CREDP-GIZ A Review of The Status of The Interconnection of Distributed Renewables To The Grid in CARICOM Countries (2013)

CARIBBEAN RENEWABLE ENERGY
DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME
- CREDP/GIZ CARPHA Environmental and Health Management Unit
The Morne, P.O. Box 1111, Castries, Saint Lucia W.I.
Phone +1 758 458 1425 (direct), +1 758 452 2501, Fax + 1 758 453 2721
E-mail: info@credp-giz.org
A Review of
the Status of the Interconnection of
Distributed Renewables to the Grid
in CARICOM Countries
Carried out for:
CREDP-GIZ
On behalf of:
Deutsche Gesellschaft fr
Internationale Zusammenarbeit
(GIZ) GmbH
Germany
October 2013
Author:
Herbert A Samuel
Consultant
Tel:
+ 1 784 528 6974
E-mail: haz@welectricity.com
CREDP Technical Advisor:
Sven Homscheid
c/o CARPHA Environmental and Health Management Unit
P O Box 1111
The Morne
Castries, St. Lucia
Tel:
+1 758 458 1425
Fax:
+1 758 453 2721
E-mail: sven.homscheid@credp-giz.org
CREDP Principal Advisor:
Thomas M. Scheutzlich
c/o CARPHA Environmental and Health Management Unit
P O Box 1111
The Morne
Castries, St. Lucia
Tel:
+1 758 458 1425
Fax:
+1 758 453 2721
E-mail: thomas.scheutzlich@projekt-consult.de
Program Background
CREDP is a joint Project of CARICOM and the German International Cooperation (GIZ; formerly GTZ).
The project is implemented by the Consortium of Projekt-Consult GmbH, Germany and Entec AG,
Switzerland on behalf of the GIZ, financed by the Federal German Ministry of Economic Cooperation
and Development (BMZ).
Legal Information
1. All indications, data and results of this study have been compiled and cross-checked most carefully
by the author. However, mistakes with regard to the contents cannot be precluded. Consequently,
neither GIZ nor the author shall be liable for any claim, loss, or damage directly or indirectly resulting
from the use of or reliance upon the information in this study, or directly or indirectly resulting from
errors, inaccuracies or omissions in the information in this study.
2. Duplication or reproduction of all or parts of this study (including transfer to data storage media)
and distribution for non-commercial purposes is permitted, provided that GIZ and the Caribbean
Renewable Energy Development Programme (CREDP) are named as the source of information. Other
uses, including duplication, reproduction or distribution of all or parts of this study for commercial
uses, require the written consent of the CREDP.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACRONYMS
1. INTRODUCTION
1.1 BACKGROUND
2. OVERVIEW OF THE CARICOM ENERGY SECTOR
2.1 INTRODUCTION
2.2 RENEWABLE ENERGY OVERVIEW
A) ESTIMATED RENEWABLE ENERGY POTENTIAL IN CARICOM
B) RENEWABLE ENERGY UTILIZATION
C) RENEWABLE ENERGY UTILIZATION AT UTILITY SCALE
D) RENEWABLE ENERGY UTILIZATION AT DISTRIBUTED SCALE
2.3 POLICY OVERVIEW
A) STATUS OF SUSTAINABLE ENERGY POLICIES
B) STATUS OF DISTRIBUTED GRID INTERCONNECTION POLICIES
C) DISTRIBUTED-SCALE RENEWABLE ENERGY TARIFFS
2.4 POLICY DISCUSSION
3. STATUS OF SELECTED COUNTRIES
3.1 ANTIGUA & BARBUDA
3.1.1 OVERVIEW
3.1.2 ENERGY SECTOR LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
3.1.3 THE ELECTRICITY SECTOR
3.1.4 RENEWABLE ENERGY
3.1.5 CONCLUSION
3.2 THE BAHAMAS
3.2.1 OVERVIEW
3.2.5 CONCLUSION
3.3 BARBADOS
3.3.1 OVERVIEW
3.3.5 CONCLUSION
3.4 BELIZE
3.4.1 OVERVIEW
3.4.5 CONCLUSION
3.5 DOMINICA
3.5.1 OVERVIEW
3.5.5 CONCLUSION
6
7
7
10
10
11
12
12
13
13
14
15
17
19
19
19
20
20
21
22
23
23
23
24
25
25
26
26
27
27
29
30
32
32
32
33
34
36
37
37
37
38
39
40
3.6 GRENADA
3.6.1 OVERVIEW
3.6.5 CONCLUSION
3.7 GUYANA
3.7.1 OVERVIEW
3.7.2 ENERGY SECTOR LEGAL & REGULATORY FRAMEWORK
3.7.5 CONCLUSION
3.8 JAMAICA
3.8.1 OVERVIEW
3.8.5 CONCLUSION
3.9 SAINT LUCIA
3.9.1 OVERVIEW
3.9.5 CONCLUSION
3.10 ST KITTS & NEVIS
3.10.1 OVERVIEW
3.10.5 CONCLUSION
3.11 ST VINCENT & THE GRENADINES
3.11.1 OVERVIEW
3.11.5 CONCLUSION
3.12 SURINAME
3.12.1 OVERVIEW
3.12.5 CONCLUSION
3.13 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO
3.13.1 OVERVIEW
3.13.5 CONCLUSION
ANNEXES
ANNEX A COUNTRY/UTILITY SUMMARIES
ANNEX B RENEWABLES CONTRIBUTION TO ELECTRICITY GENERATION
ANNEX C STATUS OF DISTRIBUTED INTERCONNECTION POLICY
ANNEX D STATUS OF INTERCONNECTION TARIFFS
ANNEX E LAWS & REGULATORY AUTHORITY
41
41
41
42
43
44
45
45
45
46
47
48
50
50
50
51
52
54
55
55
55
56
57
58
59
59
59
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61
62
63
63
63
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81
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Page 4
REFERENCES
84
Acronyms
AC
Alternating current
APUA
Antigua Public Utilities Authority
BEC
Bahamas Electricity Company
BEL
Belize Electricity Ltd
BL&P
Barbados Light & Power Company Ltd
BMZ
German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development
CARICOM
Caribbean Community
CARILEC
Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation
CARPHA
Caribbean Public Health Agency
CREDP
Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme
DOMLEC
Dominica Electricity Services Ltd
EBS
Energie Bedrijven Suriname
EE
Energy Efficiency
FiT
Feed-in Tariff
GDP
Gross Domestic Product
GIZ
Deutsche Gesellschaft fr Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH
GPL
Guyana Power and Light
GRENLEC
Grenada Electricity Services Ltd
IDB
Inter-American Development Bank
IPP
Independent Power Producer
JPSCo
Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd
kW
kiloWatt
kWh
kiloWatt-hour
2
kWh/m /day
kiloWatt-hours per square meter per day
kWp
Peak kiloWatt
kWth
Thermal kiloWatt
LUCELEC
St Lucia Electricity Services Ltd
MW
MegaWatt
MWh
MegaWatt-hour
MWth
Thermal MegaWatt
NEVLEC
Nevis Electricity Services Ltd
OECD
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development
OTEC
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion
PPA
Power Purchase Agreement
PV
Photovoltaic
RE
Renewable Energy
SKELEC
St Kitts Electricity Services Ltd
SWH
Solar Water Heating
T&TEC
Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission
VINLEC
St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd

