Designing a Fully Renewable Electricity System for Bonaire
Integrating Flexibility to Balance Reliability, Affordability, sustainability and Energy Security
E. Lont (TU Delft - Technology, Policy and Management)
P.W. Heijnen – Mentor (TU Delft - Technology, Policy and Management)
Ö. Okur – Graduation committee member (TU Delft - Technology, Policy and Management)
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Abstract
Bonaire, a small island in the Dutch Caribbean, remains highly dependent on imported diesel for electricity generation, exposing it to volatile fuel prices, high energy costs, and growing climate risks. To safeguard energy security, affordability, and environmental sustainability, the island aims to achieve 100% renewable electricity. Reaching this goal requires not only expanding renewable generation but also integrating flexibility and storage solutions within its isolated grid.
This thesis investigates how Bonaire can design a fully renewable electricity system that ensures reliability, affordability, sustainability, and energy security. Using an hourly optimization model developed in PyPSA, the island’s power system was simulated under two demand growth scenarios (3% and 6%) for 2030. The study compares a baseline solar–wind–storage system with several interventions: demand-side management (DSM), decentralized storage, dispatchable renewables such as Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) and Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC), and biodiesel backup as a transitional reliability option. Each scenario is evaluated using stakeholder-defined criteria and land-use and lifecycle-emission assessments.
The results show that a solar–wind–battery system can meet demand but remains weather-sensitive and costly. Incorporating DSM reduces peaks and total system costs by up to 22%, while decentralized storage improves local resilience with limited economic impact. OTEC provides the strongest reliability and energy security gains through stable, weather-independent baseload generation, and biodiesel ensures backup during rare stress events at minimal cost. All renewable scenarios sharply reduce emissions relative to the current diesel system, with PV requiring only 2–3 km² of land in low-ecological areas and OTEC being land-neutral.
The findings conclude that Bonaire’s most effective pathway is a balanced portfolio of solar, wind, CSP, storage, DSM, OTEC, and biodiesel. This integrated design delivers reliable, affordable, and sustainable electricity while preserving land and ecosystems. Future work should extend full-year simulations and assess institutional frameworks supporting flexible, resilient island energy transitions.