Reliable and affordable power for the CNMI

In its August 4th editorial, “The CNMI power crisis: A many headed monster,” the Saipan Tribune correctly makes the point that the quality of life and the future of the economy in the CNMI require that we work together to solve the energy crisis. The Administration has a plan to stabilize prices and provide adequate power in the near term, and to develop sources of renewable energy that can provide relief from the rising cost of imported fossil fuel in the long term.

To address immediate needs, the Administration is deploying temporary Aggreko generators so that the CNMI’s aging generators can be shut down to undergo much needed maintenance. Rehabilitation of existing generating capacity will stabilize electrical generation and eliminate brownouts and blackouts, and conversion of generators from diesel to fuel oil will lower fuel costs. At the same time, net metering legislation will allow private generating capacity to contribute power to the grid. To reduce the price of imported fuel, the Administration is working with other Micronesian states to create a purchasing collective.

But these are near term solutions, and the Administration recognizes that renewable energy is the ultimate answer. The Administration supported legislation to set a time table for production of 80 percent of the Commonwealths energy needs from renewable sources by 2014, and we are actively working to foster the development of two types of renewable energy that are commercially available sources of power successfully deployed elsewhere at the scale required in the CNMI: wind and geothermal.

Average wind speeds in the CNMI are adequate to generate electricity most of the year. Implementation of the net metering legislation will make deployment of small wind turbines attractive on the scale of individual households, and efforts are underway to court investors to deploy larger wind turbines. It is important to understand that, because wind speeds can be variable, wind power cannot completely eliminate our dependence on imported fossil fuel.

Geothermal power is the “gold standard” of alternative energy because it provides constant, reliable, inexpensive generation of electricity. The Administration, with the help of funding from OIA, has retained nationally known experts, Dr. David Blackwell and Dr. Roy Mink, to lead an assessment of geothermal power potential in the CNMI. Preliminary indications are that the volcanic islands north of Saipan are rich sources of geothermal power, and the economic feasibility of a submarine cable, which is a proven, albeit expensive technology, is under consideration as a mechanism to transport electricity to our populated islands and Guam. As part of the geothermal assessment, a test hole will be drilled on Saipan in the coming months to determine if sufficiently high temperatures exist to generate electricity closer to home utilizing commercially available binary geothermal power plants.

In conclusion, we would like to reinforce the Tribune’s call to work together. The challenge posed by the CNMI’s energy crisis is too great to be treated as a political issue, and we call upon all government leaders to join us in aggressive action to provide reliable and affordable power to the people of the CNMI.

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[I]Dr. James Quick, a college professor and former member of the U.S. Geological Services, is the special energy adviser to Gov. Benigno R. Fitial. The Administration hired Dr. Quick to help explore and develop alternative energy sources for the CNMI, with an emphasis on geothermal energy.[/I]