Page 5
1. Introduction
1.1 Background
The Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme (CREDP) is a joint project of the
Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the German International Cooperation GIZ. The project is
financed by the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) with
co-financing from the Austrian Government and the European Union and implemented by the
consortium of Projekt-Consult GmbH, Germany and Entec AG, Switzerland, on behalf of the GIZ.
The CREDP seeks to remove barriers to the use of renewable energy (RE) and the application of
energy efficiency (EE) measures in the Caribbean, by concentrating on mature and proven
technologies that have the strongest potential for replication, dissemination and scale, resulting
ultimately in the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions. The relevant technologies are expected
to include:
Grid-connected utility-scale 1 power generation (wind, hydro, photovoltaic systems,

biomass, geothermal);
Small-scale, distributed renewable energy generation systems (PV, wind, hydro and
biomass);
Decentralized rural electrification (e.g. mini-grids based on PV village systems, mini hydro,
mini wind systems, hybrid PV-wind, small biomass or individual household systems based
on solar home systems, pico hydro, small wind etc.);
Solar thermal applications such as water heating and space cooling.
This document looks at the overall status of renewables utilization and briefly reviews the policy
and regulatory frameworks in the region that affect investment in small-scale, distributed, gridconnected renewable energy technologies in the Caribbean.
In this document, the term utility-scale refers to a variable quantity, depending on the country. It refers to any renewable energy
resource or system with a capacity greater than the maximum capacity allowed by the utility for interconnection of privately-owned
renewable systems. Distributed-scale refers to those systems or resources with a capacity equal to or less than the utility-allowed
maximum capacity.
Page 6
2. Overview of the CARICOM Energy Sector

2.1 Introduction
The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) is an association of fourteen independent countries and one
dependent nation located in the Caribbean basin, with a total estimated population in 2011 of
17,048,330. All fifteen are classified by the United Nations as Small Island Developing States (SIDS).
The grouping is characterised by a very high dependence on fossil fuels for its energy needs. The
CARICOM Renewable Energy Development Programme (CREDP) estimates that renewable energy
accounts for less than 3% of total energy use and for approximately 8% of electricity production in
CARICOM. 2 Trinidad & Tobago, Belize and Barbados produce crude oil and natural gas, but only
Trinidad and Tobago produces sufficient for local demand and for export; all other CARICOM
countries are net importers of petroleum products.
The problems of a dependency on fossil fuels are well-established and fall under three broad,
interconnected headings: economics, energy security and environmental issues.
Figure 1: The Broad Components of Fossil Fuel Dependency
The economic issue (as it is conceptualized in practice) is largely about the retail price of energy to
the consumer, but has a deeper dimension for CARICOM, since most of the countries import their
energy. CARICOMs energy policy notes that The value of energy imports compared to total
imports in the importing Member States have progressively increased over the years. This scenario
has a deleterious impact on macroeconomic sustainability.
CARICOM states have, individually and collectively, attempted to address the economic issues
through purchasing arrangements such as Petrocaribe and the T&T Petroleum Stabilization Fund, in
conjunction with the removal of import tariffs where applicable. Despite these attempts, energy
costs in the region are high, as exemplified by the retail prices of electricity for residential
customers across the region in June 2011 as shown in Figure 2 below.
Williams, Joseph 2012. CARICOM Energy at a glance. Presentation made at CSEF III, Marriott St Kitts & Nevis.
Page 7
Figure 2: Retail electricity prices, selected CARICOM countries, as at June 2011
Sources:
CARILEC, authors calculations. Data not available for Haiti, Montserrat, St Kitts & Nevis
The basic fact is that, due to the regions high dependence on fossil fuels, the regions energy costs
are linked on almost a 1:1 basis to the price of crude oil on world markets. For example, Figure 3
depicts the relationship between the global reference price of oil and the fuel surcharge 3 applied
to electricity bills by St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd (VINLEC). 4
Sources: US Energy Information Administration, St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd
Bear in mind that a significant proportion of the countrys electricity (22% in 2011) is generated by
hydropower and yet a correlation analysis of the data (Figure 4) shows a very high positive
correlation of 0.953.
The fuel surcharge is a legislated cost recovery mechanism that allows utilities to recover from their customers the full cost of fuel used
to produce electricity. Fuel surcharges were introduced by utilities in the region after the 1973 oil crisis.
4
VINLEC is a good choice for such an analysis because their fuel surcharge is calculated on a base year of 1973 the year of the original
global oil price crisis.
Page 8
It is clear that until this fundamental issue of dependence is addressed, the economic issue will be
unresolved. Insofar as oil prices are expected to remain high over the medium to long term, our
continued dependence on oil guarantees high energy prices into the future.
Petroleum product imports to CARICOM are sourced from refineries in Trinidad and Tobago (the
Petroleum Company of Trinidad & Tobago), Curaao (Petroleos de Venezuela, SA) and Puerto Rico
(Shell). The Hovensa refinery in St Croix, US Virgin Islands was a key supplier of refined products to
CARICOM but was shut down in February 2012 due to accumulated financial losses 5.
Considering rising global demand for energy on the one hand, and prospects of future supply
constraints on the other, and given CARICOMs relative small size in the global market, the issue of
security of our energy supply is of paramount importance. Adequate mechanisms must be found
for ensuring existing energy supplies in the short to medium term, and for ensuring long-term
security of energy supplies. Indeed, declines in oil production in Trinidad & Tobago and Venezuela
are unwelcome signs for the security of regional energy supplies in the short to medium term. One
clear mechanism for increasing our energy security must be for the development of indigenous,
sustainable resources.
Finally, the environmental verdict is in: it is now clearly understood, at least at the level of scientific
consensus, that the region (and the world) must make an urgent transition from fossil fuels to
sustainable, low-carbon sources of energy. All credible scientific sources agree that continued
reliance on our current carbon-based energy model would have massive, detrimental
environmental consequences, affecting economies and human livelihoods on a global scale.
All of the above combine to make a compelling case for the need for an urgent, large-scale,
systemic reduction in the regions dependence on and use of fossil fuels.
HOVENSA announces closure of St Croix refinery. Retrieved 30 Jan 2013, http://hovensa.com
Page 9
2.2 Renewable Energy Overview

a) Estimated Renewable Energy Potential in CARICOM
Despite its low rates of penetration, the Caribbean is considered to be an ideal location for the
utilization of renewable energy resources and various studies and developments support this view.
Hydro-electricity is the most widely used renewable energy technology in the region, with a history
dating back to the 1950s. It is estimated that Guyana alone has 7,000 MW of hydro potential in its
many rivers (enough to satisfy the peak electricity demand of the entire CARICOM region several
times over). The US-based Geothermal Energy Association in 1999 estimated 6 that of the 39
territories in the world that could be 100% powered by geothermal energy, eight are in the
Caribbean 7. Solar insolation is high 8, with values ranging from 5 to 6 kWh/m2/day. And Jargstorf 9
notes that wind measurements, made in practically every Caribbean country over the past several
years, demonstrate the outstanding wind energy potential of the region, with annual average
wind speeds in 50 m height between 7.5 m/s and in excess of 9 m/s. He goes on to advise that
with such wind speeds, a utility wind turbine in the MW class produces between 50 and 100%
more here in the Caribbean than it would under typical European wind conditions.
Table 1 below shows overall estimates of the renewable energy potential of CARICOM countries.
Table 1: Estimated Renewable Resource Potential, CARICOM countries
Renewable Resource and its Estimated Potential, MW
Country
(1)
Biomass
Geothermal
Hydro
Solar PV
Wind
Total
Unknown
None
None
27
400
427
Bahamas
None
None
58
58
117
Barbados
33.5
None
None
20
40
93.5
35
Unknown
70
Unknown
Unknown
105
Dominica
Unknown
120
Unknown
30
157
Grenada
1.5
400
0.5
Unknown
407
Guyana
10
Unknown
7,000
15
18
7,043
Jamaica
94 (2)
None
79
Unknown
87
260
None
Unknown
Unknown
940 (3)
Antigua & Barbuda
Belize
Montserrat
Unknown
St Lucia
940
(3)
Unknown
170
0.5
36
40
246.5
St Kitts & Nevis
10
300 (4)
None
16
331
St Vincent & The

