Becoming an Investor - Group Citadelle

Becoming an Investor
Group Citadelle Charcoal Production & Distribution Company will at all-time demonstrate her commitment to sustainability, and profitability by actively participating in our communities and integrating sustainable business practices wherever possible.
We will ensure that we hold ourselves accountable to the highest standard by meeting our customers’ needs precisely and completely. We will cultivate a working environment that provides a human, sustainable approach to earning and living for our partners, employees and for our customers.
Our plan is to position Group Citadelle Charcoal Production & Distribution Company to become the leading brand in the charcoal production and distribution line of business in Haiti. This might look too big of a dream but we are optimistic that this will surely come to fruition because we have done our research and feasibility studies and we are enthusiastic and confident that Group Citadelle will live up to that reputation.

The energy industry in Haiti is evolving as consumers are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of electric power, including how it's created, and how it's distributed. These two processes could be improved to lessen the negative economic impact on the country’s GDP. Lower monthly bills and reducing one’s carbon footprint have become determinant factors in identifying the best technology for a given power development. Examining the consumer perspective is also vital to understanding how to strategize and direct our business initiatives to strike the right balance. In order to achieve our goal, consideration must be given to renewable generating technologies as means to reduce atmospheric carbon emissions as well as the dominance of fossil fuel based technologies in the process of producing cheap electricity.

Despites many challenges, the power industry remains an attractive area for investment. The capital cost of a power plant is, along with the cost of fuel, one of the key determinants of the cost of electricity. Capital cost trends are therefore one of the most important indicators of the changing balances between different technologies. For renewable technologies, for instance, the capital cost is the main determinant since there is no fuel cost. Renewable plants generally have lower capacity factors than conventional plants and this must be taken into account when assessing overall economic performance. In determining the future cost of power, we have used an economic model named “The Levelized Cost of Electricity”. This model takes into account the cost at which this commodity must be produced to be profitable. Compare to the main renewable technologies, utilization of coal-fired power plants guarantees greater return on investment as shown in the graph below.

Since coal is identified as the best fossil fuel for the Northern corridor of Haiti’s power development projects, the drivers that will shape and influence the future of the industry will be funding and particularly the stakeholders’ ability to handle risk. This endeavor can present enormous opportunities for potential investors given the size of the market for energy in this part of the country.
According to Government estimates, the production of electricity will triple over the next couple years. Much of this growth will take place in the North where the increase in capacity will be used to supplement Caracol and Ouanaminthe Industrial Parks. Trends differ between the North and the rest of the country. With fossil fuel production continuing to grow in the developing world, Group Citadel is ceasing the opportunity to formulate an energy policy that will bring dividend in terms of economic development for the area. Manufacturers will favor coal-fired power generation technology because of cost and viability. They never have to preoccupy themselves with watching their profit being eaten up by prohibitive cost of energy which will hamper their ability to grow their operations and create jobs. Increased energy efficiency, from generation to final consumption will be our focus.

Although renewable sources of generation continue to advance because of concerns regarding global warming, alongside that there is a new pragmatism about fossil fuel combustion which will continue to dominate the power sector.

The power sector still remains an attractive area for investment but investors are now more cautious than previously. Global warming continues to be a dominant theme but alongside that there is a new pragmatism about fossil fuel combustion which will continue to dominate the power sector for another generation at least. Meanwhile renewable sources of generation continue to advance, led principally by wind power but with solar capacity growing rapidly too, though from a small base.

Electricity is the most important energy source in the modern age but also the most ephemeral, a source that must be consumed as fast as it is produced. This makes modeling the economics of electricity production more complex than carrying out the same exercise for other products. Accurate modeling is important because it forms the basis for future investment decisions. In the electricity sector two fundamental yardsticks are used for cost comparison, capital cost and the levelized cost of electricity. The latter is a lifecycle cost analysis of a power plant that uses assumptions about the future value of money to convert all future costs and revenues into current prices. This model is widely used in the power industry but has some significant failings, particularly in its ability to handle risk. Even so these two measures, together, are the first consulted when power sector investment and planning decisions are to be made.

Production of electricity has always involved an element of risk but this has been extended, and in some cases magnified by the introduction of liberalized electricity markets. One big source of risk is fuel price risk. If an investment is made today based on a predicted cost of natural gas that turns out to be wildly in error because prices soar, as has happened during the past decade, then that investment will be in danger of failing to be economical to operate. Therefore some measure of the risk of fuel price volatility should be included in any economic model. Other risks arise where large capital investment is required in untested technology. Meanwhile the liberalized market has introduced new types of risk more often associated with financial makets.

Batteries for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids are too expensive and the infrastructure is not in place for large-scale charging of vehicles. The development of smart grids would make these vehicles more attractive. The development of the storage sector is largely reliant on rising oil prices, in the case of electric vehicles, and gas prices, in the case of grid storage and distributed capacity. Both of which are likely in the mid-term.NRG Expert’s new Energy Storage Reports looks at the global developments for battery and energy storage. Energy storage has started to garner interest as a means to integrate more intermittent renewable capacity into the grid. Storage has more uses such as meeting peak demand and delaying investment in generation capacity as a whole, which makes it attractive for utilities. Although while most interest in storage has focused on grid-scale applications, there is also a large market for smaller, scale distributed storage. This includes storage at the consumer-side which could meet demand when the upstream part of the grid is offline. To illustrate the point, in 2010 grid-scale storage projects only accounted for just under a third of all storage deals. Batteries for electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids are too expensive and the infrastructure is not in place for large-scale charging of vehicles. The development of smart grids would make these vehicles more attractive. The development of the storage sector is largely reliant on rising oil prices, in the case of electric vehicles, and gas prices, in the case of grid storage and distributed capacity. Both of which are likely in the mid-term.

Get the Electricity Costs and Economics Report and its Databook for one Price!
Electricity is the most important energy source in the modern age but also the most ephemeral, a source that must be consumed as fast as it is produced. This makes modeling the economics of electricity production more complex than carrying out the same exercise for other products. Accurate modeling is important because it forms the basis for future investment decisions. In the electricity sector two fundamental yardsticks are used for cost comparison, capital cost and the levelized cost of electricity. The latter is a lifecycle cost analysis of a power plant that uses assumptions about the future value of money to convert all future costs and revenues into current prices. This model is widely used in the power industry but has some significant failings, particularly in its ability to handle risk. Even so these two measures, together, are the first consulted when power sector investment and planning decisions are to be made.

Increased energy efficiency will enable people in Europe to decrease their energy bills, and assist with environment protection. Increased energy efficiency needs to occur at every stage of the energy chain, from generation to final consumption. The EU has set an energy-savings target of 20% by 2020 from 1990 levels. At the EU summit on October 23, 2014 the member countries gave their consent to attain an energy efficiency target of 27% or higher by 2030. The EU has devised a number of measures to enhance energy efficiency. These are: a yearly decrease of 1.5% in national energy sales; energy efficiency renovations of around 3% for buildings owned and occupied by the central government each year; mandatory energy efficiency certificates for the sale as well as rental of buildings; the planned rollout of around 200 million electricity smart meters and around 45 million gas smart meters by 2020; large companies carrying out energy audits every four years; minimum energy efficiency standards, regulations and labeling for a number of products such as boilers, household appliances, lighting and television; and consumer rights protection in terms of having simple and free access to real-time and historical energy consumption information.