From left, Darsha Camacho, Office of Grants Management fiscal analyst; Maria Deleon Guerrero, OGM, grants specialist; Donald Crisostimo, municipal council staff member; Council Vice Chairwoman Tonie M. Tudela; Council Chairwoman Marian DLG Tudela; and OGM Director Epi Cabrera.
(17th Saipan and Northern Islands Municipal Council) — Arising from their collective vision to be fully energized by non-fossilized power grid, the 17th Saipan and Northern Islands Municipal Council leadership has partnered with the offices of Gov. Arnold I. Palacios and Lt. Gov. David M. Apatang and received a notice of award by the U.S. Office of Insular Affairs through the Office of Grants Management.
By Christmas this year, the off-grid Kiosku facility project will see the Chalan Kanoa Leadership Kiosku taken completely off-grid, including the existing Kiosku parking facility and the Chalan Kanoa village’s first children’s playground proposed nearby.
The council has already partnered with IT&E on WiFi connectivity and ancillary communication facilities at the Kiosku courtyard.
The municipal leadership embraces the goals of Interior Assistant Secretary Carmen Cantor’s goals in enabling the territories to achieve sustainable energy strategies that contribute to mitigating the adverse effects of climate change; reduce fossilized fuel dependence; and curb the outflow of U.S. dollars by remote island territories expenditure on imported fossil fuels.
The Council leadership praises the leadership of the governor and lt. governor as stewards of the environment and for their stewardship in taking the lead with the council in helping to reduce carbon release to the atmosphere that contribute to earth warming and climate change. The Council intends to showcase the first fully solarized government facility which will be a prototype for the communities in the municipality of Saipan.
Earlier this month, the 17th Council also broke grounds for the construction of the Saipan municipal complex that will house the local municipality council on the ground floor secured with provisions for additional load bearing capacity above the first floor to accommodate the offices of the mayor, the municipal treasury and others as funds become available for construction.
The Council leadership shares the concern echoed recently by Deputy Assistant Secretary Keone Nakoa that “(e)nergy costs in the territories are among the highest in the nation,” and praises the leadership of OIA Assistant Secretary Cantor for spearheading a mandated priority set by the Biden-Harris Administration “to help drive down the costs and promote cleaner energy options,” including in the far flung islands of the Marianas archipelago nearly 8,000 miles away from the D.C. Beltway.
By contributing to improvements in the alternative application of energy infrastructure and energy policy through energizing insular communities and territories energy program promoted by OIA in the remote insular territories in the Pacific, the Council also promotes an overarching policy goal that is linked to the CNMI’s strategic energy plan, energy action plan, or integrated resource plan which would result in projected energy cost savings to end-users.
Council Chairwoman Tudela said the council leadership looks forward to taking the lead in fully implementing a small scale grid-tie rooftop solarized non-fossil fuel energy alternative at the Chalan Kanoa Kiosku Leadership Courtyard as a cooperating collaborative partner with Governor Palacios and Lt. Governor Apatang in the CNMI’s “Energizing Insular Communities” project.
The solar project includes solar photovoltaic or PV and battery energy storage system.
The components of the Kiosku grid-tie solar energy system project include the construction of a 4.80KW (DC) solar energy system calibrated to reach an estimated 100% peak offset. When complete, the grid-tie system is set to change the course of the current energy consumption at the Kiosku from a fossil-driven power grid to one that harvests the natural energy of the tropical sun 365 days a year.
Uniquely designed, the solar energy driven power aims to last for more than 20 years based on a design using a tier-one U.S.-made solar energy equipment and materials with the best industry warranties intended to stand the test of time, typhoon condition included.
The solar system as envisioned comprises of 12 x 400 watt solar energy modules or a total output of an estimated 8,043kWh in year one with anticipated utility energy consumption offset of 100% in power consumption that will not have to be purchased, which permanently reduces the Kiosku’s present fossil-dependent power use.