Grenadines
100
10
23
145
None
1,505
Unknown
Unknown
1,510
Unknown
None
None
Unknown
Unknown
Unknown
Suriname
Trinidad & Tobago
Total Preliminary Estimate 10 of Renewable Energy Potential, MW
11,264
Notes: (1) Includes Waste-to-Energy. (2) Bagasse only. (3) Very preliminary estimate. (4) Proven potential.
Gawell, Reed, Wright 1999. Preliminary Report Geothermal Energy: The potential for clean power from the earth. Washington, DC,
Geothermal Energy Association.
7
Two of these island are Martinique and Guadeloupe, departments of France. Guadeloupe is the only Caribbean island with a
geothermal power plant (14.5 MW installed capacity), which commenced operation in 1996.
8
Schwerin, 2011. Analysis of the potential solar energy market in the Caribbean. CREDP-GIZ http://credpgiz.org/Data/Solar_Market_Analysis_Caribbean.pdf
9
Jargstorf, Benjamin 2011. Wind Power in the Caribbean - Ongoing and Planned Projects. CREDP-GIZ http://credpgiz.org/Data/CAWEI_Wind_Survey_Report.pdf
10
Sources: (a) NREL and OAS, 2011. Energy Policy and Sector Analysis in the Caribbean; (b) Castalia & Stantec, 2010. Sustainable Energy
Framework for Barbados. Government of Barbados, Inter-American Development Bank; (c) Govenment of Belize Ministry of Energy,
Science & Technology and Public Utilities, 2012. Strategic Plan 2012-2017; (d) Geothermal Project management Unit, Commonwealth of
Dominica; (e) Guyana Energy Agency; (f) Government of Jamaica, 2010. National Biofuels Policy, 2010-30; National Renewable Energy
Policy 2009 2030; (g) Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica Company annual reports; (h) Joseph, Erouscilla, 2008. Geothermal Energy
Potential in the Caribbean Region. Seismic Research Unit, University of The West Indies; (i) Mehairjan, Samuel & Mehairjan Ravish, 2010.
Developments & Future Expansions Potential in the Electric Power System of Suriname. NV Energie Bedrijven, Suriname.
Page 10
Based on this table, for those countries whose renewables potential is indicated to be higher than
their peak demand, Figure 5 shows the relationship between the potential (100%), the existing
peak demand and the existing installed renewables capacity.
Figure 5: Renewables Potential, Electricity Demand and Renewables Installed
Estimated RE
Potential
Peak Demand
Installed RE
Capacity
The figure clearly shows that, in principle, most of the countries have renewable resources far in
excess of their existing demand for electricity and it also illustrates how far most of the countries
still have to go, to exploit that potential. 11
b) Renewable Energy Utilization

Overall, the picture of renewable energy utilization in CARICOM is disappointing. Only seven of the
fifteen countries have any significant utilization of electricity from clean sources and only two of
those enjoy renewable energy utilization of more than 50%, as shown in figure 6 below. And in this
context, a point to bear in mind is that the vast majority of the renewables-based electricity
produced in CARICOM today, comes from investments made in the 1940s - 80s. 12
Figure 6: Renewable Energy Use for Grid Electricity in CARICOM, 2011
11
The figure excludes The Bahamas, Barbados and Jamaica, whose estimated renewables potentials are less than their existing peak
demands.
12
Remarkable, in light of the fact that the now-common concept of an energy crisis did not even exist until 1973.
Page 11
c) Renewable Energy Utilization at Utility Scale

In this report, the term utility-scale refers to installations that have an installed capacity larger than
the limit allowed for renewable energy systems owned by households and businesses (which would
be classified as distributed-scale generation systems). The capacity limit varies across the region.
Of the fifteen CARICOM member states, only seven (Belize, Dominica, Guyana, Jamaica, St KittsNevis, St Vincent & the Grenadines and Suriname) have any utility-scale, grid-connected,
renewable energy installed as at September 2013.
Table 2: Utility-scale, Grid-connected Renewable Energy in CARICOM

Country
Utility-scale, Grid-connected
Renewable Energy
Antigua & Barbuda
None
Bahamas
None
Barbados
None
Belize
Hydro, Biomass (Bagasse)
Dominica
Hydro
Grenada
None
Guyana
Biomass (Bagasse)
Haiti
Jamaica
None
Hydro, Wind
Montserrat
None
St Lucia
None
St Kitts & Nevis
Wind
St Vincent & The

Grenadines
Hydro, PV
Suriname
Hydro
Trinidad & Tobago
None
With reference to the information presented above, a note must be made about solar water
heating in general and its application in Barbados in particular. The energy produced by a solar
water heater is neither electrical energy nor is it grid-connected, but on a micro scale (in homes
where SWH is installed) and a macro scale (in countries with a significant installed base of SWH), it
displaces significant quantities of electricity for heating. In this context Barbados, with an installed
base of 50,000 SWH units 13 can be considered to possess significant distributed renewable energy
resources with a combined utility-scale impact.
d) Renewable Energy Utilization at Distributed Scale

The utilization of grid-connected renewable energy at distributed scale in CARICOM is in its early
stages of development. Grenada was the pioneer in the region: a private PV supply and installation
company, established in 2005, was the driving force behind the growth and the utility was a
proactive partner in the development of the market.
In Barbados, the utility embarked in 2010 on a pilot initiative to introduce a Renewable Energy
Rider (RER) programme, designed specifically to facilitate the sale of excess electricity to the grid by
customers using PV or wind systems up to a specified maximum capacity. In August 2013 the RER
13
Bugler, Will 2012. Seizing the sunshine: Barbados thriving solar water heater industry. Climate & Development Knowledge Network
http://cdkn.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Barbados-InsideStory_WEB.pdf
Page 12
was approved by the Barbados Fair Trading Commission as a permanent programme and Barbados
now has the largest number of distributed-scale renewable energy systems in the region.
Table 3 shows the status of distributed, grid-connected renewable energy installations in the region
and additional details are shown at Annex C.
Table 3: Distributed-scale, Grid-connected Renewable Energy in CARICOM

Programme
start date
Licenses
Issued
Customers
Connected
Peak kW
Connected
Dec 2011
Unknown
Bahamas
No programme
Barbados
Jul 2010
182
1,700
No programme
Dominica
2008
12
Grenada
2007
Country
Antigua & Barbuda
Belize
310
Incl. 1 Wind system
Incl. 1 x 225 kW Wind
54
318
No programme for grid-connected systems.

