country profile trinidad and tobago

UNEP RIS

JUNE 2013

SUPPORTED BY

ACP-MEA & UNFCCC

E M I S S I O N S R E D U C T I O N P R O F I L E

Trinidad & Tobago

EMISSIONS REDUCTION PROFILE Trinidad and Tobago

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Acknowledgements

The country emission profiles have been long underway. Keeping it on track would not have been possible without the initiation, the continuous support and the encouragement of Miriam Hinostroza, head of the Low Carbon Development team at UNEP Ris and the financing and continuous support from the EU ACP MEA programme and UNFCCC Secre-tariat, in particular Fatima-Zahra Taibi and Miguel Alejandro Naranjo Gonzalez, who have provided essential guidance and revisions.

We also wish to thank the Designated National Authorities of the countries for which the emissions reduction potentials have been assessed. The countries have commented on the reports in two iterations and valuable comments have been incorporated in the texts.

The profiles have benefited from shifting, but dedicated teams of research assistance. We wish to acknowledge the significant contributions from Maija Bertule, Jacob Ipsen Hansen, Maryna Karavai, Sunniva Sandbukt, Frederik Staun and Emilie Wieben, as well as Sren E. Ltken, senior adviser and contributing editor of the profiles and the summary report.


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Contents

Economy, Growth and Emissions...................................................................................................................................................................5

Energy ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................5

Status of CDM Development and Capacity Building in Trinidad and Tobago ..........................................................................6

Overview of CDM Opportunities in Trinidad and Tobago .................................................................................................................7

Agriculture and Forests ................................................................................................................................................................................7

Forest Carbon Options ............................................................................................................................................................................7

Biodiesel .........................................................................................................................................................................................................8

Charcoal Production .................................................................................................................................................................................9

Waste .....................................................................................................................................................................................................................9

Agricultural Waste ................................................................................................................................................................................. 10

Energy Generation from Rice Residues ....................................................................................................................................... 10

Landfill Gas ................................................................................................................................................................................................ 11

Wastewater ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 12

Conventional Power Production ........................................................................................................................................................... 12

Renewable Energy........................................................................................................................................................................................ 13

Hydro ............................................................................................................................................................................................................ 13

Wind .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 13

Solar .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. 14

Solar Lighting ............................................................................................................................................................................................ 14

Solar Water Heaters (SWH) ............................................................................................................................................................... 14

Energy Consumption .................................................................................................................................................................................. 14

Industrial Production Processes ........................................................................................................................................................... 17

Transportation ............................................................................................................................................................................................... 19

Summary ................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 21


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Brief Profile

Figure 1, Map of Trinidad and Tobago1

1 http://www.lonelyplanet.com/maps/caribbean/trinidad-and-tobago/map_of_trinidad-and-tobago.jpg

Full name: Republic of Trinidad and Tobago

Population: 1.3 million (UN, 2010)

Capital: Port of Spain

Area: 5,128 sq km (1,980 sq miles)

Major languages:

Major religion:

English

Christianity, Hinduism, Islam

Life expectancy: 67 years (men), 74 years

(women) (UN)

Monetary unit: 1 Trinidad and Tobago dollar =

100 cents

Main exports Petroleum and petroleum prod-

ucts, natural gas, chemicals


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Economy, Growth and Emissions

Trinidad and Tobago is one of the most robust, cosmopolitan, and industrialized countries

in Latin America and the Caribbean, with a GDP/capita standing at 15,781 USD (2009).

First colonized by the Spanish, the islands came under British control in the early 19th

century. After the emancipation of slavery in 1834, manpower was replaced by contract

laborers from India, between 1845 and 1917, which boosted sugar production and the

cocoa industry. Independence was attained in 1962. The discovery of oil in Trinidad in

1910 added another important export. Currently, the country is one of the most prosper-

ous in the Caribbean due largely to petroleum and natural gas production and processing.

Tourism, predominantly in Tobago, is growing and is targeted for expansion. The country

is the most significant market in the regional free trade area -- the Caribbean Common

Market (CARICOM). Possessing one of the more diversified manufacturing sectors in the

region, it is the largest net exporter of goods and services to other CARICOM member

states, and to extra regional markets in North, Central and South America.

Energy Despite being a primarily energy-based economy with significant exports of oil, gas and

downstream energy products, which provided 66% of the countrys export revenue in

2007, there is also a developed industrial base, a deeply entrenched manufacturing sector,

and an increasingly strong services sector, especially in the area of financial services.

Trinidad and Tobago is a global leader in the energy industry. The country is currently

ranked as the number one single site exporter of methanol and ammonia in the world. In

2007, approximately 60% of LNG imports to the United States originated from Trinidad

and Tobago. It is also a major player on the international iron and steel market, as well as

in the export of crude oil and refined petroleum products.

SUPPLY and CON-SUMPTION

Coal and Peat

Crude Oil

Oil Products

Natural Gas Biofuels and Waste

Electricity

Production 0 7,817 0 36,177 12 0

TFC 0 0 1,203 13,573 0 636

Industry 0 0 162 3,524 0 374

Transport 0 0 941 0 0 0

Residential 0 0 86 190 0 199

Commercial and Public Services

0 0 6 0 0 62

Figure 2, Total primary energy supply and consumption in ktoe/year

The energy industry continues to play a dominant role in the economy. The total output

from the oil and gas sector in 2007 was approximately 800,000 boepd (oil equivalent). Of

this amount, crude oil production was 140,000 bpd, and gas was 650,000 boepd -- or 4.0

bcfd. Trinidad and Tobago is now considered to have a gas economy with gas-based pro-

duction exceeding oil production, in terms of contributions to GDP.


