(DNO) General Manager of Dominica Electricity Services Limited Collin Cover has said renewable electricity is welcomed by DOMLEC as long as it is first inspected and deemed safe.
Cover, who spoke at a press conference at the DOMLEC’s office last week, said that he sees nothing wrong with persons and companies generating their own power on a small scale to reduce their monthly bills.
Last week a wind energy system was turned on for the first time in Rosalie.
“There’s nothing new with companies generating their own electricity. It’s the first time that we have had somebody doing it with renewable energy. Today as a matter of fact, at 10 o’clock this morning I was at Rosalie when they turned it on for the first time and they started generating their own power with wind,” Cover said.
“However, many other companies… have always been generating their own power for their own use in Dominica. So I do welcome the renewables… I don’t know if many people know but we actually do now have sanction by the IRC and interconnection policy and for renewable energy….and we wrote it and it was just passed by the IRC perhaps two and a half weeks ago. But we now have actual rules about interconnection with renewable energy to the DOMLEC system,” the general manager said.
Cover explained that obtaining bigger renewable systems come with stricter the rules.
“It depends on the size system you have. If you have a very small system like just a small solar panel you’re just gonna put on your house, you not trying to sell power to DOMLEC, you just trying to reduce your own bill, and its less than five kilowatts…Once we come and inspect it, and you hook up, that’s all you really need to do once we inspect it,” he said.
Cover said that one also has to first get permission from the Independent Regulatory Commission (IRC) in order to be able to practice these renewable electricity practices.
“ As you get bigger and you get to the point where you want now to sell power back to DOMLEC there are different sets of rules. The bigger you get, the stricter our enforcement becomes… But for the small householder who just want to do something to reduce their own bill….there’s a streamline process. It’s basically once we check the equipment and realize that it’s safe equipment you hook up and get very little paper work to do,” he said.
my bro if u want to self generate, trust me domlec personnels are the best choice on island. owing to the fact that they themselves produce energy using hydro-power, disel power, and also has experience with wind and solar, i believe the best option is to take their word for it in regards to testing self generation power systems.
Who is this director, is he an engineer or what? he speaks like a lay person with no idea about what he is talking about.
Francisco, I respect your contributions most of the times, but when you resort to questioning the Manager’s training and qualifications, you are also probing the intelligence of the board of Directors who found him suitable.
Dominica is a country of small communities which causes power distribution, inclusive of line losses to be as expensive as production. Dominica does not have as many rivers as we claim and the stress on any that is harnessed for power is obviated by reduced flow for other domestic needs.
Micro-hydro production can be implemented only if we choose to group communities in threes to share the energy produced by one micro-hydro unit.
In effect, we would be decentralising production and distribution, with each group capable of selling back excessive energy to the central power grid. This approach may be used in phase with other sustainable energy sources such as wind(solar), solar, geothermal and wave to optimise productivity.
The General Manager is fully aware that proper procedures must be set forth if private individuals are to venture into such a highly risky and dangerous enterprise.
Well Winston, in all due respect not-withstanding the mombo jumbo, you probably do not have a simple one bedroom house with a small living room, one fridge and one tv that are not ‘on’ all the time, and having to pay a stinking domlec $180 EVERY STINKING MONTH.
They feel so stink to do this to us that they had to do something about it..guess what? pay-as-you-go.
Concerned Citizen:
$180.00 per month for a one bedroom home with basic amenities is outrageous indeed; but the costs you are paying for are not wholly production and administrative. Shareholders of Domlec are promised a 20% return on their investment annually regardless of margin of profit. The Manager is not responsible for the terms and conditions of stock purchase. This was established long before he was hired. You have to protest the injustice – not demean the Manager.
Heaven help us: God help us!
It is unconceivable that someone one pays a hundred and eighty dollars per month, for the use of current, in such a small environment.
That is criminal, and someone should be held accountable for this crime they have perpetrated on the people. I have lived in England, Germany, Antigua, and now America, and has never paid, a hundred and eighty pounds, in England, nor hundred and eighty Deutsche Marks, in Germany, the Euro was not in existence when I lived there.
However, I operated an electronic business on the island of Antigua, and never paid more that a hundred dollars per month, for electricity.