Government operates an extensive system of off-grid
electrification
of remote villages
Guyana
No information available
Haiti
Jamaica
May 2012
90
109
Montserrat
St Lucia
St Kitts & Nevis
No formal
programme
61
No programme
300
2013
15
(of which 263 kWp

owned by VINLEC &
Government)
Suriname
No programme
Trinidad & Tobago
No programme
St Vincent & The Grenadines
Sources: Utility websites and publications, consultants communications with utility officers and
national energy units. Data as at September 2013.
2.3 Policy Overview

a) Status of Sustainable Energy Policies
In CARICOM, the situation regarding sustainable energy policies and their implementation has been
uncoordinated and the results mixed, to say the least. Saint Lucia appeared to be an early mover:
in 1999, as a member of the Global Sustainable Energy Islands Initiative 14 (GSEII), it became 15 the
first small island state to announce its commitment to become a sustainable energy island nation
and transform its energy systems from a fossil fuel base to renewable and energy efficient systems.
However, despite the advent of the unprecedented 2008 energy crisis, by 2009 only two CARICOM
members had published a national sustainable energy policy. In 2010, the number increased to six
and as at the end of 2012, eight of the fifteen CARICOM countries had published an official
sustainable energy policy. Paradoxically, first-mover Saint Lucia (whose national energy policy
14
A consortium formed by the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) with support from the Climate Institute, the Organization of
American States and other organizations.
15
See http://gseii.org/about.html , accessed 21 September 2013
Page 13
was approved in 2010) remains one of several CARICOM nations with an insignificant contribution
of renewable energy to its electricity grid.
The CARICOM Secretariat itself had commenced the development of a regional energy policy in
2003; the draft was issued in 2007 and the policy was approved in March 2013.
The regional policy status is shown in Table 4 below.
Table 4: Status of National Sustainable Energy Policies and Action Plans in CARICOM to 2011
Country
Sustainable Energy
Policy
Action Plan
Details
Approved
Draft Only
2011
2011
Barbados
2010
Belize
2012
Dominica
2011
Grenada
2009, 2011
2009
Guyana
Haiti
2010
Jamaica National Energy Policy, National Energy

Conservation and Efficiency (ECE) Policy 2010 2030, National Biofuels Policy 2010 - 2030
Montserrat
Approved
Yes
National Energy Policy covering the period 2008

2027, including an implementation plan
covering the first 5 years
Saint Lucia
2010
St Kitts & Nevis
2011
St Vincent & The

Grenadines
2009
2010
Suriname
Trinidad & Tobago
2013
2007
Antigua & Barbuda

The Bahamas
Jamaica
CARICOM
REGIONAL
National Energy Policy (incl. Action Plan) 2011

The National Energy Policy Committee has
prepared two reports on a National Energy
Policy, but no policy has as yet been adopted
National Energy Policy Draft 2006 adopted in
2010
National Sustainable Energy Strategy 2012
Draft Sustainable Energy Plan, Draft National
Energy Policy 2011
Sustainable Energy Plan 2009, National Energy
Policy 2011
Work is in progress to develop a national
sustainable energy policy
Full National Energy Policy approved in 2010

Draft Sustainable Energy Plan, 2007; National
Energy Policy 2011
National Energy Policy (2009) and National
Energy Action Plan (2010)
The CARICOM Energy Policy (including
sustainable energy policy) was published in April
2013
b) Status of Distributed Grid Interconnection Policies

The status of policy and regulation allowing interconnection of distributed renewable energy
sources to the grid is shown in figure 6 below. As at September 2013, the status of
interconnections ranged from unpublished, ad hoc installations to installations based on formally
published 16 policies that are legally binding 17on the utilities. The figure illustrates that as at
September 2013, only two of the utilities, in Barbados and Jamaica, were at the stage of best
practice; most utilities were at the lower end of the practice spectrum.
16
Published in this case refers to policies that are online or in the public domain, readily available to the public at any time. Some
utilities have developed (and made some public announcement that they have developed) policies and tariffs, but have not yet made
their official documentation readily available to the general public. See Annex D for details.
17
In this context, legally binding means that the regulatory agency and/or the electricity act specifies or formally approves the
requirements that the utility must meet.
Page 14
Further details on the distributed renewable energy interconnection policies at country level are
included in section 3.
Figure 6: Status of Distributed-scale Grid Interconnection Policy in CARICOM
STATUS OF
POLICY & ARRANGEMENTS >
UTILITY CONTROLLED
UNPUBLISHED-
PUBLISHED
LEGALLY
BINDING ON
THE UTILITY
Antigua & Barbuda

The Bahamas No policies or arrangements exist
Barbados
Belize No policies or arrangements exist
Dominica
Grenada
Guyana No policies or arrangements exist
Haiti No information available
Jamaica
Montserrat No information available
Saint Lucia
St. Kitts No policies or arrangements exist
Nevis No policies or arrangements exist
St. Vincent and the Grenadines
Suriname No policies or arrangements exist
Trinidad & Tobago No policies or arrangements exist
Published means full details readily available at any time in the public domain or on request.
Legally binding means that the regulatory agency and/or the electricity act specifies the
requirements that the utility must meet.
Sources: Utility reports
c) Distributed-scale Renewable Energy Tariffs

At any particular time, a customer's grid-connected renewable energy system may produce more
or less electricity than the customer is using. When the customers system produces more
electricity than the customer needs, the excess production is sent to the grid.
There are three basic interconnection arrangements that are adopted for measuring the
customers electricity production and consumption and for compensating the customer for any
electricity supplied to the grid. These are net metering, net billing and feed-in tariff arrangements.
Net Metering
Net metering is an arrangement that provides credit to customers with RE systems for the full
retail value of the electricity their system generates. In a net metering arrangement a single,
bi-directional meter senses the amount of electricity the customer draws from the grid and the
amount of electricity the customer supplies to the grid. Over any billing period, the customer
has to pay only for the difference, at the applicable retail electricity rate (in addition to any
other applicable monthly charges).
Page 15
Net Billing
Net Billing typically involves the customer having two electricity meters one meter measuring
energy supplied to the customers premises from the grid, and the other meter measuring the
electricity supplied from the customers premises to the grid. At the end of the billing cycle,
the customer is billed at the utilitys retail rate for the electricity supplied from the grid and the
customer is also paid a specified amount, typically less than the retail rate, for the electricity
supplied to the grid.
Feed-in Tariff (FiT)

Under a Feed-in tariff arrangement, the customers RE system is connected to the grid via a
separate meter and all of the electricity produced by the customers system is sold to the grid
at a predetermined rate (typically a premium rate) for a specified contract period. The
customer essentially becomes an independent electricity producer supplying electricity to the
utility under a contract.
In practice, only some of the utilities in the region have implemented the standard forms identified
above; many have implemented some modified form. For example, some utilities employ a
modified net metering/net billing arrangement whereby the utility pays the customer a price less
than retail for any surplus energy produced, whereas the customer pays the retail price for any net
energy consumed. Further details on the tariff arrangements are presented at Annex D.
The term feed-in tariff, mainly because of typical practice in countries where it has been used
extensively (Germany and Spain being the two most prominent examples), has become associated
with a compensation scheme that pays the consumer a premium a rate that is higher than the
utilitys retail price per kWh. This arrangement essentially created a special-purpose investment
vehicle that offered customers a fixed rate of return over a specified period, and the arrangement
was adopted by governments specifically to encourage private investment in distributed gridconnected renewables. In this regard, the use of FiTs has been successful, though its critics charge
that in some instances FiTs have led to an overall increase in the average cost of electricity for a
utilitys consumers. In any case, a feed-in tariff does not necessarily offer a premium rate payment
to private producers and in CARICOM, at least one utility is using the term in connection with
what is essentially a net billing arrangement.
A more significant issue is that in most CARICOM countries, 18 the retail price of electricity includes
a fuel surcharge, which fluctuates in accordance with world oil prices. Since 2008 in some
territories, this fuel surcharge has often exceeded the basic rate per kWh. 19 From the point of
view of encouraging the uptake of RE by consumers, this has far-reaching implications for the type
of interconnection tariff used, the valuation of that tariff and the incentive effect of that tariff.
In Barbados, for example, the net billing tariff is valued at 1.6 x the Fuel Clause Adjustment (ie: the
fuel surcharge) in any billing period. Under the circumstances, this is the technically sound
approach, since an appropriately designed net billing tariff should compensate the participating
customer based on the utilitys avoided cost 20 and in our context, a major part of the utilitys
avoided cost is based on high and volatile fuel costs. As the Barbados Fair Trading Commission
properly puts it: establishing a predetermined minimum credit is not appropriate given the link
between the [interconnection tariff] and the avoided cost of fuel which is volatile.
18
The exceptions being Belize, Suriname and Trinidad & Tobago

