In the last century, rolling blackouts were a regular feature in our cities and towns, and Belizeans in villages knew the state of no electricity permanently—the electric lines passing over their heads to take the “juice” to urban Belize, never stopping at their houses. Progress has come to Belize since independence. Today, the remotest villages in our country have gotten used to electrical power provided 24-7 by Belize Electricity Ltd. (BEL), and potable water piped into homes.
It is a luxury to have electricity. It is also critical to our financial livelihoods. More and more, we need dependable, cheap electricity to produce goods and services so we can survive, prosper in this world. That is why there is so much alarm about these frequent interruptions in the supply of electricity, which began in early May. Apart from the physical distress, these recent blackouts hit our economy hard. They caused major industries to shut down; in one episode the grid went dead in the tourism hub, San Pedro, for a whopping 13 hours consecutively.
A decade-old report from Energy Transition Initiative at the webpage nrel.gov/d shows the breakdown of our dependence on this energy source. An estimated 12.28% of electricity produced is lost along the transmission lines, 4.63% is used for street lighting, 28.88% goes for residential use, and 54.21% for commercial use. The electricity used in Belize 10 years ago was produced from biomass (5.12%), from solar energy (0.10%), from fossil fuel (43.18%), and 51.60% was hydro-generated, and there hasn’t been much change since.
It’s been some years since Belizeans across the country were cut off from electricity for long periods. Hurricanes, and we have been hit by quite a few, have caused blackouts in localized areas. No one faults the authorities for such interruptions. Outside of hurricanes disrupting the flow of electricity to our homes and businesses, blackouts have been few, and when they occurred they were quickly remedied. It’s been smooth sailing for a couple decades, ever since we dammed the Macal River and we started getting relatively cheap, reliable electricity from Mexico.
Where would we be without the Mollejon, the Chalillo, and the Vaca? The Belize Press Office says these hydroelectric plants have a generating capacity of 51.2 megawatts and provide “approximately 40% of the electricity demand in the country.” There are environmental issues associated with dams, but the fact is that hydro is at the backbone of our electricity-producing industry.
The recent blackouts were caused when our neighbor, Mexico, pulled the plug. At times Mexican electricity meets 60% of our needs, on average about 50%. We knew the day would come when we couldn’t depend on our neighbor for electricity; we were warned that they were having trouble supplying us. Inevitably, the day we were warned about came, and ugly things—discomfort and considerable financial losses—hit the fan. Despite BEL ramping up its capacity with a gas turbine, it is expected that there’ll be more breaks in the flow of electricity. On Tuesday, the XTV News headline said BEL had announced a new “rolling blackout schedule for two days.”
Our leaders have come under serious scrutiny for the present difficult situation. There are multiple explanations for the lack of investments in equipment to increase our capacity, and the consequent electricity shortfall. Local electricity is produced by private entities, and their concern is about their profits. Electricity is regulated by a public body, and a primary concern of theirs is that costs be kept down so that our businesses are competitive and our people can afford it. There is also the national/global concern of environmental pollution by certain types of electricity production.
Looking at costs, on average we pay twice as much for electricity as people in the US do, but our electricity rate, about USD (US dollars) 0.21 per kilowatt-hour (k-h) compares well with most countries in our region. According to Statista, Guatemalans pay USD 0.30/k-h, Hondurans USD 0.23/k-h, and Salvadorans USD 0.23/k-h. Panamanians pay USD 0.17, Costa Ricans USD 0.18, and Mexicans USD 0.11 per kilowatt-hour of electricity. ResearchGate says the people of oil-rich Trinidad and Tobago pay USD 0.06, Bahamians pay USD 0.15, Jamaicans USD 0.35, and Barbadians USD 0.39 per kilowatt-hour of electricity.
BEL also provides special rates for what it describes as social customers. Belizeans who on average use less than 60 kilowatt-hours per month “solely for domestic use” pay USD 0.11 per k-h, with a minimum charge of $5 per month.
As it relates to the environment, concerns with the health of our planet have turned people away from dams and fossil fuels. In the present electricity crisis, there has been no mention of damming, and that is because apart from its negative impacts on fish and the quality of water, hydrologists are increasingly associating dams with droughts.
Our leaders are banking on solar energy. In August 2023 the Prime Minister announced that the government had signed “a US$77 million loan agreement with the Saudi Fund for Development (SFD), for the construction of a 60MW solar energy plant in Belize.” There has also been talk of us linking up with the Central American grid, but on average many Central American countries pay more than we do for electricity, and we already have had the experience of having the plug pulled on us. BEL tells us that by 2028, which is four long years away, we should approach electricity independence.
Electricity scarcity is one of two major issues for Belizeans at this time. Belize also has water concerns. We are in the grip of a major heat wave, and it won’t surprise anyone if it is prolonged, because there is much extreme weather during this period of Climate Change. Belize City got a bad experience last week when there was a rupture of the main conduit transporting water to the old capital. The city was “only” out of water for several hours, and during that period many activities were crippled.
More people depend on the Belize River than on any other waterway in our country, and the level of the water in the river is of particular concern to Belmopan and the villages that surround it. Because of the present heat wave, the water level in the Belize River is falling daily. The output of the pumps at the confluence of the Belize River and Roaring Creek, which supply Belmopan and the villages around it, would have to be cut back if the river goes too low.
Across the globe, especially in arid areas, people are watching how farmers use water. Farmers are using the Belize River for irrigation, and it is all unregulated. Water isn’t an issue in the wet season, and farmers must be incentivized to store the excess so they are less dependent on the rivers and creeks in the dry season.
For Belize, a shortage of water would reduce the quality of life and add to the costs associated with rolling blackouts. It is a real possibility in these times in which we live. Hopefully the rains will come soon, but it is important for us to be proactive. All the experts say that IF we had made the investments they all knew we had to make, rolling blackouts wouldn’t be our lot for the foreseeable future. In the NOW we must do everything to protect our water resources.