Why Gensets are the Default Choice
The reliance on gensets is a direct result of several interconnected factors:
- Geographical Dispersion: The fundamental challenge. Stringing power lines between islands is not feasible. Each island or island group must be self-sufficient in its power generation.
- Proven and Simple Technology: Gensets are a well-understood, relatively simple technology. They can be installed, maintained, and repaired with skills that are available locally or can be brought in.
- High Upfront Cost of Renewables: While Solar PV is a perfect match for the tropics, the initial capital investment for a system robust enough to replace a diesel genset (which requires significant battery storage for night-time and cloudy days) has been a major barrier.
- Established Fuel Supply Chain: Despite its cost, a supply chain for importing diesel already exists to serve the transportation and fishing sectors. Adding power generation piggybacks on this existing logistics network.
4. Critical Sectors Dependent on Gensets
- Essential Services: Hospitals, clinics, schools, and government buildings all have their own standby gensets. A power failure in a hospital without a functional genset is a life-threatening situation, especially for vaccine refrigerators and medical equipment.
- Telecommunications: Every cell tower and communication facility is equipped with a genset (often paired with battery banks) to ensure the network remains operational during main power outages.
- Tourism: The tourism industry, a key economic driver, is entirely dependent on gensets. Resorts on remote islands use large gensets to provide 24/7 power for guests, including air conditioning, water desalination, and restaurant services.
- Commerce: All businesses, from small stores to larger operations, require gensets to run freezers, point-of-sale systems, and lighting.
5. Major Challenges and the Push for Change
The heavy reliance on diesel gensets comes with severe drawbacks, which are driving the search for alternatives:
- Extremely High Cost of Electricity: Micronesia has some of the highest electricity costs in the world. This is due to the exorbitant price of imported diesel, which includes long-distance shipping costs. This high cost stifles economic development and burdens households.
- Vulnerability to Fuel Price Shocks: The local economy is directly impacted by global oil price fluctuations. A rise in the price of a barrel of oil immediately translates to higher power costs and economic pain.
- Environmental Impact: Diesel gensets produce significant greenhouse gas emissions and local air pollution (particulate matter, NOx). They are also prone to spills and leaks, threatening fragile terrestrial and marine ecosystems.
- Logistical Complexity and Reliability: Delivering fuel to remote atolls is weather-dependent and complex. If a fuel ship is delayed, it can lead to a full-scale power crisis.