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Showing 9 of 164 news items in Energy & Transport

Energy & TransportApril 16, 2025

OECS launches publication on geothermal development in East Caribbean

The[Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States](https://oecs.int/en/) (OECS) Commission has launched **“**[Power Below The Surface: Harnessing Geothermal Energy in the OECS](https://bit.ly/powerbelowthesurfaceflipbook)“, a publication that details the current status of geothermal development in the Eastern Caribbean and provides an outlook for the future of this sector. The booklet was launched in a special “OECS sustainable energy celebration” at the climax of the 3rd Nationally Determined Contributions Investment Forum and Marketplace, held at the Radisson Grenada Beach Resort from March 31 to April 2. It was formally presented to Hon. Konris Maynard of St Kitts and Nevis, the current chair of the OECS Council of Ministers: Energy by Dr. Ernie Stapleton, OECS GEOBUILD’s Project Manager. This comprehensive, 48-page publication, developed under the OECS Geothermal Energy: Capacity Building for Utilisation, Investment and Local Development ([GEOBUILD](https://oecs.int/en/geobuild)) Programme, details the current status of geothermal projects across the region, from [Dominica’s advanced 10-MW power plant development](https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/dominica-pm-provides-update-on-construction-of-laudat-geothermal-power-plant/) scheduled for completion in December 2025 to emerging projects in four other Member States: [Grenada](https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/grenada-geothermal-project-receives-further-funding-support-from-cbd-and-uk-fcdo/), [Saint Kitts and Nevis](https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/nevis-geothermal-project-going-into-bidding-process-for-drilling/), [Saint Lucia](https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/world-bank-to-support-geothermal-exploration-at-saint-lucia-caribbean/), and [St Vincent and the Grenadines](https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/st-vincents-grenadines-officials-reassure-support-of-geothermal-project/). The booklet also addresses key aspects of geothermal development, including environmental benefits, economic advantages, and various technological approaches to geothermal power generation.

Energy & TransportApril 7, 2025

Sidlak: Sustaining solar in Cebu’s isolated islands – A Documentary

Excerpt and Photo from rappler.com In the islands of Olango, Cebu, [renewable energy](https://www.rappler.com/topic/renewable-energy/) and wildlife conservation work hand in hand. The Olango Island Wildlife Sanctuary (OIWS), the country’s first Ramsar Wetland of International Importance, is a vital stopover for 60 species of migratory shorebirds that travel within the East Asian-Australian Flyway. The sanctuary is fully energized with the help of solar power energy. According to OIWS warden Cristino Patigdas, the use of solar power panels has helped in reducing the costs of their operations and removing the need for loud gas-powered generators and transmission lines that get in the way of birds flying in the sanctuary. Many advocacy groups, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies have also ventured into supporting the isolated barangays of Olango’s smaller islands by providing them with solar panel units. However, with the lack of solar panel maintenance stations and a proper e-waste disposal policy, Olango residents may find themselves with an impending public health problem and bigger waste concerns. Watch this documentary by John Sitchon on Olango Islands’ struggle with [clean energy transition](https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/explainers/things-to-know-just-energy-transition/) and the challenges of sustainable technology in isolated island communities.

Energy & TransportApril 7, 2025

Greece’s first solar panel recycling machine installed in Crete

Photo: Katheris. Retrieved from balkangreenenergynews.com Greek company Katheris said it installed the country’s first solar panel recycling machine. As one of few such endeavors in entire Southeastern Europe, the business move could contribute to the development of a lucrative market that would ease environmental and climate impact. Repairing and recycling solar panels is limited, and landfilling is still a common practice throughout the world. Photovoltaic waste is expected to reach 4% to 14% of total electricity production capacity by 2030 and rise to as much as 60 to 80 million tons by 2050. Katheris, a recycling company based in Herakleion (Heraklion), the capital of Crete, Greece’s largest island, saw an opportunity in solar panel waste. PV modules contain valuable materials, of which silver, crystalline silicon, aluminum and copper are the most valuable. There are also toxic heavy metals inside, a major environmental risk. Before modular designs become standardized so panels can be dismantled easily, the development of a recycling market will likely remain slow. Landfilling is cheap when there are no strict regulations for such electronic waste, and recovering separate materials is costly.