For example in St Vincent & The Grenadines over the period Jan 2012 to Jul 2013, the fuel surcharge exceeded the energy charge in 17
of the 19 months.
20
The cost an electric utility would otherwise incur to generate electricity if it did not purchase the electricity from an alternate source.
19
Page 16
Under the auspices of the Office of Utilities Regulation, Jamaicas utility takes a similar approach,
setting their net billing payment at the prevailing short run avoided cost of generation, plus a
premium of up to 15%.
On the other hand, some net billing tariffs are set at a predetermined, fixed rate that has no
connection to the actual or avoided cost of fuel at the particular billing period. Clearly, these two
approaches can produce significantly different investment results and may have markedly different
incentive effects on consumers contemplating investments in renewable energy systems. And it
should be noted here that the utilities (in Barbados and Jamaica) that operate under formal
regulatory oversight, are the ones that have implemented properly constituted net billing tariffs.
2.4 Policy Discussion

The optimal uptake of renewable energy technologies involves the relationship and interaction
between energy policy, legislation and incentives. The case of Germany is particularly instructive in
this regard: Germany has attained the status of being the worlds largest solar PV market, not
because of a sunny climate 21 but because of its mix of progressive policy, targeted legislation and
clear, long-term incentives. The countrys Renewable Energy Sources Act mandated a feed-in tariff,
set at a premium price, payable to suppliers of distributed renewable energy to the grid, over a
fixed number of years. This model approach has been pivotal in encouraging market investment
and the growing use of renewables through distributed generation. 22
CARICOM member states policies, outlined above and further detailed below, have delivered
mixed results. The CARICOM energy policy recommends targets for renewable energy contribution
to the grid of 20% in 2017, 28% in 2022 and 47% in 2027, and it is envisaged that individual
countries will work towards meeting these targets by implementing a mix of utility-scale and
distributed generation resources, facilitated by the necessary policy prescriptions, legislation and
incentives. However, it appears that on the face of it that, given the current state of affairs, unless
rates of penetration and market development are increased, most of the member states will be
challenged to meet the 2017 target in the first instance.
A brief overview of the legislative situation in CARICOM indicates some significant weaknesses.
One common thread is that the electricity acts of the member states are not suited to the
challenge of transitioning our electricity sectors from a monopoly-based, vertically integrated,
centralized production model, to consumer-based, distributed-network production models. The
electricity acts, after all, are mostly of an early- to mid-20th century vintage; some of them have had
recent revisions to allow for the participation of large private sector generators (the traditional
IPPs), but on the distributed supply side, some of the acts explicitly prohibit customers from selfgeneration and specifically disallow connections to the grid. All of them prohibit wheeling. 23
Going back for a moment to the success of Germanys approach, it is noted that their policy and its
targets were backed by enforceable legislation. In this region, policies are published and plans are
developed without any legislated framework that specifies requirements or mandates for action.
The governments themselves, the utilities and their consumers, are not bound by any legislation to
do anything that changes the status quo. So for example, even if the electricity act of a country is
revised to allow individual customers to connect PV systems to the grid, and the national policy
21
Data from NRELs Solar and Wind Energy Resource Assessment (SWERA) indicate that the solar irradiation resource in the Caribbean is
in the range of 4.5 to 6.5kWh/m2/day. By comparison, data from SolarGIS (http://solargis.info) indicate that the level of solar irradiation
in Germany is in the range of 2.5 to 3.5kWh/m2/day.
22
Germany Trade & Invest: The Photovoltaic Market in Germany, Issue 2012/2013. www.gtai.com
23
The practice of a private operator producing power at one location and transporting it over a utilitys power lines for use at another
location.
Page 17
sets a target of 5% of electricity to be provided by individual rooftop solar, no entity is legally

required to ensure that the target is met. The predictable result is that, overall, not enough is
achieved. 24
With regard to incentives, this review shows that net billing is the tariff option preferred by the
majority of utilities in CARICOM for connection of distributed renewable energy sources to the grid
(and this is also the recommendation of the CARICOM Energy Policy). However, it is questionable
whether net billing is the best option for encouraging widespread adoption of distributed
renewable energy systems. Net billing provides the lowest potential return to the customer who is
considering making an investment in renewable energy and does not, on the face of it, appear to
provide encouragement to make what, despite falling system prices, is still a significant capital
investment.
Yes, import duties and taxes should be reduced (or removed) for renewable energy technology, 25
and low-interest loans should be available to households to install PV systems, but these are the
bare minimum incentives: necessary, but perhaps not sufficient. Innovative ways must be found
for private investors to work with customers to offset high investment costs and share investment
risk. Essentially, the key is to find the appropriate business models to spur uptake of existing and
emerging technologies.
The best example of an unambiguously successful energy policy intervention in CARICOM is that of
solar water heating in Barbados. Their approach, which started in the 1970s, was characterised by
a mix of strong fiscal and financial incentives (and disincentives) coupled with the advent of an
innovative, market-focused, local entrepreneurship. Another notable example is the case of the
development of the photovoltaics market in Grenada, which has similarly incorporated strong local
entrepreneurship elements. These examples suggest that successful implementation of marketbased policy interventions may require one or more private-sector leaders to act as a catalyst
within the existing policy environment. This leader will typically be an entrepreneur with an
innovative technology, business model, network, or combination of these things. 26
The preceding discussion outlines some perceived gaps and weaknesses in the regional approach to
renewable energy policymaking. A full treatment of these matters is beyond the scope of this
report, but it is our opinion that these factors must be fully considered, addressed and given more
weight in the ongoing review and development of energy policy at national and regional level, if
the necessary success is to be achieved in the regions transition to a clean energy future.
24
For example, one CARICOM country published its national energy action plan in 2010, which plan included a schedule of 28 short-term
activities to be completed. Three and a half years on, 75% of the planned short-term activities remain outstanding.
25
An increasingly widespread practice in the region.
26
A review of several of the country policy documents reveals that the terms innovation and entrepreneurship are sometimes
included, but only used in passing.
Page 18
3. Status of Selected Countries

The following sections describe the country situations.
3.1 Antigua & Barbuda

3.1.1 Overview
Antigua and Barbuda is a sovereign twin-island nation located at the northern end of the Eastern
Caribbean archipelago. It has a total area of 443 square kilometres (171 sq mi).
The population of the country is 89,610 (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is largely based on
tourism. Its per capita GDP of US$12,480 in 2011 places it in the upper middle income category of
countries overall (World Bank).
The country has no indigenous fossil fuel resources and is currently entirely dependent on
imported fossil fuels for its energy supply.
Energy costs and retail prices are high: the average retail price of a unit of electricity was
US$0.38/kWh at June 2011; among the highest of the fifteen CARILEC member utilities surveyed 27
at that time.
The government has developed a draft national energy policy which was published in 2010 for
feedback from stakeholders, but has not yet been finalized.
27
Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC) Tariff Survey 2011.