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Due to its oil and gas production, Trinidad & Tobago has a very carbon intensive economy. The CO2 emission per capita is among the highest in the world with about 37 tCO2e per year, higher than most of the oil economies in the Middle East. Naturally, most of these emissions are attributable to the oil and gas exploration, and less as a result of consump-tion in the country. Nevertheless, the access to cheap oil and gas is influencing the energy policy, posing a challenge to the introduction of renewable energy sources.

The figures below show economic growth, and increase in emissions in Trinidad and To-bago, since 1990.

Figure 3, GDP Percent Change, Trinidad and Tobago

Figure 4, GDP of Trinidad and Tobago, in USD

Figure 5, Total carbon emissions since 1990

Status of CDM Development and Capacity Building in Trinidad and Tobago

Trinidad and Tobago has established a DNA, and a number of capacity building activities for CDM have already taken place in the country. Trinidad and Tobago is one of the coun-tries taking part in the ACP-CD4CDM Project, covering 12 countries. The project is part of the European Commission Programme for Capacity Building, related to Multilateral Envi-ronmental Agreements (MEAs) in African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. It aims at enabling the participating ACP countries to fully take part in the carbon market, through capacity building. To date, three National Workshops have been held, and, as a result, the CDM project PETROTRIN Onshore Oil Fields Associated Gas Recovery and Utilization Project was

0,00%

5,00%

10,00%

15,00%

1990 1995 2000 2005 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

0

20

40

60

1990 1995 2000 2005 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

0

10000

20000

1990 1995 2000 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007


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submitted for preliminary consideration on 23 February 2012. A number of additional potential activities for CDM have also been identified, covering a number of sectors. Trinidad and Tobago has also been included amongst host countries for several Pro-grammes of Activities:

Title Status Type tCO2 reduction/year Date of submission

International water puri-fication programme

At Validation Water purifica-tion

12,488 29-07-2011

CarbonSoft Open Source PoA, LED Lighting Distri-bution: Oceania

At Validation Lighting 44,183 23-12-2011

Petrotrin Oil Fields Asso-ciated Gas Recovery and Utilization PoA

At Validation Oil field flaring reduction

45,209 03-08-2012

So far, only the latter PoA has included a CPA specific to Trinidad and Tobago. The project will construct Oilfield Associated Gas Recovery and Utilization facilities, in order to recov-er and utilize associated gas emanating from several stranded oil-wells located in the fol-lowing oilfields in the South-western area of the country: Grand Ravine, Fyzabad, Parry Lands, Barrackpore/Penal and Palo Seco South. The project is expected to reduce an aver-age of 45,209 tons of CO2 annually over a period of 7 years.

Overview of CDM Opportunities in Trinidad and To-bago

Agriculture and Forests

While Trinidad was originally a tropically forested country, the sugarcane has been an

important crop for centuries. The current rate of deforestation is about 0.3% annually, or

about 1,000 hectares (FAO, 2010)2, corresponding to emissions of approximately 168,000

tCO2e3. Loss of forest cover in Trinidad and Tobago is attributed to both fuelwood and

timber production. About 36,000 m3 of fuelwood, and 51,000 m3 of timber are produced

annually4.

Forest Carbon Options

According to recent FAO estimates, Trinidad and Tobagos forests cover an area of 227,120 ha, which translates into approximately 44% of the countrys total surface land area.5 Estimates of deforestation, and change in forest cover show that between 1990-

2 http://www.fao.org/forestry/fra/fra2010/en/

3 http://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/archive/Trinidad_and_Tobago.htm (forest cover divided by carbon stock)

4 http://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/archive/Trinidad_and_Tobago.htm

5 http://faostat.fao.org/site/377/DesktopDefault.aspx?PageID=377#ancor


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2010, Trinidad and Tobago lost an average of 750 ha, or 0.31%, per year. In total, this amounted to approximately 6.2% of the islands forest cover (15,000 ha). About 28% of Trinidad and Tobagos forests are classified as primary forest, the most biodiverse and carbon-dense type, while 64% consist of naturally regenerated forest, and the remaining 8% are planted forest.6 Afforestation and reforestation of degraded forest lands, and mangrove restoration, pre-sent a potential for climate change mitigation in Trinidad and Tobago, while generating financial flows from forest carbon activities under the CDM. However, A/R CDM activities have generally remained underdeveloped, compared to other CDM sectors, mainly as a result of the complexity of the A/R CDM procedure, and the limited market demand for A/R CDM credits. Moreover, CERs from these projects are not eligible in the European Emission Trading System, and only tCERs are issued to A/R CDM projects. REDD+ also presents an opportunity for creating financial flows for Trinidad and Tobagos efforts to mitigate GHG emissions, through forest carbon activities. Calculating the poten-tial emission reductions from REDD+ activities in the islands demonstrates that there is mitigation potential, if deforestation is avoided completely. Assuming that the baseline is entirely based on historical emissions, avoided emissions are calculated by multiplying the annual deforestation in Trinidad and Tobago, estimated to be 750 ha per year, with 104 tC/ha, which is the approximate amount of tons of carbon stored per ha in the countrys forests, annually.7 Based on this data, and the conversion of 1 ton of biomass carbon to the equivalent of 3.67 tCO28, avoiding deforestation, alone, in Trinidad and Tobago has the potential to contribute to nearly 290 thousand tons in CO2 emission reductions every year. Reversing the trend, and adding reforestation to these estimates would increase this num-ber even more. Afforestation/reforestation initiatives aiming to replant 50% of the loss in forest cover during 1990-2005 (-9,000 ha), would require the regeneration of 4,500 ha of forest land, which could generate more than 1.7 million tCO2e reductions every year.

Technology type Emission Reduction Potential per year (tCO2e)

Baseline Methodologies

REDD+ / Avoided deforestation 286,260 Historical baseline

Afforestation/ Reforestation

1,717,560 AR-AM1, AR-AM3, AR-AM4, AR-AM5, AR-AM9, AR-AM10, AR-AMS1, AR-ACM1, AR-ACM2

While the total deforestation in Trinidad and Tobago is not negligible, in emissions terms,

its potential, compared to other sources, is small.

