BARRIERS TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RENEWABLE TECHNOLOGIES IN BARBADOS

A summary of the main barriers to the implementation of renewable technologies is as follows (taken from Hinds,1999):

5.3.8.1. Financial and Economic Barriers

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key barrier at present is the lack of financial viability of many of these applications. Often there is a large payback time on initial investment for a renewable technology

5.3.8.2. Barriers related to awareness of technology

The lack of awareness and confidence in the technology is often a deterrent to the use of renewable energy technology. This is particularly relevant since many unproven renewable energy technologies were introduced into the region by international development agencies, without adequate research into the appropriateness of the technologies, such that even to date, there is some residual mistrust of new technologies.

Through its experience with solar water heating, however, the Government of Barbados is aware of the need of familiarizing the population as a whole in order to gain acceptance of a new technology.

5.3.8.3. Barriers related to higher local operational costs

The financial viability of renewable energy technologies is almost always quoted from data obtained in developed countries. These costs differ from the local Caribbean costs in terms of cost of the system and the operational and maintenance costs. The cost of the system in the developed world is usually significantly less than local investment cost, due to the added costs derived by shipping, insurance and taxes during the importation of the new technology.

In the case of the operation and maintenance there is also the issue of the availability of local experts and the cost of accessing the relevant expertise. In addition the question of ancillary services and supplies that may contribute to the cost of operations in the developed world would be different in the Caribbean as a whole.

5.3.8.4.Barriers related to Government policy

The critical success of renewable energy technology in Barbados has been due to the application of government policy.

The success of the Solar water heater industry in Barbados was due to government policy as well as the determination of the first manufacturer of the systems. When the austerity measures during the local recession of the early nineties forced the government to re-impose duties on water heater manufacturing inputs, the resultant higher costs of the systems resulted in a dramatic fall in the purchases on solar water heaters. The Barbados experience clearly demonstrates that in an environment where technology and other barriers are removed, government policy can play a significant role in the viability of renewable energy technologies

In Barbados, as in much of the Caribbean, the electric utilities consume the majority of the fossil fuel, with the concomitant result that they are the largest single source of greenhouse gas emissions. These utilities are in most cases monopolies, supported by government policy. In

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Barbados, this situation prevents the independent supply of electricity to the national grids; and because these policies were established at time when fossil fuels were cheaper and their impact on global climate change was not known, it makes it that much more difficult to introduce new technologies, and to introduce the power they can potentially generate into the national power grid.

In Barbados a draft policy (white paper) is poised to significantly liberalize the energy sector by allowing secondary producers access to the national electric grid; thus creating a niche for renewable technologies to enter the national power generation system.

International policy can also be influential; particularly where a foreign financier, perhaps from a nation where Renewable Energy Policy is more advanced, might, mandate that there be a certain amount of investment in renewable energy projects in the recipient country, if they are to receive funds for country development projects.

5.3.8.5. Barriers related to the Global Environmental cost of fossil fuels

In quantifying the economic viability of various energy sources, it has been generally accepted that there is a cost for the generation of the environmentally harmful green house gases; and this holds true for the use of fossil fuels. Although, the addition of the environmental cost to the fossil fuels would make the renewable energy technologies more competitive, very few developing countries can afford to this, since the use of fossil fuels is often still cheaper than alternatives. In developing its own Renewable Energy Programme, the Government of Barbados has exhibited a clear commitment to reducing its own greenhouse gas emissions; even though developing countries are not currently bound to doing so.

Although agencies such as the Global Environmental Facility (GEF) exist to aid in the incremental costs associated with renewables, many developing countries often find the GEF process extremely tedious, and so do not make adequate use of this facility, thus delaying the implementation of newer, greener technologies.

5.3.8.6. Barriers related to training

One of the most cost effective methods of increasing understanding of a technology is through training. Training bridges the gap between having a general awareness on the type of decision that should be made, and having the ability to make the specific detail decisions during the implementation process.

There are few graduate practitioners of renewable energy still active in the region as a whole. Thus, in order to help create the levels of awareness of renewable energy technologies and to respond to the resultant demands for decision-making, there is need for a cadre of experts at various levels of training, ranging from graduate to technician and teacher level. This will serve to hasten the decision-making process in Barbados and the rest of the region considerably.

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5.3.9. WORK TO REMOVE BARRIERS TO RENEWABLE TECHNOLOGY: REGIONAL