Rt€@lll

- r48
In addition to using petroleum fuels directly, induslry and commerce €re the main users
of eleetrical energy. ln Fiji, with 16% of the domestic sector households electrified,8096 of
electrical energy generated is used in the industrial/commercial sector (Table 4). By
industrialized country standards, the peak demands are very small, with mly Fiji and Papua
New Guinea needing rnore then l0 MW peak in 1981. Tlc small demand has nEant that until
recently dmost all electricity generated has been from oil-fired diesel resulting in high
generation costs. Though the charges for electricity in the region are also quite high, the
1982 P.E.P. report noted bhat mly two governncnts recovered costs (Newcombe, f982). Such
a subsidy to electricity consunnrs obviously does not encourege the implementation of energy
saving rreasures, or allow for economic'substitution of alternative energy sources. As in the
rest of the world the opportunities for energy savings by efficient use of electrieal energy
are great. Lloyd (f981) reported that the electrical energy consurnption of the School of
Natural Resources building at USP could be halved by better use of air conditioning, lighting
and hot water heating.
Tuvalu
Cook Islands
Niue
Kiribati
Tmga
Vanuatu
Weetern Samoa
Solomons
Papua New Guinea
Fiji
Table 4 : Electricity (1981)
96 Households
Electrif ied
(estimales)
N.A.
75%
75''f
l5%
4096
l0%
28%
10%
5%
t6%
t
Peak Demand
M.W.
0. Il
1.9
o.6
0.9
2.I
t.2
5.9
t.4
79.1
62.O
Tarif f
U5$/kwh
. l0-. t8
.t8-.]l
.2r
.28
.19-.22
. 12-.40
.?4
.r9-.28
.r7 -.t9
.18
Hydroelectricity is the other main source of electricity production al present (Table 5).
As can be seen perhaps five of the programme counLries have potential for hydroelectric
generation, with Papua New Guinea by for the largest. Fiji has jusl completed Lhe first stage
of ils hydroelectric scheme at Monosavu.
Tuvalu
Cook Islands
Niue
K iribati
Tmga
Vanuatu
Western Samoa
Solomon Islands
Fiji
Papua New Guinea
Table 5 : Hydnoelectric potential
Installed Potential
0
0
0
0
0
0
0.8-r.5 MW
0.07 Mw
40 MW
10 MW
0
0
0
0
N.A.
4.5 MW
N.A.
N.A. (7t0 MW)
280 MW
21,000 MW
Other potential sources are biomass for small steam plants, wood gasification, coconut.
oil fueled diesels and to a limited extent wind. More exotic altennatives such as ocean
thermal enerqy conversion (O.T.E.C.) or wave systems need furthen evaluation in developed
countries before deployment in the Pacific Islands.
In summary, to realize the full enefgy poten[ial of the region, it will be necessary to
deal with both the oil companies and the open fire.