Page 19
3.1.2 Energy Sector Legal and Regulatory Framework

The legal and regulatory framework is not well developed; there is no public utilities regulatory
body and, except for the electricity act, no legislative framework for the governance of the national
energy sector. The responsibility for production, supply and distribution of energy is shared across
a mix of government ministries, state-owned and private enterprises as shown in Table 3.1.1
below:
TABLE 3.1.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Antigua & Barbuda
Entity
Type
Responsibility
Office of the Prime

Minister
Government
ministry
Responsible for overall national energy and electricity

policy and planning matters.
National Energy Working

Group
National Task Force
Responsible for advising the government on matters

pertaining to national energy policy, planning and
implementation.
Ministry of Finance
Government
ministry
Responsible for petroleum product imports and local

price-setting.
Antigua Public Utilities

Authority (APUA)
Governmentowned, verticallyintegrated utility
APUA has a legal monopoly for the generation,

distribution, supply and sale of electricity and may grant
licenses to other operators as independent power
producers (IPPs).
Antigua Power Company

(APC)
Independent Power
Producer
Provision of capacity and energy to the APUA grid
West Indies Oil Company
Privately-owned oil
storage and
marketing company
Provides storage facilities for 200,000 barrels of refined

products and local petroleum product retail sales.
3.1.3 The Electricity Sector

Public electricity is supplied by the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA), a vertically-integrated
corporation 100% owned by the government.
The utility is governed by the The Public Utilities Act (CAP 359), Laws of Antigua and Barbuda,
which confers on APUA the exclusive right to generate, distribute, supply and sell electricity within
Antigua and Barbuda and also to give written permission to any entity to generate and supply
electricity within Antigua and Barbuda.
One independent power producer (IPP) the Antigua Power Company has supplied power to the
grid since 1996 under the terms of a Power purchase agreement (PPA). Approximately 60% of the
power supplied via the national grid is purchased from APC.
Table 3.1.2 shows a summary of operations of the electricity sector in Antigua 28 for years 2007
2011.
28
The table does not include the electricity consumption of APUA; the Water Business Unit; central government or street lighting.
Page 20
TABLE 3.1.2: Operating Statistics Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA)

POWER
CAPACITY
MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
APUA
19.0
19.0
19.0
12.7
40.5
Under Contract +
Rental
44.0
44.0
54.0
97.9
77.9
Total Thermal
63.0
63.0
73.0
110.6
118.4
Renewable
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.01
Total Renewable
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.01
63.0
63.0
73.0
110.6
118.4
NA
53
NA
NA
NA
APUA + Rental
Units
156,420
157,740
160,970
168,475
168,049
Under Contract
160,000
160,000
160,000
160,000
160,000
Total Thermal
316,420
317,740
320,970
328,475
328,049
Renewable
Total Renewable
316,420
317,740
320,970
328,480
328,054
30.0%
29.0%
24.0%
20.0%
17.0%
Residential
80,099
82,046
85,659
89,598
86,900
Industrial
6,202
5,169
5,944
7,827
6,921
Commercial
99,795
102,008
99,919
105,810
104,952
500
500
520
550
550
Total Sales
186,596
189,723
192,042
203,785
199,323
Residential
28,571
29,494
30,151
30,331
30,391
41
45
42
43
41
2,395
2,480
2,529
2,579
2,542
31,007
32,019
32,722
32,953
32,974
TOTAL POWER CAPACITY

PEAK DEMAND MW
NET
GENERATION
MWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
TOTAL NET GENERATION

LOSSES, %
SALES, MWh
Street Lighting
CUSTOMERS
Industrial
Commercial
Street Lighting
Total Customers
3.1.4 Renewable Energy

The penetration of renewable energy in Antigua & Barbuda is negligible. In December 2011 APUA
published a comprehensive set of documentation specifying its policy and guidelines for the
interconnection of distributed renewable energy systems of not greater than 50 kW installed
capacity. Solar thermal penetration is low: approximately 32 thermal kiloWatts (kWth) installed per
1,000 inhabitants (compared to Barbados 323 kWth per 1000 inhabitants).
1. Renewable Energy Types
a) Solar PV
Antigua and Barbuda is considered to have excellent potential for grid-connected photovoltaics
(estimated at 27 MW) but only seven PV systems have been installed including one 25 kWp
system 29 which is the largest installation to date.
29
This system is installed on the building housing the Ministry of Education and Tourism; its design and implementation was supported
by the Austrian Development Agency and GIZ
Page 21
b) Wind
There is no significant grid-connected wind power generation in the country. An APUA study
conducted30 in 2008 indicated that the isolated Highlands area in Barbuda offers a promising
wind farm site, with the potential to support up to 400 MW of wind turbines generating 900
GWh per year, with little visual impact due to its distance from population centres. During
2011-12, CREDP-GIZ has been providing technical assistance for additional wind measurements
at four sites across Antigua and Barbuda. A prefeasibilty study was completed and submitted
to APUA recommending implementation of an 18 kW wind farm at Crabbs, but the status of
the project implementation is unknown.
c) Other Renewables
Antigua was once a major producer of sugar and still produces a modest sugar crop each year.
However, little or no assessment has been made of the potential for delivering energy from
bagasse or bioethanol production.
2. Legal & Regulatory Framework for renewable energy

No specific legislation has been enacted in Antigua & Barbuda that governs the implementation of
distributed generation, but the existing legislative framework appears to be sufficient to allow the
participation of both large- and small-scale private generators.
a) Utility Scale renewable energy
To date, no independent power producers are providing any utility-scale capacity and energy to
the national grid.
b) Small-scale, distributed renewable energy
APUA published its interconnection policy and related documentation in December 2011, the
aim of which was to allow for a maximum distributed non-fossil fueled power penetration
level of fifteen percent (15%) of feeder/system yearly maximum demand as well as to allow a
limited number of large scale commercial/industrial pilot systems (50kW 225kW) for the
purpose of gathering interconnection study data.
Interconnection Policy Statement [Non-Fossil Fueled Distributed Generation Facilities of

Capacity < or = 50kW];
Interconnection procedures guideline [Non-Fossil Fueled Distributed Generation Facilities
of Capacity < or = 50kW];
Interconnection Application [Non-Fossil Fueled Generating Facilities With a Rated Capacity
up to and including 50kW AC]
3.1.5 Conclusion
Antigua & Barbuda has ample renewable energy resources in the form of wind and solar but has
not moved in any meaningful way to exploit them. The recent publication of policies and
guidelines for interconnection of distributed systems is a step in the right direction that needs to be
followed through with concerted, focused action geared at rapidly increasing the quantum of gridconnected renewables.
The Bottom Line: Off to a very late start, Antigua & Barbuda has every reason to want to catch up
and should be making urgent efforts to do so.
30
Energy Engineering Corporation, November 2008. Wind Energy Survey Antigua and Barbuda.
Page 22
3.2 The Bahamas

3.2.1 Overview
The Commonwealth of The Bahamas is a sovereign multi-island nation in the Caribbean, located
just south-east of the Florida peninsula. The country is comprised of an extensive chain of 29
islands, more than 600 cays and over 2,000 islets (most of which are uninhabited), having a total
land area of 13,880 square kilometres (5,359 sq mi).
The countrys population is 347,200 (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is almost exclusively
based on tourism and financial services. It is the wealthiest country in the CARICOM group, with a
per capita GDP of US$22,431 and is classified by the World Bank as a high income, non-OECD
country.
The countrys energy demand is entirely supplied by imported fossil fuels.
Energy costs and retail prices are high; the average retail price of a unit of electricity was
approximately US$0.357/kWh at June 2011.
The governments National Energy Policy Committee (NEPC) has published a final report on a study
for a national energy policy, but the government has not formally adopted or published a national
energy policy and/or action plan.

