Ex-minister, economist: People should be grateful for oil, gas

Both former energy minister Kevin Ramnarine and economist Dr Marlene Attz agreed that people are grateful, and should be for TT’s oil and gas economy as it has developed the nation into what we see today.

Their comments stemmed from Energy Minister Stuart Young’s remark at the BBC World Question TT event on Wednesday night where he thanked God for TT’s oil and gas economy.

Attz who was on the same panel as Young said, “We also have become very aware that our good fortune from the energy sector has in fact been volatile since 2015-2016, but I think that volatility has become more evident since 2019-2020. And the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war has heightened that volatility for us, so the government earned some extra revenue last year simply because the prices escalated.”

She added that despite the gratitude and the awareness of the positives oil and gas have brought to the economy, people must be mindful of the global shift from the dependency on oil and gas to renewable energy.

Ramnarine said though TT will have to take the transition into consideration, it doesn’t mean that the world will stop needing oil and gas.

He said, “We in TT need to prepare for the transition and we have been making the steps in renewable energy, but I think a lot more has to be done. For example, legislation has to be brought to Parliament to amend the TTEC (TT Electricity Commission) and RIC (Regulated Industries Commission) acts to allow for net metering.”

Ramnarine explained that net metering will allow for home-owners to generate their own power through solar panel or wind turbines in which they will be credited for the power they add to the grid.

He said, “I think the big revolutionary step that is required for TT to make the quantum leap, the exponential leap in renewable energy is to allow for companies, malls and factories to self-generate electricity and that requires the legislation and technology.”

He also suggested that TT needs to look at wind as a renewable energy source. He said there needs to be assessments conducted to determine the optimal location for wind turbines.

“I think this country also has to look at waste-to-energy because the Beetham landfill generates a lot of biogenic gas, methane, from the decay of organic matter and in the developed world, that is harnessed to generate electricity,” said Ramnarine.

He also said on the need for TT adjust their mindset as time has run out for implementing renewables in TT.

Attz suggested that the government uses solar panels on the homes erected by them under the Housing Development Corporation since it will set an example for the wider population.

“While we have countries like Barbados, our neighbour, where practically every household, business and certainly the hotels have solar-power water heating, you do not find that commonly in TT. So a thought could be that any new construction by the government of TT should really include things like solar panels, so that there is an example coming from the top.”

Ramnarine added that the issue of developed countries asking developing countries to draw back on their oil and gas production needs to be addressed. He said while he understands the need for renewables, there is a moral aspect to look at in which developing countries can do more for themselves with the income that can be generated from oil and gas. He said oil and gas could be a country’s only way of coming out of poverty.

“So, the energy transition is a very complex thing and it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution, different countries have different economic and social realities and what might be the reality for Mozambique or Ghana (for example) will not be the reality for the US or the western European countries,” said Ramnarine.

He said the transition is a global phenomenon that people need to have a deeper understanding of.

Seeing the move to renewables, an investment of $20 million has been allocated to the US Agency for International Development to provide financial, technical assistance and business development services through the Caribbean Investment Programme to enterprises in renewable energy, energy efficiency and climate adaptation by mobilising private finance and private sector-led actions in TT.

This was revealed in a Facebook post by the Prime Minister while announcing his arrival in Nassau, the Bahamas for a high-level meeting with US Vice President Kamala Harris on Thursday.