Biodiesel Biodiesel may be produced from vegetable oil or animal fats, or from the cleaning of waste cooking oil. Vegetable oil can be extracted from dedicated plantations, e.g. jatropha, or other oil seeds, such as linseeds or sunflower. Some of these crops are equally usable for

6 http://rainforests.mongabay.com/deforestation/2000/Trinidad_and_Tobago.htm

7 ftp://ftp.fao.org/docrep/fao/011/i0350e/i0350e04c.pdf

8 http://aciar.gov.au/files/node/8864/TR68%20part%202.pdf


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food production, while others may be grown on arid lands with little other use. Animal fats can be sourced from slaughterhouses or facilities disposing of dead animals. Most diesel engines can accept solutions of diesel and biodiesel; many may run on pure biodiesel. This pertains to both stationary and mobile engines, i.e. diesel power plants as well as cars, buses, and trucks. In the context of CDMs, biodiesel must be used in a captive fleet, i.e. a (large) number of identifiable vehicles like city buses or the trucks of specific companies, to allow the generation of Certified Emission Reductions. Alternatively, and maybe relevant in Trinidad and Tobago, biodiesel may be used in diesel power plants. Though most of T&Ts power supply is gas-based, a 21 MW diesel plant is operating in Tobago, and a new 64 MW gas-fired power plant has diesel backup. Theoreti-cally, replacement of diesel with biodiesel for a 21 MW power plant, producing up to about 100,000 MWh/year and consuming approximately 46 million litres of diesel, would corre-spond to about 120,000 CERs/year. This, of course, requires sufficient amounts of bio-diesel to be produced. A Trinidadian company started the production of biodiesel in 2011, based on about 1.1 million litres of waste oil per year. While the project is phase one of a larger project9, it is unlikely that waste oil alone will be able to supply more than 10% of the consumption of the power plant, thus corresponding to reductions of about 12,000 tCO2e/year using 4.6 million liters of diesel as a baseline scenarion. Additional supply could be produced from jatropha plantations, but none have been identified. Three methodologies are relevant, of which, so far, only one has been applied in a regis-tered project, AMS-III.T. The recently consolidated ACM17 is currently being applied in nine projects, under development, while one project follows AMS-III.AK. Technological risks are few, if any. Financial risks are related to the traditionally highly fluctuating oil market prices, and may cause financiers to require significant equity financ-ing and/or high interest rates. However, there is a stable and relatively inelastic national, and if necessary international, market for diesel/biodiesel, which would result in little market risk -- apart from pricing.

Type of Technology Emission Reduction Potential per year (tCO2e)


Biodiesel 12,000 ACM0017, AMS-III.AK., AM0041

Charcoal Production Trinidad and Tobago produces 33 million m3 of fuelwood per year (FAOStat). As there is no reporting of its use for production of charcoal, it is assumed to be used unprocessed. As its current use has not been established, emission reduction potentials could only exist in its being utilized more efficiently.

Waste Waste management has a great GHG emissions reduction potential. The potential for re-ductions lies in two different areas of waste handling: proper disposal of organic matter, that would otherwise emit methane (CH4), or waste incineration, that can serve to replace energy (both thermal and electric) that would have been produced from fossil fuels.

9 http://www.greenantilles.com/2011/09/21/trinidadian-company-to-begin-producing-biodiesel-from-waste-vegetable-oil/


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Organic matter, for instance in the form of waste, emits large quantities of greenhouse gasses, primarily methane (CH4), if not disposed of properly. The potential for the reduc-tion of these emissions lies in various sectors. Waste in the domestic sector, e.g. from small household livestock units, as well as in the industrial sector and municipalities, is most often left unutilized, to decay, or rarely used for the purposes of fertilizer or burning in open pits. The waste is, therefore, both harmful to the surrounding environment, and often a health issue. Consequently, a waste manage-ment project will be greatly beneficial to local sustainable development. Waste management projects can be implemented in various sectors in Trinidad and Toba-go. The challenge of mitigating GHG emissions from waste lies in the lack of existing incen-tives. This is because the proper handling of waste does not present an opportunity to generate revenue for the stakeholders involved.

Agricultural Waste Agricultural production leaves considerable amounts of agricultural waste, in the form of biomass, and animal waste in particular. Some of it is recycled into the agricultural pro-duction as fertilizer, while large amounts remain unutilized and in many instances pose a disposal problem. Uncontrolled burning in the fields is not only a hazardous disposal solu-tion, it is also a waste of a potential energy source. With efficient collection systems in place, waste from agricultural production can be utilized as fuel for power and heat pro-duction. In the sugar industry, significant amounts of bagasse the waste after extraction of sugar is an excellent fuel. Rice production may also be industrialized, to the extent that rice husks are available in amounts sufficient for incineration in a boiler, thereby securing a basis for power and heat production. In the forest industry, large concentrations of bio-mass waste can be utilized for power and heat production, e.g. at sawmills. The forest in-dustry also supplies raw material for briquettes production, where sawdust, charcoal dust, degradable waste paper and dust from agricultural production may constitute a final utili-zation of waste materials from agriculture related production. Biomass energy projects can be built in a wide range of sizes and for broad applications. Such projects are also cost-efficient solutions for waste generated by the sugar industry. They can be as large as 100 MW power stations generating both electricity and heat, but are typically 15-30 MW in size. Biomass energy projects are also technically feasible in much smaller sizes, but are rarely commercially viable below 8-10 MW, depending on availability and pricing of biomass residues. The Economy in Trinidad and Tobago is mainly industrial and service-based, with only 0.7 % of the GDP from agriculture. The GHG emissions from the agricultural sector are, there-fore, not as significant as the available amount of agricultural wastes for energy utilization. While there are agricultural activities in Trinidad and Tobago, the main agricultural prod-ucts are cocoa, rice, citrus, coffee and vegetables, of which the residues from rice produc-tion are the most suited for energy production, in terms of waste burning.

