Ministry of Environment, Climate Change and Technology stated that the government's energy efficiency programme will save USD51.8 million by 2030. The remarks were made by Minister of State for Environment, Climate Change and Technology Khadeeja Naseem while speaking at the launching ceremony of Hakatha Samakaara, the national energy efficiency and conservation campaign.
Speaking at the ceremony, State Minister Khadeeja said the successful implementation of the energy efficiency programme would reduce the required generation capacity by 147MW by 2023. She said it will save USD51.8 million from the cost of purchasing new engines and building additional power systems.
Additionally, State Minister Khadeeja said energy efficiency and conservation are essential at the national level. She said solar power systems are being installed in various parts of the country and a total of 34.7MW of solar power has been installed in different islands in the past four years which will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by about 40,000MT and fuel consumption by 16 million litres. She highlighted the aim of the campaign is to save a large proportion of the fuel used in power plants located in the islands and reduce the release of toxic gases and reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2030.
Meanwhile, Deputy Minister Ali Majid said the Maldives has to import fuel to generate electricity. As such, he said electricity generation costs about 10% of a country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). In addition, he said the government is giving a large subsidy to provide fuel-generated electricity at a reasonable price. He also urged the public to buy energy-efficient appliances.