CARICOM secretariat unveils solar energy system

A 400-kilowatt solar photovoltaic power generation system erected on the grounds of the CARICOM Secretariat Headquarters in Georgetown, Guyana, will be handed over at 1:00 p.m today, January 11, 2022.

The Solar Photovoltaic Power Generation Plant with Battery and Building Energy Management Systems is a project that was undertaken through grant financing.

The US$17.8million grant agreement was made between the governments of Guyana and Japan, of which US$7 million was earmarked for the photovoltaic project.

The transformation of the foreground of the Secretariat included mounting more than 1 500 solar panels, setting up servers and batteries, building a car port and allotting space for educational/recreational activities. Panels and other equipment were installed in the building, and staff were trained to man the operations.

The building is expected to get all of its energy from solar-based sources on a majority of its operating days. Overall, the Secretariat is expected to have a net-zero energy balance on the basis that there will be available excess energy that can provide power to the national grid during its off-peak operations.

It is anticipated that the benefits the secretariat will derive from the project will serve as an example of the transformation that can occur in public buildings across the Region and, by extension, an example of how the Region can utilise the renewable energy resources at its disposal to move towards greater energy efficiency and resilience, the release adds.

President of Guyana, Dr. Mohamed Irfaan Ali will deliver the keynote address at the ceremony which will also be livestreamed on Facebook and Youtube.

Other speakers include: CARICOM Secretary-general, Dr. Carla N. Barnett; Chief representative to the Caribbean, Japan International Cooperation Agency Hiroyasu Tonokawa, and Ambassador of Japan to the Cooperative Republic of Guyana and CARICOM, Tatsuo Hirayama.