Energy transition league: A comparison of islands’ paths to net zero emissions

In line with national commitments on net zero emissions, many island jurisdictions demonstrate significant progress in decarbonising power production. We use empirical evidence to show what already has worked on a selection of islands, proving that the advantages of the energy transition outweigh the perceived risks. Wind power and, to a lesser extent, solar PV are allowing islands to become self-sufficient in generating affordable electricity from renewable sources. On volcanic islands, geothermal energy is also successfully utilised. There are currently no plans for nuclear power plants or electrolysers for green hydrogen whilst tidal and wave energy barely feature. One obvious shortfall in future systems appears to be an inadequate amount of grid-scale energy storage. Significant storage capacity will be needed to match variable supply to fluctuating demand and to provide ancillary services, both on islands that are interconnected (for resilience against subsea cable faults) and those that are not (assuming fossil fuels are to be completely phased out). There are as yet only limited plans to strengthen distribution networks for wholesale electrification, whilst more effort is needed to get the public fully behind societal changes. Nonetheless, it is clear that the first movers have benefitted economically and their continuing success will help demonstrate to others the value in moving rapidly away from fossil fuels to renewable energy.