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Fortis Belize, owner and operator of the Chalillo, Mollejon and Vaca dams, has made headlines several times this year for the key role it plays in hydroelectric power. As the country faces problems with its energy supply, all eyes are on these dams and their water levels, otherwise Mexico’s energy supply will continue to fluctuate. Yesterday, the organization invited several media outlets to visit its facilities located in the Mountain Pine Ridge Forest Reserve. Journalist Vejea Alvarez and photographer Kajughn Guy took part in the tour and saw firsthand the operation of the dams, including the Chalillo Dam, which meets 40% of Belize’s energy needs. Below is Vejea’s report on the visit.
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: Have you ever wondered where most of the country’s electricity comes from? The answer is hydroelectricity, generated by hydroelectric dams like the one managed by Fortis Belize. On Thursday, Fortis Belize demonstrated how 100 percent renewable energy can be generated from nature. Every day, water from the Macal River powers turbines at the Mollejon, Chalio and Vaca hydroelectric facilities, providing up to 40 percent of Belize Electricity Company Limited’s electricity. Kay Menzies, CEO of Fortis Belize, said the company felt it was important to show how to keep the lights on in the country.
Kay Menzies, CEO of Fortis Belize, said: “I think it’s important for the public to understand what’s going on, how energy is coming to everyone’s homes. As I said to someone earlier, there’s quite a bit of industrial activity in Belize that people don’t see or hear about. It’s important, especially when you see high school students trying to figure out where they’re going to go for their education, what fields they’re going to study, and so on. These facilities provide opportunities for the renewable energy sector that is in its early stages, and it’s very exciting, there’s a lot of innovation, a lot of early adoption going on.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: Challio Dam uses the river’s kinetic energy to spin turbines, which then generate electricity. Operations manager Tedford Pate said the process was fully renewable and vital to reducing the country’s carbon footprint.
Tedford Pate, Operations Manager, Fortis Belize: “While it may be that more than 60% of our electricity comes from renewable sources such as hydro, this is quite remarkable not only for Belize but for the entire region. So we can be proud to be working on developing this energy source and looking to the future to add solar as a renewable energy portfolio.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: The company’s 100% Belizean workforce includes young professionals like Suzette Correa, who talks about the satisfaction she gets from knowing her work is vital to the country’s energy needs.
Suzette Correa, Operations and Maintenance: “It’s a big responsibility because you know people are depending on this unit to start because we provide water, we supply water to Molehon. So suppose Molehon doesn’t have enough water, they can’t produce because we reserve water and supply it when they need it. Although we produce less energy compared to Molehon.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: While the company relies on rainfall to replenish its reservoirs, Pate said climate change has already affected its operations this year. He explained that Fortis wants to incorporate solar into its energy mix to increase energy generation capacity and provide more stability to the national grid.
Tedford Pate, Operations Manager, Fortis Belize: “For example, we have 7 megawatts of hydroelectric capacity here, but in the dry season, that capacity is limited, and sometimes in extreme drought conditions, it drops to 1.5 to 2 megawatts, like we’ve had this year. What if we added seven to eight megawatts of solar capacity in the dry season, when there’s no rain and the sun is shining the best, to keep that extra energy coming from this location into the grid? You know, it’s basically maximizing the natural resources that we have.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: While Belize is already a shining example in the region for renewable energy use, Menzies believes that if Fortis’ solar farm project is approved, it could increase the country’s reliance on green energy.
Kay Menzies, CEO of Fortis Belize, said: “We have done the first version of the environmental impact assessment. NEAC is coming back now with questions. We are preparing what needs to be prepared and it really depends on some decision between BEL and the regulator as to what to do next. For us, we are just standing by and saying, listen, we are ready. We can help in this way. We can actually do much more than that, but at least let us try. If someone is ready, we are there.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News: Menzies added that in addition to monitoring river health and working to protect habitats near its facilities, Fortis Belize is also contributing to the country’s sustainable development goals.
Kay Menzies, CEO of Fortis Belize, said: “We have team members working with governments on sustainable development goals, and we work with some of these countries on opportunities, as well as environmental aspects. One of the things for us is, yes, every megawatt of electricity produced from here is avoided emissions from somewhere else, if you think about Mexico, or Mexico is a mix, but a lot of times it’s fossil fuel generation, two gas turbines, other opportunities. So that’s what we’re talking about as avoided emissions every time it’s produced from us. Same thing with solar, so once we put the data together, Belize was able to show more avoided emissions.”
Vejea Alvarez, Love News
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