Chart showing the share of non-fuel electricity generation, i.e., the share of non-thermal generation in electricity production and the percentage of this that is obtained from non-conventional renewable energy sources (NCRE), including solar and wind. (Source: CAF 2024 Energy Report)

CAF in its 2024 Report on Economic Development (RED) titled ‘Renewed energies: A just energy transition for sustainable development’ explained that total energy consumption in Latin America and the Caribbean is 24.2 exajoules (EJ), of which 20% (4.78 EJ) corresponds to electricity generation.

According to the report, “This electrification rate is slightly lower than that of OECD countries (around 22%) and remarkably heterogeneous across countries, ranging from lows of 1% and 7% in Haiti and Guatemala to highs of 26% and 27% in Panama and Suriname, respectively.”

Notably, 57% of electricity is produced from renewable sources in the region. This is significantly higher than the world average of 36%.

The energy report explains that the region has a relatively clean electricity matrix. “Nonconventional renewable energy (NCRE) represents 11% of power generation, similar to the global value, indicating that the advantage in non-fuel generation comes from water resources, from which 80% of electricity from renewable sources is generated,” the report states.

Furthermore, the participation of these sources in electricity generation is heterogeneous among countries. The Caribbean islands show low participation in nonfuel generation, reaching a maximum of 14% in the Dominican Republic.

Meanwhile, in South America, there is a group of countries with medium progress, where non-fuel generation represents between 30% and 40% of the total, and another group of advanced countries, with values between 74% and 80%.

Paraguay stands out in the report since all its generation comes from hydroelectric sources. Most of the Mesoamerican countries show values between 44% and 68%, with the exception of Mexico (23%), on the low end, and Costa Rica (99%), on the high end.

While the report did not provide specific details on the renewable power generated by Guyana or the nation’s progress in this regard, a table depicts poor use of electricity generated by non-conventional renewable energy sources (NCRE), including solar and wind.

The energy report highlights the need to increase the electrification rate and use of green energy options. It explains that in the International Energy Agency’s (IEA’s) announced net zero emissions scenario, the electrification rate for the region reaches 41% in 2050. Along with this expansion, there is a significant growth in installed capacity from solar and wind sources, which reach 43% and 19% in 2050, respectively.

While countries around the world transition to renewable energy, Guyana has taken a different approach and said it would provide the electricity needed through the use of natural gas- a cleaner fuel in comparison to the Heavy Fuel Oil (HFO) presently used to generate the country’s electrical needs.

In April, this newspaper reported that seven states are now using renewable energy to supply nearly all of their electricity needs. The Government of Guyana (GoG) is however adamant that renewable energy cannot be used to supply stable electricity for the country.

A recent report by the ‘Independent’ highlighted those countries, such as, Albania, Bhutan, Nepal, Paraguay, Iceland, Ethiopia and the Democratic Republic of Congo produced more than 99.7 percent of the electricity they consumed using geothermal, hydro, solar or wind power.

• CAF, Electricity, Guyana, renewables, Report