Samoa Will Shift to 100% Renewable Energy by 2021

Wind and solar might be struggling to gain a foothold in the U.S., but Samoa is on track to deliver 100% renewable energy for electricity generation by the year 2021.

The US leads the world in wind power generation, but solar is a lot less pervasive, especially since Trump’s solar tariff put a major dent in a booming market. As of 2017, renewable energy only accounted for 11% of our total energy consumption. Things are a bit different in Samoa, where renewable energy already serves nearly 60% of the country’s electricity needs.

Granted, the US economy is considerably bigger than Samoa’s, and their respective energy needs are radically different – electricity consumption in Samoa is 90 GWh per year, while the U.S. consumes 4,144 TWh annually.

But given its geography, Samoa deserves kudos for its commitment to renewable energy. As the Samoa Planet points out, “diesel power made up more than two-thirds of the nation’s electricity generation as recently as 2011,” and like many island nations, Samoa has been heavily dependent on expensive fossil fuels.

Diesel fuel generates 11 million KWh of electricity annually in Samoa, and given the country’s dearth of natural fossil fuel resources, a switch to renewables isn’t just a token green gesture.

Read more about this development here: http://www.samoaplanet.com/samoa-renewable-energy-drive-intensifies/