Energy Generation from Rice Residues

In 2010, the yearly production of rice paddies was 2,800 tons. Using a default value for production/waste ratio, the residues available from the rice production could potentially produce electricity in a 1 MW biomass power plant. Assuming that all these residues could be gathered to one location, and with 360 days yearly power production, the potential emissions reduction would then be 1 MW * 360 days * 24 hours * 0.77 tCO2/MWh = 6,650 tCO2.


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Energy generation from rice residues 6,650 AM36, ACM6, ACM3, ACM2, ACM18, AMS-III.E., AMS-I.D., AMS-I.C.

Landfill Gas

In terms of emission reductions in the waste sector, the highest potential, by far, is from municipal domestic waste particularly for its energy generation potential. The amount of waste generated per capita in Trinidad and Tobago is very high, as in other industrial de-veloping countries. From 1997 to 2008 the average daily waste generated in the country was 1,150 tons, which is quite substantial10. Currently, there are three landfills operating in the country: Guanapo, Forres Park, and Beetham Landfill. Beetham is located near the capital, Port-of-Spain, and is the biggest one, receiving more than 60% of the daily gath-ered municipal solid waste. The landfill has almost reached its maximum capacity, and new initiatives are needed to keep up with the ever increasing amount of waste generated. There are several options for emissions reduction, and one of them is to reduce the me-thane emitted from the existing landfills by capturing the landfill gas and either flaring it use it for power generation in gas engines. The potential emissions reduction from flaring is difficult to determine as it depends on the waste type fractions, waste management, on-site management, the age of the waste, the climate, and the future situation. However, it is possible to make an estimation by us-ing pre-existing and registered landfill gas projects from the same climate and geograph-ical area as the baseline scenarios. Based on the daily waste delivered to all three landfills, the emission reductions are calculated to be about 350,000 tCO2/year11.



Landfill Gas 350,000 AMS-I.C., AMS-I.D., AMS-I.F., AMS-III.D., AMS-III.E., AMS-III.F., AMS-III.G., ACM1, ACM2, AM25, AM53

A scientific report on the potential for incinerating waste was carried out in 2009, by an association of local engineers. It stated that if all municipal solid waste, currently disposed of at the three landfills, was utilized for incineration under the best technical conditions, after recycling metals and other wastes, it would be possible to generate electricity with a capacity of 35.11 MW, 360 days per year12. Using the grid emission factor, and 360 days of operation, the project could potentially reduce the emissions by 35.11 MW * 360 days * 24 hours * 0.77 tCO2e/MWh = 233,580 tCO2e. This potential does not include the emission reductions from the waste left untreated in the landfills.

10 SWMCOL, 2009.

11 Calculations are made in an internal spreadsheet

12 "Municipal Solid Waste to Energy: Potential for Application in Trinidad and Tobago", The Journal of the Association of Profes-sional Engineers of Trinidad and Tobago, 2009.


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Type of Technology Emission Reduction Potential

per year (tCO2e) Baseline Methodologies

MSV incineration 233,580 AM25, ACM1, AMS-III.E., AMS-I.C., AMS-I.D.

Wastewater

Approximately 70% of the population is without sewage systems, relying on septic tanks, pit latrines and soakaways, while the remaining 30% is served by sewage systems in Port-of-Spain, San Fernando, Arima, Point Fortin and Scarborough Tobago13. There are about 70 wastewater treatment plants in Trinidad and Tobago, but the vast majority of them are not functioning properly, which leads to a large discharge of polluted water into the natu-ral environment. Furthermore, it decreases the potential for introducing emission-reducing technologies, as the wastewater is presently primarily treated aerobically. This also results in difficulties establishing the baseline. Nevertheless, it is assumed that if the lagoons at the Beetham wastewater treatment plant are under the right conditions, there could be a potential for generating gas for energy purposes. Based on previously regis-tered CDM projects from the same climatic area, it is estimated that the energy potential from a daily inflow of 56,700 m3 at the Beetham wastewater treatment plant14 would be around 250,000 MWh/year. Applying the grid emission factor, this gives a potential emis-sions reduction of 250,000 MWh * 0.77 tCO2/MWh = 192,500 tCO2/year.



Wastewater 192,500 M36, ACM6, ACM2, AMS-I.C., AM36, ACM6, ACM2, AMS-I.D., AMS-I.C., ACM6, ACM2, AMS-I.D. and AMS-I.C.

Conventional Power Production

The primary source of power generation in Trinidad and Tobago is natural gas, and the electrification rate is 97%15. Electricity is supplied by the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), which is responsible for power supply on both islands via a single interconnected grid. T&TEC owns a 21 MW diesel power station and a 64 MW Cove natu-ral gas/diesel power station in Tobago, and receives the rest of its power from independ-ent power producers (IPPs) whose total installed capacity amount to 2,192 MW. The main IPPs are Powergen, whose power production facilities total 1,183 MW, and Trinity Power, totalling 225 MW1617. In addition, a 720 MW combined cycle natural gas power plant in La Brea was recently made operational by Trinidad Generation Unlimited (TGU), which is soon to be the countrys largest power producer (once it reaches full operational capacity).

