Vanuatu's Vision for a
100% Renewable Energy Economy
The Government of Vanuatu is aware that the world is on the brink of a major energy revolution using renewable energies to manufacture hydrogen-based fuels.
The hydrogen based fuels are manufactured from water using renewable energies, such as hydroelectric energy, wind and solar power. Vanuatu has significant potential for geothermal energy development and, using this combined with hydrogen generation technology, the country could be free of our current oil dependency and become a fuel-producing nation. The savings to our country would be so great that we would have significant extra funds for development.
Under the Kyoto Protocol for reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, the terms of the Clean Development Mechanism established under that protocol, and under the strong mandate of the United Nations General Assembly Special Session in September 1999, the industrial nations of the world are to provide new and substantial funding and technology transfer to the small island developing states.
At an April, 2000 conference in Vanuatu, Vanuatu, in association with other Pacific island countries, notified the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific that our primary critical concern for sustainable development is converting our existing petroleum based energy economy into a hydrogen based economy built on renewable energy.
This means that Vanuatu will work in partnership with industrial nations, leading industries that manufacture renewable energy and hydrogen equipment and its regional organizations and other Pacific island nations, to develop its geothermal and hydroelectric potential to the fullest and to manufacture its own hydrogen fuels.
It means obtaining the very latest technology including new cars, trucks, public transport buses, farm machinery, boat engines and electricity generators powered by hydrogen and other renewable energy sources. This will bring new industry, private investment, technology and employment to Vanuatu.
It will lower and eventually eliminate our need to import expensive foreign fuels like cooking gas, petrol, and diesel.
It will mean lowering of our current energy costs so the electric bills will go down while usage will increase.
Because of recent decisions by the United Nations and the need for the industrial nations to promote this technology, Vanuatu will seek to gain this technology in partnership with the industrial nations. Subsidies will be sought to maintain the equipment for 20 years.
Because power is supplied in modules, it is easy to transport and set up so electrification can be installed in small isolated villages. Once installed it will generate electric power using renewable energy and hydrogen. As part of the Hydrogen power and renewable energy initiative we will strive to provide electricity to every village in Vanuatu. For the first time, electricity and fuels will become available to everyone in rural areas of Vanuatu at affordable rates.
Therefore, Vanuatu resolves:
1) Whereas Vanuatu is one of the least developed nations on Earth, and because the cost of importing petroleum based products for our basic energy needs nearly exceeds the value of our exports from all other products, and whereas our nation is unable to supply basic energy needs to our peoples in rural areas without undue cost and difficulties, and because of the mandates under the United Nations General Assembly's 22th Special Session in September 1999 that the small island developing states receive special additional funding and technology transfer from Bilateral donors;
2) The Government of Vanuatu requests immediate assistance from bilateral donors, experts in renewable energy technology, and our regional organizations in the preparation of a design and feasibility study for an integrated, petroleum independent, hydrogen based renewable energy economy. Because feasibility studies have already been completed for the Geothermal potential of Efate we need to proceed now with a design to integrate this potential with hydrogen fuel manufacturing and integration of hydrogen fuels and renewable energy systems for the entire country. We will seek assistance in completing a preliminary design by April 2001 and beginning the first construction activities no later than December 2001.
3) 2010 is the target date to stop importation of petroleum fuels and become a hydrogen based economy. By 2020 we will eliminate any remaining internal combustion engine vehicles and all machinery, vehicles and electrical generation will be done using fuel cells and renewable energy systems such as hydroelectric, geothermal, wind and solar.
4) In this initiative, all components must be modular and designed to integrate into one system that works together.
5) Implementation will include training of local personnel for installing, maintaining and servicing the equipment and these tasks must be designed as simply as possible so village people can do it.
6) The Government of Vanuatu will work closely with the private sector to assure that local companies, communities, and the Government have input into the design, installation, operation, maintenance, repair and replacement of the equipment.
7) We request that bilateral donors provide funds to the Vanuatu Government directly expressly targeting the lease or purchase of equipment and integrated energy designed to tap our hydrogen potential, manufacture hydrogen fuels, and convert our transportation system to fuel cell/hydrogen vehicles. The leases should be for 20 years with a provision for extension another 20 years.
8) The renewable energy and hydrogen technology equipment will be accorded the same tax exemptions as accorded other development programs during the 20 year development period.
Vanuatu wishes to alert all possible sources to this critical priority for bilateral and multilateral funding. We ask that our regional and international organizations, and especially the new renewable energy project at the SPC and also the ESCAP Pacific Operations Centre in Vila to assist us by clearly reminding the industrial nations of their commitments under the 1999 22nd special session of the UN General Assembly mandate to the industrial nations to provide new and substantial funding and technology transfer to the small island developing states and the benefits to the industrial nations themselves of subsidizing their own hydrogen and renewable energy industries to replace fossil fuels that are now polluting the atmosphere and endangering the planet.
Vanuatu Council of Ministers Paper September 13th 2000