Cuba’s Energy Initiatives

Cuba's Energy Initiatives

April 17, 2014

Fernando Ravsberg*



HAVANA TIMES — A work group for the promotion of renewable sources of

energy was recently assembled in Cuba. It is a space for debate on the

different points of view regarding what sources of energy could

contribute to the country's sustainable development.



Only 5 % of the energy Cuba consumes is derived from renewable sources.

Oil dependence has already driven the country to the edge of the

precipice several times – first with the US embargo, then with the

collapse of the Soviet Union and now with the crisis in Venezuela.



The country has been investing in solar, wind and biomass energy, and

trying to make optimal use of accompanying gas, for some years now.

Today, it is in search of foreign companies willing to invest some US $

3 billion in the sector.



It's true these sources of energy are expensive, but, considering that

oil is currently at US $100 the barrel and oil prices continue to rise,

the investment will be profitable in the long term. It will give Cuba

the independence it needs to develop its economy with no hurdles other

than its own.



Uruguay is well on its way to achieving this: all of the country's

energy will be produced by hydroelectric plants and wind farms, an

infrastructure which the country's Energy Director tells us will have

citizens paying lower electricity bills.



That could well be Cuba's path: creating more wind farms, accompanying

gas processing plants, solar panels, bagasse-driven generators and

paying closer attention to Cuban research now also proposing the use of

marabou plants for energy production.



No one can discard the possibility that good quality oil will one day be

found in Cuba, but I believe one shouldn't put all of one's eggs in one

basket and count on the discovery of a miraculous well that will flood

the island with crude and turn Cuba into an OPEP member overnight.



Not much hope of finding oil beneath the seabed remains after the oil

platform left Cuban waters, and it is not exactly advisable to again

dream of building nuclear power plants like those that caused serious

accidents in the United States, the Ukraine and Japan.



Cuban authorities seem to understand this and are taking the first steps

down the road leading to energy independence, with the great, additional

advantage of employing technologies that do not damage the environment

or put human life at risk.



Diving into the Deep



Bolstering renewable energy sources, however, is no easy task. It

requires a lot of time, large investments and cutting edge technology.

This explains why Cuba is offering generous tax exemptions to

businesspeople interested in investing in this sector.



This is fine for the macro level, but progress could be achieved quicker

if local versions of this same project existed, allowing citizens to

participate and thus saving the nation fuel and money.



However, it is next to impossible for a Cuban to buy solar paneling,

wind-mills or mini-hydroelectric plants for their homes, to be able to

at least generate part of the electricity they require in their farms.



I've visited tobacco-growing areas in Pinar del Rio where there's no

electricity. Even though most of these farmers make good money (and in

hard currency), they can't watch television, own a fridge or enjoy a fan.



Renewable energy generators should be sold to the public at affordable

prices – meanness should go out the window when the interests of the

nation are at stake. The State will start to see profits as its oil bill

begins to decrease.



Cuba's vehicles also do not reflect these alternative initiatives. The

country does not import electric cars and does not authorize the use of

natural gas as fuel, as is the case in other countries in the region.

Cubans have no other option than to use gasoline or diesel, and at

hair-raising prices.



Current automobile prices in Cuba give the government more than enough

financial elbow room to offer discounts for electric cars, which can be

charged during the night, when most of the energy produced is lost.



Cuba could also import gas-operated devices that save enormous amounts

of fuel. Ironically, Cuban authorities apply fines to those who use this

technology today, and, in the event of recidivism, can even confiscate

one's car.



I am not criticizing the decision to use renewable sources of energy. On

the contrary, their use must be generalized as much as possible. It is a

question, rather, of doing what the old saying suggests: when you've

decided to jump into the water, the most advisable thing is to dive

where it's deepest.



(*) Visit Fernando Ravsberg's blog.



Source: Cuba's Energy Initiatives - Havana Times.org -

http://www.havanatimes.org/?p=103052