The legal and regulatory framework for the energy sector in The Bahamas is not well-developed
and is heavily dominated by the government. The countrys Public Utilities Commission Act
provides for an independent regulator, the Utilities Regulatory Competition Authority (URCA), but
this entity does not function to regulate the energy sector.
The key entities involved in the sector are shown in Table 3.2.1 below:
Page 23
TABLE 3.2.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in The Bahamas

Entity
Type
Responsibility
Ministry of the Environment
Government
ministry
Responsible for oversight of the energy sector, but

does not have specialized sub-department charges
with energy matters. Responsible for governance of
the national electricity sector and oversight of the
state-owned utility BEC.
Bahamas Environment, Science &

Technology Commission (BEST)
State commission
Responsible for proposing national action plans on

energy and the environment, and legislation relating
to same. Oversees environmental aspects (impact
assessments and management plans) for proposed
energy and environmental projects.
Bahamas Electricity Corporation

(BEC)
Verticallyintegrated,
Governmentowned utility
Responsible for the exclusive generation, transmission

and distribution of electricity on major islands across
the country. Also responsible for tariff-setting and
ensuring quality of service.
Grand Bahama Power Company

(GBPC)
Verticallyintegrated,
privately-owned
utility
Responsible for the generation, transmission and

distribution of electricity, under licence, on Grand
Bahama Island.
Various Franchise Holders
Privately-owned
electricity
providers (IPPs)
Provide electricity services on the Family Islands.

Public electricity in The Bahamas is supplied by a mix of government- and privately-owned utilities.
Some sixteen separate grids are operated on the islands where electricity is provided. The main
utilities are the government-owned Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC), which supplies
electricity to a total of approximately 93,000 customers on New Providence island (where the
nations capital Nassau is located) and on the Family Islands, and the Grand Bahama Power
Company (GBPC) which supplies approximately 19,000 customers on Grand Bahama Island.
Smaller, privately-owned, independent power producers (called franchise holders under the
legislation) are licensed to provide electricity to some of the smaller islands.
The electricity sector in particular is governed by the following legislation:
The Electricity Act 1956

The Out Island Electricity Act
The Out Island Utilities Act
The Hawksbill Creek Agreement (which specifically applies to the GBPC)
Public Utilities Commission Act, 1993 (No 20 of 1993)
Public Utilities Commission Regulations, 2001
In 2008 (the last year for which production data are available) a basic summary of operations for
BEC showed installed capacity of 486 MW, servicing a peak demand of 234 MW and delivering sales
of approximately 1,536,000 MWh to consumers. The corresponding figures for Grand Bahama
Power are installed capacity of 141 MW, servicing a peak demand of 74 MW providing 369,000
MWh of sales to customers.
Page 24

No significant use of renewable energy occurs in the Bahamas, apart from the use of solar energy
for water heating 31. The NEPC has identified several potential technology candidates for
exploitation, but no assessments have been made of the likely energy potential that might feasibly
be available. Waste-to-energy, wind energy, Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) and solar
energy are listed as candidates for further investigation.
In 2009, the Bahamas Electric Company invited bids for renewable energy projects and received
some 13 responses. No actual project developments resulted from the exercise and its current
status is unclear. The Grand Bahama Power Company has embarked on a project to measure the
wind regimes at seven sites on Grand Bahama, and has also considered the state of biomass
resources, both with a view to possibly making future investments in wind energy. The results of
this project are not available.
The legislative and regulatory framework is considered to be highly restrictive. The report of the
National Energy Policy Committee notes that
a significant constraint to the use of renewable sources of energy in The Bahamas is the
Electricity Act (1956), which does not promote the use of renewable resources. It gives
exclusive rights for the generation and sale of electricity, [and] prohibits self-generation and
interconnection to the grid
a) Utility Scale renewable energy
No utility-scale renewable energy exists on The Bahamas. In principle, GBPC could implement a
wind energy project if their wind studies indicate feasibility, but it is not clear what their future
plans are.
b)
Small-scale, distributed renewable energy

Self-generation is explicitly disallowed under the applicable legislation. Consequently, no smallscale renewable energy of any significance exists in the country.
3.2.5 Conclusion
The Bahamas lags at the rear of the renewable energy league table. A framework for the
development of sustainable energy policy is available, but no formal policy is in place and there
appear to be no urgent plans for implementing renewable energy developments in the near future.
The Bahamas is the richest country in the CARICOM group and perhaps this is one factor in their
lack of real engagement with renewables their energy bills are high, but unlike their CARICOM
neighbours, they can afford them.
The Bottom Line: The Bahamas is the richest country in CARICOM and should by now have used
its resources (both physical and financial) to advance its sustainability transition. Urgent
attention is needed.
31
With a relatively high penetration (by CARICOM standards) of 45 kWth per 1,000 inhabitants (Gardner, 2012).
Page 25
3.3 Barbados
3.3.1 Overview
Barbados is a sovereign island country in the Caribbean, located at the eastward extreme of the
Lesser Antilles. It is 34 kilometres (21 mi) in length and up to 23 kilometres (14 mi) wide and has an
area of 431 square kilometres (166 sq mi).
The island's population is 273,925 (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is mixed, mostly based on
services (offshore finance and information), tourism and light manufacturing. It is one of the
wealthiest and most developed countries in the CARICOM group; its per capita GDP of U$$13,453
gives it a classification as a high income, non-OECD country.
Although Barbados produces crude oil and natural gas, its energy matrix is comprised mostly of
imported fossil fuels. Approximately 1,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil is produced (and
exported to Trinidad for refining, in return for refined product) and some 29 million cubic meters of
natural gas were produced and consumed locally in 2010. The balance of the countrys energy
needs is supplied by imported petroleum products; solar energy (used for water heating) and
bagasse (used to generate power and heat for the sugar industry).
Energy costs and retail prices are high: the average retail price of a unit of electricity was
US$0.389/kWh at June 2011; the sixth highest of fifteen CARILEC member utilities surveyed 32 at
that time.
The government has developed and published a national energy policy that sets out the framework
for the countrys sustainable energy future 33. There are no grid-connected, utility-scale renewable
energy resources and a growing number of distributed, grid-connected renewable (PV and wind)
systems are being installed by households and businesses.
32
Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC) Tariff Survey 2011.
33
The policy was published in draft form in 2006 and approved in 2010. Subsequently several sub-policies and
improvements were made, which were acknowledged by cabinet. This according to Mr William Hinds by email, who also
advises that a selective execution of the policies commenced before the ink was dry.
Page 26

Energy policy and legislation in Barbados is set by the national government and executed
accordingly. The responsibility for production, supply and distribution of energy is shared across a
mix of government ministries, state-owned and private enterprises. The key entities involved in
the sector are shown in Table 3.3.1 below:
TABLE 3.3.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Barbados
Entity
Type
Responsibility
The Ministry of Energy and The