13 Water and Sewage Authorities in Trinidad and Tobago (WASA), 2010.

14 Water and Sewage Authorities in Trinidad and Tobago (WASA), 2010.

15 REEGLE, 2012, http://www.reegle.info/countries/trinidad-and-tobago-energy-profile/TT


17 Regulated Industries Commission, 2012, http://www.ric.org.tt/cms/content/view/59/75/


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Of the installed 720 MW, 450 MW will be used to power a proposed aluminum smelter plant, and the remaining 270 MW will be supplied to the grid18. The best emission reduction possibilities within the conventional power production exist in fossil fuel switch, from diesel to natural gas, and efficiency improvements in natural gas power stations --conversion from single to combined cycle. The recently commissioned 64 MW Cove power station in Tobago currently operates using diesel; conversion to natural gas could yield emissions savings of about 72,57619 tons of CO2. The design of the power plant is configured to use natural gas, therefore, the existing technology would make such a conversion possible. If a similar conversion were also pos-sible for the 21 MW diesel power plant in Tobago, it could yield additional emissions sav-ings of 27,216 tons20 of CO2.



Fossil fuel switch 99,792 AMS-III.B., ACM9, ACM11, AM8, AMS-II.D., AMS-III.AH., AMS-III.Q.

Renewable Energy

To date, there is no renewable energy generation in the national grid. The existing RE gen-eration is minimal, and is mainly through small-scale applications of solar water heaters and solar PV. The government has set focus on expansion of renewable energy use as part of its strategy for sustainable growth and development21.

Hydro Based on the local resource availability, hydropower is not a viable option.

Wind

The National Framework for Development of a Renewable Energy Policy for Trinidad and Tobago, puts wind energy as the RE technology of choice for bulk energy generation in the national grid22. The target is to generate 5% (or 60 MW) of peak demand from RE energy sources by 2020, most of which is expected to be generated from wind power, since solar technologies pose limitations in terms of land availability for any large-scale application. More data needs to be gathered on technically feasible wind power generation locations, and the size of the wind farms. Assuming that 50 MW of energy would be generated by wind, a rough estimate shows that potential emission reductions would be about 96,250

18 Trinidad Express Newspapers, 2011, http://www.trinidadexpress.com/business-magazine/Unlimited_power-129769308.html

19 Calculated using IPCCC standard values for emission factors for natural gas and diesel, and plant efficiency of 40%, working an average of 7,000 hours a year.

20 Calculated using IPCCC standard values for emission factors for natural gas and diesel, and plant efficiency of 35%, working an average of 7,000 hours a year.

21 Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs, The National Framework for Development of a Renewable Energy Policy for Trinidad and Tobago, January 2011.

22 Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs, The National Framework for Development of a Renewable Energy Policy for Trinidad and Tobago, January 2011.


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tons of CO2 (calculated using the grid emission factor of 0.77 tCO2/MWh23, and 2500 annu-al working hours).

Solar

There is an abundance of solar power that the government intends to develop into solar energy in the future. The average global horizontal irradiance is 5.5-6.0 kWh/m2/day24, creating favourable conditions for both solar thermal and solar power applications. Since large-scale solar PV power production for the national grid would need considerable land area, that might not be readily available, this technology is seen as having the biggest potential for off-grid micro-scale applications. Amongst other things, it can be used for lighting, back-up power production, and solar water heaters.

Solar Lighting

Solar lighting has been considered as one of the possibilities for emission reductions. T&TEC (Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission) has a system of approximately 160,000 sodium streetlights, and has been considering the possibility of more energy effi-cient solar street induction lights. Of the 160,000 streetlights, 20,000 are high voltage lights, and replacement of these with induction lights is estimated to have emission reduc-tion potentials of 7,600 tons of CO225. The costs of the project, however, are very high; therefore, no move has been made towards implementation, as of yet.

Solar Water Heaters (SWH) A study by the Engineering Institute at the University of the West Indies (UWI) has esti-mated that there are 26,538 residential consumers owning an electric heater. The study also found that a single SWH had the consumption of approximately 630 kWh of electrici-ty26 per month, hence 7.56 MWh a year. If all electric water heaters were to be replaced with SWHs, this would save 200,627 MWh in electricity consumption, thereby yielding emissions savings of 154,482 tons of CO2.



Wind 96,250 ACM2, AMS-I.D., AMS-I.F.

Solar Lighting 7,600 AMS-I.A., AMS-II.J.

Solar Water Heaters 154,482 AMS-I.C.

Energy Consumption

Greater efficiency in the consumption of energy is commonly an attractive option for emis-sions reduction, due to its dual benefit of reducing both emissions and the size of the ener-

23 Brander et al., 2011: Electricity-specific emission factors for grid electricity, http://www.eclac.org/portofspain/noticias/paginas/0/44160/Trinidad_and_Tobagolcarl325.pdf


25 CD4CDM, Project Outlines & Feedback from Sectoral Workshop on 27/10/2011, Second National and Sectoral Capacity Building Workshops for CDM.

26 ECLAC, 2011, An Assessment of the Economic Impact of Climate Change on the Energy Sector in Trinidad and Tobago, http://www.eclac.org/portofspain/noticias/paginas/0/44160/Trinidad_and_Tobagolcarl325.pdf


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gy bill. However, despite many years of promotion, it is also the most overlooked option. In the CDM, for instance, demand-side energy efficiency projects only make up 1% of the CER generation. There are many reasons for this, including the fact that most developing countries focus on energy access rather than energy saving. However, this is not the case in Trinidad & Tobago, which is almost fully electrified.27 Furthermore, its abundant access to fossil fuels has not been an ideal basis for initiating energy efficiency measures, either. Per capita energy consumption is almost six times the world average, and almost 30% higher than that of the USA.28 The Government of Trinidad and Tobago is currently devel-oping a national energy policy Green Paper that recognizes renewable energy (RE) com-bined with energy efficiency (EE). A major challenge to the promotion of renewable ener-gy and energy efficiency is the subsidized domestic energy prices, which make it difficult to compete29. Economic viability aside, the reduction options are clear. Nearly all households are operat-ing a number of electrical appliances, including A/Cs, which can have their efficiency im-proved through labelling initiatives, or fiscal support mechanisms like tax credits, import duty exemptions, 0-rating for VAT purposes, wear and tear allowances, etc. These initia-tives were mentioned in the recent Brief on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency.30 The below graph illustrates the total bi-monthly electricity consumption.31

