At Baja California Sur the energy systems The electricity generators are obsolete, they are highly polluting because they operate with fossil fuels, and the service paid for by the inhabitants is one of the most expensive in the country. Center for Renewable Energy and Environmental Quality The transition to renewable sources of energy is clean energy to solve these three problems.
The Doctor Jaqueline Valenzuela, chief operating officer of NEARexplains that Baja California Sur, based on its two isolated electrical systems, can be a national and even international example of energy sustainabilityThe company's energy production is based on the available and non-polluting natural resources that are available in the entity to generate energy.
"We are fully aware of the context of the climate crisis and, in addition, we know the need to advance in the indicators of the 2030 Agenda, where one of the most important goals for us is Goal 7: affordable and non-polluting energy," he says, "so we believe that the isolated electrical systems of Baja California Sur can turn to these sustainable energy systems that we see that right now in the world practically do not exist".
He explains that the generation of electricity in the Baja California Sur System, which includes the municipalities of La Paz, Los Cabos, Comondú and Loreto, is the one with the highest demand and, unfortunately, 90 percent of it is powered by fossil fuels.
Clean energy alternatives
Jaqueline Valenzuela explains that Baja California Sur has areas of very low population density, but with great potential in solar energy, wind energy and even tidal energy, taking into account that the state is surrounded by the Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Cortez.
"We know that tidal energy is under development in the world and in places like Japan it is already a reality, so we, being surrounded by coasts, know that we can also take advantage of that constant energy potential," he stresses.
CERCA's director of operations adds that there are already hydrogen projects in operation around the world that, with a stand-alone component, have provided solutions at some scale in some communities.
"We think that the renewable energies currently available and those yet to be developed can configure a very clean energy matrix, but above all that they generate a model of how these energies can create synergy among themselves and in turn provide stability," he adds.
The perfect laboratory
The transition from an electricity system based on fossil fuels to one based on clean energy sources is a very important step that must be taken and Baja California Sur is the perfect laboratory for this objective, according to Jaqueline Valenzuela.
The world, he says, is going to a situation of scarcity of fossil resources and in this entity, due to its semi-island conditions, is tied to foreign supplies, which also make the service more expensive.
Added to this is the high vulnerability to climate change, being a coastal area that half the year is at the expense of various hydro-meteorological phenomena, he says.
A 10-year plan
The issue of energy and electricity in particular always have to be long-term bets because they have to have an impact on planning, which is why CERCA is proposing that in 10 years Baja California Sur will achieve the transition and become the first 100 percent sustainable energy island, he emphasizes.
At the end of August, CERCA announced this project to all of Mexico with the launch of the Acércate al Paraíso campaign, with which they are working on a critical path for the transition, he says.
"We know that if we do not have the technical and economic dimensioning, the projects will not become a reality. The idea is to map all the available technologies, give them the operating time that would be required and also the costs, that is, a complete plan of how to transition efficiently and safely," he says.
He recognizes that the economic costs to achieve the energy transition are very high, taking into account that the megawatt generated, no matter how cheap it is, is one million dollars, and they are talking about a large-scale project of approximately one thousand megawatts of installed capacity.
"We are aware that under a fair market scheme this can become a reality. The launching of the campaign is the first step we needed to unveil Baja California Sur with this great potential, we are promoting and showing a documentary where we talk about this potential and that has resulted in attracting different sectors, both investors and government, to follow up on this plan", he celebrates.
Consistent, clean and cheaper energy
Jaqueline Valenzuela reiterates that in Baja California Sur they receive electricity through polluting and intermittent systems, at a very high price. Accessing clean energy sources would solve these three challenges.
He stresses that CERCA is an organization specializing in the issue of energy transition and environmental health that since 2016 has been trying to influence the population and public policy to make this project a reality in order to position Baja California Sur as the first 100 percent sustainable energy island in the future.