I am resident in Califorina for the past thirty years, and my electric bill has never gone over a hundred dollars, per month, unless I did not pay the bill on time, as a matter we in Los Angeles, are billed every two months, and I do not pay eighty dollars every two months, the last bill I paid was less than sixty dollars, and mind you Television in every room runs around the clock.
Refrigerators, Washer, and Dryer, Dishwasher, Air Conditioner, Microwave, all telephone plugged in to AC source also round the clock. Courtyard lights comes on at dust to dawn. I am not doing this to boast; my point here is simply this, even if life is different in Dominica to any other place on earth, the cost of electricity in Dominica is outrageous!
Now I have a place which I rent, comprising of ten Units ( Apartments) I have a small laundry on the premises, that means people are using the electricity every day to wash, they leave the lights in the laundry burning all day all night, I have to ensure that the Courtyard is illuminated from dust to dawn.
I just received my bill From Southern Califorina Edison: My current meter reading is 24949 kWh., my previous reading was 24949 kWh.
So, if I want to know how much electricity I used, all I have to do is subtract the first reading from the last, thus that should be:
24949
– 24820
= 129 that means the total amount of electricity I consumed at that building for that month is 129 kWh, and the amount in Dollars and cents it is costing me amounts to $40.56, that would be approximately $109.51 East Caribbean Currency, depending on the exchange of the day.
In any event if we divide: $40.56/129 we should arrive at 0.31 cents per kWh.
If the use of fusil fuel is the reason for the high cost of this product in Dominica, it is time for someone to consider utilizing a combination of Hydro and Wind Powered Generators, Solar Panels are also very efficient, bit at the rate things are going soon many people will not be able to afford electricity in their homes.
I now see why there are so many houses in the country without the use of electricity.
We are now in the twenty-first century, and the people should demand that DOMLC do better than they have done thus far, or get out, and let someone else try.
If I go back to the days of CDC, they gave us a lot of crap, refusing to electrify the entire country. It was not until Patrick John gave them a ultimatum to either electrify the whole country, or leave the country we got electricity in Wesley, and the rest of the North, with the exception of Portsmouth which they electrified in the 1950’s. In Wesley we got it about 1964/65.
This is madness!
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
The board of directors may have found him suitable, based on their standards, and their own qualifications, however, that may not mean he is the most suitable person for the job.
Considering that Collin made the statement that it may be more expensive to produce hydro electricity in Dominica, than utilizing diesel engines to do so, proves to me that this man does not know what he is talking about!
I therefore invite you to do some research on hydro technology and see what it entails, and make some comparisons to that and diesel generation of electricity.
My friend I am an Electrical Engineer/ Electronic Engineer by profession, I know about power generation, and distribution, and any person involve in that line of work who makes the claim that it cost less to generate power with diesel engines, rather than using water to turn the generators, surly should not be in that line of work.
If I had the authority over Collin, I would have him fired!
If you research it you will find that any place on earth where hydro electricity generation could be utilized, it was used. The set back these days is that there are not enough rivers left, in most countries to be utilized for that purpose, however, our rivers in Dominica are not utilized for that purpose, in addition to our seasonal and daily rain fall.
I can go into lots of detail on the subject of hydro electricity, but unless I am dealing with someone who is educated to the subject my efforts might be futile.
So, you can research it or simply say Francisco Telemaque said!
Colin may be a chosen manager, for whatever reason, the boards of directors deem fit, however his technical knowledge I call into question, I can tell you if he had training as an electrical engineer, he did not learn very much, he may have just skimmed through classes.
And that’s my opinion.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
I have been following his dialogue with great interest as I do have significant knowledge and experience with the generation, transmission, distribution and utilization of electricity in the region. I must say that most of the comments seem to agree with my own opinion that DOMLEC is ripping off the consumers in Dominica either for thier own benefit or through their inability to effective manage a relatively small utility over the years since the 70’s.
Francisco’s statement that “Hydro Power generation is less costly that fossil fuelled gfeneration” is ver factual when one considers the overall life cycle costs involved. If we are to give the DOMLEC the benefit of the doubt, we could say that he was specking basically of the initial capital costs involved, because it is true that hydro generatind incurrs much higher investment costs than diesel generators.
