25 July 2012: The World Bank has published a report titled “Mitigating Vulnerability to High and Volatile Oil Prices: Power Sector Experience in Latin America and the Caribbean,” which concludes that Central America and the Caribbean can reduce their oil dependency through renewable energy, energy efficiency programmes, and regional energy integration.

In the past decade, the Latin American and Caribbean regions have experienced a dramatic rise in oil prices, as well as oil price volatility. In this context, the new World Bank report focuses on a three-pronged strategy for a more diverse power system: using renewable energy resources; improving energy efficiency; and promoting regional integration. It illustrates how renewable energies reduce the amount of oil needed to generate power and reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions; how improving energy efficiency can reduce oil dependency cheaply; and how regional power integration reduces oil dependency by diversifying generation sources. [Publication: Mitigating Vulnerability to High and Volatile Oil Prices: Power Sector Experience in Latin America and the Caribbean]