27 http://www.photius.com/rankings/electrification_by_country_2007_2008.html

28 http://ac.els-cdn.com/S0301421511005957/1-s2.0-S0301421511005957-main.pdf?_tid=9284b68c58acf97d2f88d565defe7a3e&acdnat=1345099417_ac2998c5856d640b4cf3aab316e05f8c

29 http://www.energy.gov.tt/energy_industry.php?mid=164

30 http://www.energy.gov.tt/energy_industry.php?mid=164

31 http://energy.gov.tt/content/266.pdf

Figure 6, Total Bi-monthly electricity consumption


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The above figure illustrates the electricity consumption of a typical household in Trinidad, which reveals obvious areas of intervention. Water heating is the largest source of con-sumption, and has clear substitution options in solar water heating (see the Renewable Energy section), while the second largest source of consumption is air conditioning. Nor-mally, up to 30% energy can be saved when replacing an inefficient air conditioner with an efficient one, which would result in potential reductions of 1,100 kWh/year, correspond-ing to about 1 tCO2e/year per household. The baseline is the energy that would have been used and the emission reduction potential is the electricity saved times the grid emission factor of 0.77 tCO2/MWh. If half of all households run A/Cs, and half of these would ex-change them for efficient ones, the total reduction potential would be about 90,000 tCO2e/year. In comparison, a similar uptake of solar water heating would yield 650,000 tCO2e of annual emissions reduction. The public sector and the hotels sector would hold significant reduction potentials as well. The website Tripadvisor.com lists 58 hotels that if assumed to have an average of 100 air-conditioned rooms could reduce about 12,000 tCO2e (average usage 12 hours/day). It is likely that a comprehensive A/C exchange pro-gramme could yield about 100,000 tCO2e of emissions reduction per year. A countrywide CFL programme could theoretically reduce 250 kWh/household/year, or about 100,000 tCO2e, assuming 10 incandescent bulbs per household are exchanged, and efficiency gains are 75%. The public sector and private businesses could add further re-duction potentials. Public services such as streetlights, traffic lights and water pumping, also represent reduc-tion options. No data for traffic lights have been retrievable for T&T, but in Jamaica an 87% reduction of energy consumption is expected from a complete exchange of the coun-trys 3,300 lamps in traffic lights.32 Assuming a similar coverage, in relative terms,33 there would be about 6,000 lamps in traffic lights in T&T. With an average bulb wattage of 150W, and an average usage of 8 hours per day-- assuming 3 lamps in one traffic light (red, green and yellow)--energy consumption would be reduced by little less than 2,300 MWh, or about 2,000 tCO2e/year. There are no reports on any activity on LED conversion of streetlights, but Trinidad airport has initiated a conversion programme for its run-ways.34 A figure from 1997 has the total energy consumption for street lighting in T&T amounting to 16,000 MWh.35 Using this figure, an assumed efficiency gain of 80%, and a 50% conversion rate, 6,400 MWh could be saved, or about 6,000 tCO2e. Trinidad and Tobago consumes 350-400 million cubic meters of water per year, mainly pumped from different aquifers -- e.g. the Northern Gravels Aquifer, which is extensively pumped for water supply throughout North Trinidad, i.e. also supplying Port of Spain.36 Energy consumption for pumping depends on a range of variables, particularly the dis-tance and height (up or down) the water is to be moved. Flat pumping of 25 km could re-quire about 0.2 kwh/m3, which could potentially be reduced by 40% through the installa-tion of energy efficient pumps.37 Assuming that this corresponds to the average pumping

32 http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/LED-to-the-rescue_7932378

33 Adjusted for number of inhabitants and gdp/cap, though there is no evidence for correlation between these figures and the number of traffic lights in a country.

34 http://www.electricityforum.com/news/may09/SolarLEDlightsaddedtoTrinidadairport.html

35 http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/ene_ele_con_by_pub_lig-energy-electricity-consumption-public-lighting

36 http://www.wasa.gov.tt/Forms/IADB2011/Maloney%20Report%20Final%20Draft%20Rev%202%20with%20Appendices.pdf

37 http://www.energibesparelser-vand.dk/Default.aspx?ID=2250&TokenExist=no


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needs for water in T&T (the assumption has not been verified), potential energy savings could amount to 30,000 MWh, or more than 25,000 tCO2e for water supply alone. Further reduction options could be anticipated in sewage treatment.



CFL distribution 100,000 AMS-II.E. AMS-II.J.

A/Cs 100,000 AMS-II.C

LED traffic lights 2,000 AMS-II.C

LED streetlights 6,000 AMS-II.C

Water pumping 25,000 AMS-II.C

Industrial Production Processes

The industry sector represents, by far, the largest energy consumer in Trinidad and Toba-go. In 2003, according to the IEA, 86% of all energy was consumed by the industry sec-tor.38 Recently, T&T has sought ways to promote and implement energy efficiency policies, es-pecially as it relates to the design and construction of buildings, plants, and other projects. In the 2010 budget, the government announced a tax break for companies undertaking energy audits.39 In July 2010, the Minister of Energy and Energy Affairs mandated the Na-tional Energy Corporation (NEC) to embark on a study, developing a framework for an energy efficiency policy. Moreover, it was to include an energy management program for petrochemical plants, as well as providing, in the 20102011 national budget, tax allow-ances of 150% on the costs incurred by companies in the commissioning of energy audits, and accelerated depreciation of 75% in the year of acquisition on the capital incurred by companies in the acquisition of smart energy efficient systems.40 While these initiatives will likely help to lessen emissions, the emissions reduction potential cannot be assessed. The petrochemical and heavy industries are responsible for 56% of T&Ts emissions,41 and, therefore, are obvious targets for emissions reduction initiatives. The petrochemicals industry, including oil production, is the primary source of emissions. The bulk of the as-sociated gas in onshore oil production is vented into the atmosphere. Onshore production yields about 20,000 bopd, with a gas to oil ratio (GOR) of about 500 scf per bbl.42 Further-more, 500 scf corresponds to just above 10 kg of methane with a global warming potential


