Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy Study (Text Version)

This is the text version of the video Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy Study (PR100).

This video outlines the process of creating PR100.

[Music playing]

>>Narrator: Over the years, the people of Puerto Rico have endured extreme weather events and power outages. But a deadly record was set in 2017, when back-to-back hurricanes destroyed around 80% of Puerto Rico's electric grid and resulted in thousands of lives lost.

>>Maritere Padilla-Rodríguez, Director of Policy and Advocacy, Hispanic Federation: After Hurricane Maria, we lost more than 3,000 lives during the longest blackout of U.S. history. Those are too many lives. That cannot happen again.

>>Narrator: With a unique opportunity to build back better, Puerto Rico passed Act 17, a policy to transition to 100% renewable energy by 2050.

>>Maritere Padilla-Rodríguez, Director of Policy and Advocacy, Hispanic Federation: But how we get there? What are the technical elements that we need to get to that transition, without forgetting energy justice and resiliency?

[Logos of Federal Emergency Management Agency, U.S. Department of Energy, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Argonne National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory]

>>Narrator: With funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Energy and six national laboratories have identified potential pathways forward in the Puerto Rico Grid Resilience and Transitions to 100% Renewable Energy Study, or PR100.

[People in Puerto Rico speaking with microphones in different meeting settings.]

PR100 is not only a reflection of world-class, in-depth modeling and analysis by researchers. It’s a reflection of two years of engagement with local stakeholders who hold a diversity of perspectives.

>>Jennifer M. Granholm, Secretary of Energy, U.S. Department of Energy: Over the past year, I’ve visited communities across Puerto Rico, listening to residents’ vision for what a cleaner and more resilient energy future could look like. Now, PR100 is ready to help make them bring those visions to life.

>>Deanne Criswell, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency: FEMA has been on the ground every day helping to support Puerto Rico’s recovery and reach its energy goals. The PR100 Study that we helped fund is one of many ways we’re working with Puerto Rico to find equitable and sustainable ways to reach a 100% clean energy future.

[Three graphics represent PR100’s Economic, Equitable, and Maximum scenarios, in which Puerto Rico incorporates renewable energy technologies with existing homes, buildings, mountains, trees, and water]

>>Narrator: PR100 provides Puerto Rican decision makers with an unprecedented view of their current and future energy system, and it identifies three potential pathways forward for Puerto Rico to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2050.

>>Eduardo Bhatia, Former Senator, Senate of Puerto Rico: We have more information on the Puerto Rico energy system than we have ever had in 100 years, and that's wonderful. We know about the winds, we know about the water, we know about agrivoltaics. There's so much. There’s so much in terms of information that we have to digest.

>>Narrator: By bringing stakeholders from across the government, community groups, and the energy sector to the table, the PR100 study has created connections that will help Puerto Rico on its journey.

>>Jonathan Castillo Polanco, Green Energy and Critical Services Manager, Hispanic Federation: [in Spanish] The process of integrating communities and various sectors has essentially helped us choose a path that is sustainable and fair for all individuals involved in this process.

>>Narrator: The PR100 study concluded that Puerto Rico can indeed reach its goal of 100% renewable energy by 2050. While the transition will not happen overnight, there is much that can be done to achieve a reliable grid for Puerto Rico in the short term while integrating more renewables onto the system over time. Researchers created an implementation roadmap outlining near- and long-term actions necessary to make this renewable energy goal a reality. It is up to the people of Puerto Rico, now, to decide how they move forward.

>>Gerardo Cosme, Consulting Engineer, Puerto Rico Independent Office of Consumer Protection: [in Spanish] This study is definitely the foundation for many decisions that are being made or will be made in the near future, and that are crucial to achieving a successful transition to renewable energy. Knowledge is power, and this is definitely the foundation for making the right decisions.

>>Narrator: We’re already seeing remarkable progress toward a more reliable, resilient, and renewable grid for Puerto Ricans.

>>Shay Bahramirad, Senior Vice President of Engineering, Asset Management and Capital Program, LUMA Energy: We have hired in past 12 months 250 recent graduates from six universities in Puerto Rico, and the engagement with different experts from the national labs, it's going to help us develop the talent that we need in the next decade to make the dream of, or the plan of, PR100 happen.

>>Narrator: The journey of Puerto Rico’s power system from widespread wreckage to renewable and resilient rebirth could be an enduring example for others to follow. Puerto Ricans deserve a reliable grid, and a 100% clean energy future is on the horizon. Learn more at pr100.gov.

[Animated NREL logo, music stops.]