ALTech ENERGY

During most recent Apple event in September 2018, it was announced that since January 2018, all of the electricity from their facilities worldwide are operated using 100% renewable energy. “In 2018, we reached a major milestone: 100 percent of the electricity we use at all of our facilities comes from renewable sources” The company achieved this through a combination of steps. Energy efficiency projects throughout all of their facilities were undertaken to reduce the consumption of power. Their facilities include all offices, stores, and data centres in 43 countries. From these projects they upgraded the facilities by using LED lighting, retro-commissioning building and lighting controls, and upgrading heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) systems. They were able to reduce their energy use in fiscal year 2017 by 14.7 million kWh and 22 500 mmbtu of natural gas and thanks to energy efficiency measures implemented since 2011, they are now cumulatively saving 70 mil...

Over the years with the increase in population, the demand and needs for electrical energy has also seen an exponential growth. Since electrical power is constantly used in the daily lives of citizens , without it, life as we know it will not exist. In order to get electricity to our jobs and homes the electricity grid is used. The electricity grid is an electrical power system network made up of the electricity generating plant, the transmission lines, the substations, transformers, the distribution lines and the consumers. In Trinidad and Tobago, we have an interconnected national grid system which transports the electricity from the power plant to the consumers and is totally controlled by the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC). T&TEC purchases electricity from independent power generators and then sells it to consumers at commercial or residential rates. It is illegal to access the electricity grid without obtaining necessary permissions from T&TEC, ...

The Caribbean is universally known for its warm weather, beautiful beaches, rain-forested hills, amazing mix of culture and of course, carnival. Trinidad and Tobago is true to the definition of what the Caribbean represents. Trinidad is the bigger and busier of the twin island republic with its economy heavily dependent on the oil and gas industry. Trinidad is where the true culture of the islands exist with a variety of different races and religions all coexisting in harmony. It is also the home of the biggest carnival in the Caribbean known as “The Greatest Show on Earth”. Tobago on the other hand has the beautiful beaches, rainforest and tourist oriented culture, which is much different from the industrialized sister island, Trinidad. In this part of the world there are only two seasons, the dry season and the rainy season. The dry season starts in December and finishes in May, with the rainy season starting in June and ending in November. Since Trinidad and Tobago has a t...

You are probably wondering how is it possible to have solar power both day and night if all we have in Trinidad and Tobago is approximately 12 hours of sunlight a day. Over the years talks of renewable energy went from murmurs to whispers to full conversations as declining oil, gas and coal reserves negatively impacts the world.  In T&T, with the abundance of sunshine available, solar power seems to be the most plausible type of renewable energy for the twin island. The most popular way to generate electricity from the sun is through the use of solar panels. Solar panels also known as photovoltaic (PV) panels, which are made of photovoltaic cells that use photons from sunlight to excite electrons, causing them to move, producing electricity.  Electricity is basically a flow of charge which is carried by free flowing electrons through a conductor such as copper. Solar panels, contrary to popular belief, does not operate on the heat coming from the sun. The hotter the...