39 http://www.guardian.co.tt/business-guardian/2011/04/07/green-buildings-and-energy-efficiency


41 http://energy.gov.tt/content/266.pdf

42 http://www.energy.gov.tt/content/231.pdf


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of 21. That is 217 kg of CO2e, or 4,348 tCO2e/day, which amounts to 1,587,000 tCO2e/year.43 Additional reductions could be achieved if the methane is used for energy production. Known resources amount to 100,000 bbl/day for a hundred years, and thus represent immense reduction options (or avoidance of emissions).44 ArcelorMittal Point Lisas is the largest steelmaker in the Caribbean and the largest non-oil industrial complex in Trinidad and Tobago. The companys total direct reduced iron (DRI) production capacity is now 2.7 million tons from 1.3 million tpa DRI Midrex plants, a 1.4 million tpa DRI Midrex Megamod plant, and two 120-ton modern electric arc furnaces with a capacity of 1 million tons of liquid steel. This is, by any measure, a large production. In comparison, two CDM projects recovering waste heat in the Indian steel sector establish 14 MW power capacity from the production of 120,000 t sponge iron per year (CDM pro-ject no. 367), and 10 MW power capacity from a similar 120,000 t annual sponge iron pro-duction (CDM project no. 1157), respectively. The Indian grid emission factor of 0.86 is comparable to that of T&T. These two projects are expected to reduce 32,500 and 44,600 tCO2e/year, respectively. A 25 MW installation at a 360,000 tpa sponge iron facility is ex-pected to reduce 160,000 tCO2e/year (CDM project no. 1719). On this basis, it would be reasonable to assess the reduction potential at Point Lisas to be at least 500,000 tCO2e, and possibly larger. There are about 10 local manufacturers of iron products, based on ArcelorMittals output such as Centrin, which has an annual production capacity of 120,000 t, and produces Rounds, Rebars, Flats, Angles, Squares, etc. 45. There are likely to be additional energy efficiency options in these companies, though it has not been as-sessed. Trinidad Cement Ltd.s cement production was about 950,000 tons in 200846, which is assumed to be the entire T&T production (national production in 2007 was 900,000 tons47). Waste heat recovery in the cement industry is common in CDMs. The size of TCLs production is comparable to CDM project no. 432948 in the Philippines, where a 1 Mta ce-ment plant is expected to generate emission reductions of 11,800 tCO2e/year from waste heat recovery. The chemicals industry in T&T is significant and diverse. Emissions reduction potentials in many of the 41 chemical manufacturing companies listed in the manufacturers index49 are limited. Plastics, cosmetics, industrial cleaning products, and paints are prevalent, but with no reduction potential. Micro Milling Limited produces mortar and limestone products, and might be a target for emissions reduction, though the potential cannot be assessed. Ammonia production is, without doubt, the largest source of GHG emissions in T&T. In 2009, production corresponded to 5,100,000 tons of nitrogen content,50 responsible for

43 The source arrives at 200,000 tCO2e, but the calculation is not explained

44 http://www.energy.gov.tt/content/231.pdf

45 http://www.centrintt.com/

46 http://www.tcl.co.tt/about-tcl/tcl-sales-and-production

47 http://www.undp.org.tt/TT-Today/Trinidad-Tobago-Production-of-Cement-Sugar-1960-2007.html

48 http://cdm.unfccc.int/filestorage/S/T/A/STAX2E8ZGJ5YLCB0VQPI96D1FUNM34/4329%20PDD.pdf?t=ZkJ8bTkzenlzfDBGPXfmebplRcSkZMwW6Zdz

49 http://www.ttma.com/directory/manufacturing/

50 http://www.indexmundi.com/minerals/?country=tt&product=ammonia&graph=production


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54% of T&Ts emissions -- or about 30 million tCO2e.51 The CO2 emissions are unavoidable in the production process of ammonia based on NH4CO3, thus, reductions require alterna-tive usage of the CO2, possibly for the production of urea, which may already be ongoing (urea production constitutes 1% of T&Ts GHG emissions52). The reduction potential, therefore, cannot be assessed. CaribGlass is a manufacturer of glass packaging, the production of which requires high temperatures, consequently offering energy efficiency opportunities. Efficiency gains may be in the order of about 40%.53 Current production output and energy consumption is not known, though CGLs annual turnover is 27million USD.54 This may, very roughly, be as-sessed to reflect a production of about 2,000 tons of glass.55 CDM project no. 1018 in India achieves emission reductions of about 15,000 tCO2e in the production of approximately 1,000 tons/year, leading to an assumption that CaribGlass may hold a potential of emis-sion reductions of about 30,000 tCO2e.



Cement industry 11,800 AMS-II.D., AMS-III.B., AMS-III.Q., AMS-III.AS. ACM12, AM24

Steel waste heat recovery 500,000 ACM12

Glass waste heat recovery 30,000 ACM12

Flaring in oil fields 1,587,000 AM9

Transportation

Trinidad and Tobago has already established clear targets for emissions reduction in the transport sector:

1) Moving from less than 1% to 15 20% of the vehicle population (i.e. about 75,000

to 100,000 vehicles) to CNG, from T&Ts oil and gas fields, especially high mileage

vehicles.

2) A 40% reduction in liquid fuel volumes, which in turn will significantly reduce the

petroleum subsidy bill.