Energy & TransportApril 7, 2025

Reimagining the Electricity Sector in Island Nations with Virtual Power Plants

Excerpt and Photo from rmi.org Distributed virtual power plants (VPPs) can revolutionize the Caribbean’s energy landscape. These networks of decentralized and distributed energy sources (DERs) are aggregated and actively controlled by a VPP aggregator, enabling hundreds or thousands of devices to operate as a unified system offering an innovative solution to the region’s energy challenges. Many island nations remain heavily dependent on expensive, imported and polluting fossil fuels for electricity generation, leaving them vulnerable to volatile global fuel prices and frequent power outages due to aging grid infrastructure. Climate change further exacerbates these challenges, with hurricanes posing a constant threat to power systems and economic stability. However, VPPs offer a promising solution by aggregating distributed energy resources such as rooftop solar panels and battery energy storage systems, as well as flexible loads like electric vehicle chargers and smart thermostats, to provide energy, capacity, or ancillary services to the grid through the VPP aggregator. By increasing the contributions of decentralized and distributed energy resources, VPPs can enhance energy resilience, reduce electricity system costs, and provide greater flexibility for electricity generation and ancillary services requirements on the grid. This report presents an in-depth analysis of these benefits, using a case study from the US Virgin Islands (USVI) to demonstrate how VPPs can stabilize the grid to enhance energy resilience and bolster disaster preparedness, while also improving overall system affordability and flexibility.

Energy & TransportMarch 31, 2025

Namayingo islands women crossing treacherous lake for childbirth

Photo courtesy of Betty Angatai. Retrieved from newvision.co.ug When Esther Atieno started feeling sharp pain, she did not know that she was in labour, considering that she still had three weeks to the expected date of delivery. Atieno assumed it was just normal discomfort or the baby shifting position in the womb. However, the pain intensified, leaving her paralysed. At about 10:00pm, a boat was got to rush Atieno, a resident of Lake Victoria’s Wayasi island in Namayingo district, to the health facility on Mageta Island across the border in Kenya. The baby could not wait: Atieno gave birth in the middle of Lake Victoria without assistance from a midwife and proper materials for childbirth. “I had nothing to use during delivery. We had to cut the baby’s umbilical cord with a piece of iron sheet that was patched onto the boat,” Atieno says. The dire situation was compounded by the heavy downpour immediately after giving birth. “We put the baby in a tin we normally use to scoop water from the wooden boat, hoping to keep the newborn warm,” she recalls.

Energy & TransportMarch 31, 2025

Bicycle revolution underway on Torres Strait’s Thursday Island

Photo Supplied: Sarah Tedder. Retrieved from abc.net.au On the face of it, bicycles should be a great way to get around on Thursday Island, or “TI”, in the Torres Strait. The 3.5-square-kilometre tropical island has a designated cycleway and most things are a five to 10-minute ride away. There is no public transport and [fuel prices — $2.55 a litre for unleaded — are among the highest in the country](https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-11-22/cost-of-living-crisis-in-torres-strait-cape-york-gulf/103108608). But after moving her young family to TI from New South Wales in 2023, Sarah Tedder was struck by the lack of people pedalling around. “As I was riding around with my kids, I just wasn’t seeing many other bikes at all,” she said. It turned out bicycles just weren’t a thing on TI. There was no bike shop on the island and shipping them from Cairns, the nearest mainland city more than 1,000 kilometres away, was expensive. After surveying community members nearly a year ago, Ms Tedder found while some kids had a bike, it was a different story for adults, with many relying on taxis to get their children to school or run errands.

