Complete turnabout in energy use

WILLEMSTAD — ‘An energy saving of 40 percent within a period of ten years, a complete switch over to permanent wind, sun and biomass and residual power, and driving on L.P.G. and electricity’. The proposals and recommendations in the final report of the so-called energy dialogue are extreme and require a substantial turnabout in becoming conscious. It is unsure during which period certain targets could be realized.

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The electricity provision should – as soon as possible – make use of available permanent energy sources such wind, sun, biomass, and residual power. The dialogue concluded that it is possible to switch over to permanent sources completely whenever storage of electricity could be realized.
The possibilities of an artificial lake have been pointed out which is comparable with storage reservoirs in countries that have already acquired sufficient experience such as France and Norway. An important argument for electricity storage is the expectation that the costs of such a system could be lower than the modernization costs of the current system, which is based on supplies from the Isla.
The report ‘An energy policy for Curaçao’ outlines a wide series of possibilities in order to come up with a permanent energy provision, which follows an initial exploring phase by Institute Clingendael in 2007. The actual dialogue took place last year and was organized by VU Amsterdam, Clingendael, and TU Delft. Some forty representatives of various groups, companies, and organizations participated with the energy dialogue. Knowledge and expertise of Dutch energy experts was also available.

The Central Bureau for Statistics (CBS) will be invited on a regular basis to collect energy statistics and publish such for energy powers and energy balances. The policy will be evaluated every two years and submitted to stakeholders during a Conference Progress Energy Policy. "In order to get the energy policy airborne, the final report suggests that the first progress conference should take place during the spring of 2010.

The energy policy is focused on four change-processes in which there will be a question of permanent energy sources on the island itself and a drastic decrease of the energy usage per capita, a transparent and stable system for the determination of energy tariffs and finally, efficient control- and steering-mechanisms should be deployed for private- and government-tasks in the energy sector.
The vision is based on permanence with a social, an ecological and economical component. "The policy should be at the disposal of the community, there should be sufficient payable energy available to provide for the essential requirements."

Simultaneously, there are many possibilities to save on electricity. In the first place, this could be done through behavioral change, a conscious consumption of electricity. There are innovative options to avoid electricity usage when it concerns the cooling of buildings. The water system could be modernized in such a manner that a drastic saving of water production is feasible by means of electricity.
The Board of Governors should strongly encourage the conscious saving of electricity. The Q should work out a proposal for a public campaign. Architects’ Association SAIA is invited to submit proposals, which will lead to strict standards for climate conscious building. Within two years, the Q will come up with an advice on the necessity of standards for electrical appliances.
The Q should encourage the setting up of a trial-project with affordable deep sea cooling of hotel rooms and initiate the development of a demo for an affordable permanent cooling system for buildings not situated along the coast, such as the hospital and the large supermarkets. Upon successful evaluation of both projects, the air-conditioning could be dealt with as this does not or barely uses electricity from the net.

The policy is focused on realizing a clean and efficient transport system where available permanent sources are used. Permanent mobility can be accomplished with the transition of fossils to clean and endurable transport fuels, a reliable system for public transportation, and wherever possible the decrease of transportation movements.Permanent mobility implies changes in the sector. The pursuit is to leave it up to the private initiative. An end will come to the direct involvement of the government regarding the price making and the purchase of fuel. A first step is independent regularization. Before the end of 2008, the Q will research the possibilities to introduce L.P.G. based on butane as transportation fuel. Driving on electricity and fuel from biomass (including algae’s) is suggested as a project.