The place matters in perspective, I have done some research on the historic aspects of the Dominica Electricity Sector and was surprised to discover that at some stage in the recent past, at least 90% of the demand was satisfied from hydro power. No other country in the Caribbean and probably few in the world can boast of this achievement. However, although lots of studies were carried out to continue this trend during the 80’s, no actual development work was done to ensure that the country continue to benefit from its own natural resources.
SO TO THOSE WHO DISAGREE WITH FRANCISCO’S STATEMENTS……. PLEASE TRY TO INQUIRE A BIT MORE INTO THE SECTOR’S PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE CAPABILITIES.
Dominica is in a unique position to satisfy all of its electricity need without the use of a single drop of imported fossil fuel. However the use of diesel generator attracts less investment and quicker turn over since under the present tariff regime all casts are just passed through to the consumer with very little regard fro effectiveness, national benefits and, most important, the economic well being of the consumer.
Winston , wat the H you talking about Dominica dosent have much rivers as we claim, you know Dominica? allez lave bondaou.
@Cookie,,, how can ‘Staying Tuned’ be nice about DOMLEC’s gross mal-management of electricity in Dominica? Have you thought of how can a company fail with hydro-electricity on this island with an aboundance of water and hydro potential that they inherited, at no cost?
What UWP sold to them was just the island’s grid, that supplies the power to town and rural areas. They only sold it for $21 million, a pitance; so the existing hydro plant in Traffalga came free. They just had to maintain it. But they never reinvested in it, resulting in gross mal-management of the electricity.
What resulted is SHAMEFUL! The highest electricity rates in the Caribbean. Now they want to leave hydro and do Wind electricity, and even want a piece of the Geothermal energy being talked about currently, after failing with hydro – in the abundance of water. You think of that. Just make money, make money, make money on the backs of poor Dominicans!
Bunch of b^*ch*s!
And Francisco I totally agree with you, valid points.
Now the current gov’t needs to raise money to Nationalize Domlec before too long.
I don’t think just saying thanks for you comment is enough, I feel happiness reading you, at least I know I am not alone on the subject, and great potential of Hydro Power Generation, in our country.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
Just what we need ……..more govt. regulations and control tactics in the name of “safety.” It makes one wonder how we survived this long without them.
Smells like global environmental tactics to me. The UN.
More bureaucratic mumbo jumbo.
The alternative should be Hydro Electricity, however, since Collin believes that it is more costly to generate hydro electricity, than any other, we can look forward for the never ending high cost of electricity in our country!
Anyone who suggest that it is more costly to generate Hydro Electricity, than the technology we are now using, may not have any training in the job they are doing; thus, he (Collin), and I question Colin’s ability to really function properly in the position he now holds.
If he does not have an background in electrical engineering, power generation, and distribution, this guy will never be in a position to make the right decisions that will be of any significant to resolve any form of electrical production, and distribution problem on the island.
I need to remind this guy that it was Dominica’s potential to generate hydro electricity which brought the Colonial Development Corporation (CDC) to Dominica in the late 1940’s
It was that potential which caused CDC to perhaps still maintain the monopoly over our three hundred sixty-five rivers, which should last for almost another hundred years.
The original contract was signed for 99 years.
Francisco Etienne-Dods Telemaque
domlec so expensive!!!!! well if this man want to try a thing well fine… let’s wait & see.. give it a try
Dominicans pay the least for electricity i the caribbean and all u making noise? shame on all you
Staying Tuned you are a bit harsh…lol…If Dominicans were so capable there would be no need to look for foreigners….So never mind Mr. Cover….besides you not well glad you have electricity so can come online and check your sin (:
Be Nice!
Mr Cookie, Mamo and hard working Dominicans build DOMLEC after Hurricane David when CDC fled the country. Then those UWP, boy UWP again sold our hard work DOMLEC to these people and now they are stiffing us with the most expensive rate in the Caribbean…although we are generating 40% of our own energy with the hydro plant.
And you have some blind people in the UWP and some here are supporting some guy for suing the country for a $100 Million .
Garcon leave DOMLEC for Dominicans and their children.
We will do it ourselves, the way we did it from 1980 until all you came in.
Again, who is this man. Why is he dictating to us. So DOMLEC has to inspect our renewable energy.
Garcon, leave DOMLEC for we Dominicans and please go back where you come out.
who are u?