Energy & TransportMarch 31, 2025

Olutanga Island banks on hydrogen power to end years of blackouts

Photo courtesy of Antonio Manaytay/Rappler Separated by a strait from the mainland of Zamboanga Sibugay, Olutanga Island is a place of breathtaking beauty, where turquoise waters meet lush green landscapes. But behind its idyllic scenery lies a community grappling with a persistent and crippling energy crisis. For years, residents have endured daily power interruptions lasting anywhere from two to eight hours, a problem that has stifled growth, disrupted lives, and left many feeling forgotten. “We have grown accustomed to living our lives in the comfort of the ordinary,” said Joseph Sumayo, brother of the village chief of Barangay Sagay in Talusan town. But now, a glimmer of hope has emerged in the form of a proposed hydrogen power plant, promising to bring stable and sustainable energy to the island. While the project offers a vision of a brighter future, not everyone is hopeful it will deliver on its promises.

Energy & TransportMarch 27, 2025

Global Summit to Spotlight Nevis’ Renewable Energy Potential

Excerpt and Photo from thestkittsnevisobserver.com Nevis’ geothermal energy project will be a major focus of the Global Sustainable Islands Summit 2025, which St. Kitts and Nevis is set to host from May 25 to 30. The summit will bring together global experts, government officials, and sustainability leaders to discuss critical issues affecting island nations, with Nevis emerging as a model for clean energy development. On Friday, March 7, Premier of Nevis and Minister of Energy and Public Utilities, the Hon. Mark Brantley, along with Minister of Environment, the Hon. Spencer Brand, met with summit representatives to finalise key discussions. James Ellsmore, CEO of Island Innovation, the consulting firm working with the government to host the summit, confirmed that Nevis’ geothermal potential will be a highlight of the event. “The forums taking place in Nevis will be very specific to some of the challenges and opportunities that work for this island,” Ellsmore stated. “There will be a geothermal energy forum taking place here to explore the relevance, of course, for the local economy and the opportunity that geothermal will bring to Nevis and other islands from around the world that are exploring their own geothermal resources.”

Energy & TransportMarch 24, 2025

Celebrating the riders who keep their small Peruvian island on the map and on the move

Photo courtesy of Diego Bendezu, 2025. Retrieved from itsnicethat.com “The idea came to me while travelling to Amantani [an island on the Peruvian side of Lake Titicaca] for a job,” says photographer Diego Bendezu. “As I spent time there, I noticed the young bikers navigating the island’s paths.” These riders are working to making tourism and transport more accessible, he explains. “What struck me was how they were quietly pushing the islands into a new era… despite initial resistance from some locals.” This was the origin of the Peruvian artist’s new photography series, Island Bikers. “Their story felt important, yet unlikely to be told by anyone outside their community,” Diego continues, explaining that he wanted to reflect both the island’s progress and the bikers’ deep affection for it. This adoration and sense of dedication is apparent in Diego’s photographs. Contrast is rife – whether it’s between the accelerating sense of movement clashing with soft hues and warm lines, or the inorganic forms of the biker’s vehicle bouncing off Peru’s beautifully scattered, undulated lanscape. As a result, the characters, settings and scenes feel ultimately timeless. “The hope was for the images to feel lasting,” Diego says, “something that could be looked at years from now and still feel important,” whilst equally capturing the island’s magical, distinctive atmosphere. “Being in a place with almost no signal, completely disconnected, felt like stepping into a dreamlike escape from reality,” a sensation that heightened his awareness of both the islands’ beauty and the biker’s beneficial business. “I wanted to visually translate that feeling into the series,” he adds, “something ethereal yet grounded in the everyday lives of these young bikers.” In doing so, he captures the connection they have with their island, and creates a space for audiences to observe, be curious, and listen. “I hope the series reminds people of the importance of everyday stories,” he adds, “the kind that often go unnoticed but shape communities in meaningful ways”.