For most of the last century, we’ve used a single metric to understand how a society is doing in supplying its citizens with power: electrification rates. By that standard, most of Latin America is doing very well, with 97 percent of households in the region having access. But the binary metric of whether people have electricity access or not can be misleading. It fails to … [Read more...] about The Energy Access Dividend: Accelerating off-grid solutions and bolstering reliability can generate big gains in Honduras and Haiti
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Energy Efficiency on an Island: The Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina
The Archipelago of San Andres can boast of almost universal electric power coverage. Practically the entirety of its 52.2 Km² has access to electricity in order to light resident’s homes and power the tourist industry that propels its economy. However, the Archipielago still faces energy related challenges. An energy efficiency program can counteract many of them. The … [Read more...] about Energy Efficiency on an Island: The Archipelago of San Andrés, Providencia and Santa Catalina
Latin America and the Caribbean’s mining sector is key to fighting climate change
The mining industry is not beloved in Latin America and Caribbean (LAC). This can be for good reason: we have learned of tailings disasters that have killed hundreds; projects that have generated riches that never reached communities; and corruption scandals that have permeated all levels of government, just to name a few. Importantly too, we are increasingly aware that … [Read more...] about Latin America and the Caribbean’s mining sector is key to fighting climate change
Does LAC Have the Energy It Takes to Become a World Leader Host of Data Centers?
The digital economy is powered by cloud-based data services around the world, such services are growing at a staggering pace of 30-40% annually for some data providers. A key component of cloud-based services is to have data centers that are located close to data domain centers, to reduce the latency of data management and transfer. Powering these data centers and thus … [Read more...] about Does LAC Have the Energy It Takes to Become a World Leader Host of Data Centers?
After the investment is done, fossil fuel plants will keep running for a while
An ongoing concern that the world is nowhere near achieving its carbon reduction goals is part of today’s global public policy agenda. Among the factors explaining the rise of carbon emissions are new investments in coal burning plants, and the advanced age of the existing coal power plants in developed economies. In 2015, global investments on coal power plants were over … [Read more...] about After the investment is done, fossil fuel plants will keep running for a while