3) A 10 15% reduction in the carbon footprint of the transportation sector.56

51 http://trinidadandtobago.acp-cd4cdm.org/media/296137/1stnational_sectoralworkshopsreport.pdf

52 http://trinidadandtobago.acp-cd4cdm.org/media/296137/1stnational_sectoralworkshopsreport.pdf

53 http://cdm.unfccc.int/filestorage/T/5/N/T5NVJ6WK5LQ2OSZTTQP1G94C365BME/HNG%20PDD.pdf?t=Yzd8bTk3ZHAyfDAJqh8CAZeXqI4QmV41TNXQ

54 http://www.ansamcal.com/eng/2manufacturing.asp?articleid=32&zoneid=11

55 http://emb.gov.ph/nswmc/PDF/others/Price%20of%20Recyclables.PDF using an average factory price of 7 US cents per kilo of glass.

56 http://www.un.org/esa/dsd/resources/res_pdfs/csd-19-ipm/28february/presentations/Sustainable-Transportation-Development-TrevorTownsend.pdf


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The Ministry of Works and Transport estimates that there are approximately 630,000 ve-hicles in the country, increasing by about 30,000 annually.57 The emissions from consump-tion of liquid fuels in T&T, in 2008, were 3.7 million tons, nearly all of which stems from transportation (all power production is based on gas).58 A CNG conversion programme for the petrol-based vehicles has the potential to reduce emissions by about 25%,59 but it is uncertain how big a share is converted voluntarily. Petrol is the dominant fuel, and SUVs are very common, which could render even a 10% conversion significant, in emissions reduction terms roughly 60,000 tCO2e. If the target of 40% reduction in liquid fuel vol-umes were reached, it would correspond to about 370,000 tCO2e. Greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation sector have increased by 278% over the period 1990 to 2006.60 The Government has attempted to reduce emissions from the transportation sector by encouraging the increased use of alternative low-carbon emission fuels, such as CNG, through the removal of Value Added Taxes (VAT) and import duties on CNG conversion kits. To enhance this effort, the Cabinet agreed in 2011 that the main ar-tery of the road network utilised by public (buses) and private (maxi taxis) mass transpor-tation, the Priority Bus Route, be converted into a Green route, allowing vehicles pow-ered by either low-carbon emission fuels (CNG), zero emissions (electric power), or a combination of electric power and fossil fuel (hybrid power) to use the Priority Bus Route. Additionally, street and traffic lights along the Priority Bus Route would be converted to solar power. Trinidad and Tobago already has a modern bus fleet of 300 buses operated by PTSC, in-cluding 12 Volvo articulated buses, accommodating 115 passengers per unit, purchased in 2005. Converting the fleet to operate on CNG may qualify as a CDM activity, though reduc-tions would only be approximately 15,000 tCO2e/year (assuming about 300 km/bus/day and emissions reduction from conversion of diesel to CNG to be about 25%). This could be supported by a recently initiated GPS system to track movements of public buses61. How-ever, 90% of public transportation is by 25,000 privately owned 45 passenger sedans and 4,500 privatelyowned 925 seater vehicles62 that do not constitute captive fleets and, therefore, cannot be a basis for any CDM activity. These would naturally be encompassed by the already existing CNG conversion campaign. Furthermore, there is a heavily subsi-dized lowvolume luxury Water Taxi System linking North to South, and two major ports handling international and regional cargo.63 Both are sources of emissions that may be addressed in a conversion of current fuel consumption to biofuels. However, so far, no activity on biofuels production has been reported in Trinidad & Tobago, except for CMS Limited, a company located in San Juan, which T&T has announced will produce 1.1 mil-lion litres/year of biodiesel from waste vegetable oil collected on the island64. This corre-sponds to an estimated emissions reduction of about 3,000 tCO2e or a little less if it re-places CNG. 57 http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2011/08/25/govt-moves-green-priority-bus-route

58 http://www.tradingeconomics.com/trinidad-and-tobago/indicators

59 http://www.swenergy.org/publications/documents/Ozone_Precursor_and_GHG_Emissions_RAQC_04-08-11.pdf

60 http://www.guardian.co.tt/news/2011/08/25/govt-moves-green-priority-bus-route

61 http://www.stabroeknews.com/2012/archives/05/24/gps-system-to-track-trinidad-public-transport-buses/



64 http://www.renewableenergymagazine.com/article/caribbean-island-to-produce-biodiesel-from-waste


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Biodiesel for transport 60,000 ACM17, AMS-III.C., AMS-III.T.

Summary

Trinidad & Tobago has an overall abatement potential of 5,314,914 tCO2e. The total in-vestments needed to achieve these reductions can only be roughly assessed, as a sizeable share of the reductions relate to technologies for which no data currently exists -- in terms of their investment to CER-revenue ratio.


REDD+ / Avoided deforestation 286,260

Afforestation/ Reforestation

1,717,560

Biodiesel 12,000

Waste 590,230

Waste water 192,500

Fossil fuel switch 99,792

Wind 96,250

Solar lighting 7,600

Solar Water Heaters 154,482

CFL distribution 100,000

A/Cs 100,000

LED traffic lights 2,000

LED street lights 6,000

Water pumping 25,000

Cement industry 11,800

Steel waste heat recovery 500,000

Glass waste heat recovery 30,000

Flaring in oil fields 1,587,000

Biodiesel for transport 60,000

These estimates should not be regarded as being precise. Rather, they represent a form of calculation that allows comparison among economies, and their relative attractiveness as destinations for carbon finance. It should be emphasized that while attempting to be exhaustive, the estimates here do not claim to be all-inclusive. There may be unidentified sources of reductions not included in the technology overview, and not represented by existing methodologies, but in all likeli-hood these would be minor compared to the potentials identified.

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