Environment
Government
ministry
The development of policies, strategic direction and

plans for the national energy sector
The Fair Trading Commission (FTC)
Government
agency
Regulation of electricity services (rate-setting, service

standards), ensuring fair trade and competition
The Barbados Light & Power

Company Limited (BL&P)
Private company
Generation,
electricity
The Barbados National Oil

Company Limited (BNOCL)
Governmentowned
corporation
Production of crude oil from small onshore wells and

export of the output to Trinidad & Tobago in exchange
for imported refined petroleum products
The Barbados National Terminal

Company Limited (BNTCL).
Governmentowned
corporation
A subsidiary of BNOCL. The company operates a

terminal and storage facility, charging a throughput
fee for product
The National Petroleum

Corporation (NPC)
Governmentowned
corporation
Supply of piped natural gas for domestic, commercial,

and industrial use
transmission
and
distribution
of
The energy sector is highly regulated; retail prices of petroleum products are controlled by the
government and electricity and natural gas prices are regulated by the Fair Trading Commission.
The Electricity Act, Chapter 277 of the Laws of Barbados;

The Electric Light and Power Act, Chapter 278 of the Laws of Barbados;
The Fair Trading Commission Act, Chapter 326B of the Laws of Barbados;
The Utilities Regulation Act, Chapter 282 of the Laws of Barbados.

Public electricity on Barbados is supplied by the Barbados Light and Power Company Ltd (BLPC), a
vertically-integrated corporation 79.7% owned by Emera Inc., a Canadian energy company. Table
3.3.2 below shows an operations summary of the electricity sector in Barbados for the years 2007
to 2011.
Page 27
TABLE 3.3.2: Operating Statistics Barbados Light & Power Company Ltd (BLPC)
INSTALLED
CAPACITY MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Diesel
113.1
113.1
113.1
113.1
113.1
Gas Turbine
86.0
86.0
86.0
86.0
86.0
Steam Turbine
40.0
40.0
40.0
40.0
40.0
Total Thermal
239.1
239.1
239.1
239.1
239.1
Biomass
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Photovoltaic
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Wind
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Total Renewable
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
239.1
239.1
239.1
239.1
239.1
162.4
164.0
165.7
167.5
163.0
Diesel
663.4
658.6
682.6
708.1
638.6
Gas Turbine
123.9
190.4
160.8
214.9
216.3
Steam Turbine
261.9
204.7
225.0
155.3
189.1
Total Thermal
1,049.2
1,053.7
1,068.4
1,078.3
1,044.0
Biomass
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Hydro
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Photovoltaic
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Wind
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Total Renewable
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
1,049.2
1,053.7
1,068.4
1,078.3
1,044.0
5.9
6.3
6.6
7.0
6.4
Domestic
300.0
301.0
308.1
316.3
303.2
Commercial
640.8
643.0
644.1
644.6
630.1
TOTAL INSTALLED CAPACITY

PEAK DEMAND MW
GROSS
GENERATION
GWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
TOTAL GROSS GENERATION

LOSSES, %
SALES, GWh
CUSTOMERS
Industrial
Included in Commercial Sales
Street Lighting
Included in Commercial Sales
Total Sales
940.8
944.0
952.2
960.9
933.3
Domestic
97,801
99,000
99,748
102,407
104,133
Commercial
18,857
19,798
20,874
19,699
18,766
Industrial
Included in Commercial
Total Customers
116,658
118,798
120,622
122,106
122,899
Street Lights
27,846
28,101
28,425
29,046
29,053
Page 28

There are two renewable energy sources used at any significant scale in Barbados; solar thermal
energy and biomass (sugar cane bagasse), but neither of these resources produces any gridconnected power.
a) Solar Thermal Energy
In relation to energy, the name Barbados is synonymous with solar water heating (SWH). From
its humble beginnings in 1976, the Barbados SWH industry has grown to become one of the
largest in the world.
Barbados in 2011 accounted 34 for 55% of the total SWH installed base in CARICOM and it is
estimated that the installed capacity of SWH in 2010 was 323 kWth per 1,000 inhabitants 35 or a
total of about 88 MW of installed thermal water heating capacity, equivalent to 52.5 % of the
peak demand on the electricity system in 2011. This statistic indicates the huge impact that
SWH has quietly had on the energy landscape of the country: over the duration of the
development of the industry, it has allowed the provision of what has become a basic energy
service, by using a free energy source, with no additional requirement for installation of large
lumps of power capacity thereby saving tens of millions of dollars and significantly abating
Barbados carbon emissions in the process.
b) Biomass (Sugar Cane Bagasse)
Though its fortunes have declined over the past several decades, Barbados has a significant
sugar industry and some of the bagasse produced as a waste product of the manufacturing
process is used on-site, as fuel for biomass cogeneration systems with a total estimated
capacity of 6.5 MW (Castalia, 2011). Currently, all of the energy (electricity and heat) produced
is used in the sugar factories themselves and there is a surplus of bagasse that is not used at all.
Various proposals are being considered by the relevant stakeholders for restructuring the sugar
industry to allow for grid-connected cogeneration and production of other fuels such as
ethanol, but none has as yet been moved to implementation.
c) Solar PV
Over the past year or so, Barbados has seen a growing number of distributed-scale PV systems
being installed. This recent uptake is the result of the Renewable Energy Rider pilot
programme, introduced in 2010 by the BL&PCo and which has now been instated as a
permanent program by the FTC. To date under the program, some 182 systems with a peak
installed capacity of 1.7 MW have been installed.
d) Wind
The proposed 10MW Lamberts wind farm project, originally planned by Barbados Light &
Power to be developed commencing in 2007, has not proceeded to date. 36
34
Gardner, Devon 2012. Strategies for accelerating the solar water heating market in CARICOM states. Caribbean Sustainable Energy
Forum III, St Kitts & Nevis, September 2012.
35
Weiss, Werner & Mauthner, Franz 2012. Solar Heat Worldwide, Markets and Contribution to the Energy Supply. Solar Heating and
Cooling Program, International Energy Agency
36
CREDP-GIZ has provided technical assistance to the countrys largest ice cream manufacturer (BICO) in the design of a 9 kW PV pilot
project and technical assistance to BL&P in their planning of the Lamberts wind project.
Page 29

The legislative and regulatory framework exists to allow the participation of large-scale,
independent power producers (IPPs) in the electricity sector, via power purchase agreements with
the monopoly utility. As at the end of 2011, no specific legislation was in place governing the
interconnection of small-scale, distributed generators, but the existing regulatory framework (ie:
oversight by the FTC) was sufficient to allow same.
c) Utility Scale renewable energy
To date, no independent power producers are providing utility-scale capacity and energy to the
national grid.
d) Small-scale, distributed renewable energy
The Barbados Light & Power Company introduced its Renewable Energy Rider (RER) programme
in July 2010 as a pilot programme intended to run for 2 years. 37 The initiative was conceived by
the utility for customers that have appropriately sized renewable generation systems for their
own use and want to sell excess power into the electricity grid. Following subsequent
submissions to and review by the FTC, the programme was made permanent as of August 9th
2013, with its terms and conditions subject to review every 3 years (or at rate hearings). 38
The RER is supplemented by the following specific requirements, applications and agreements
for interconnection and pricing:
BL&PCo Requirements for Grid Interconnection of Renewable Generation Systems

BL&PCo Renewable Energy Interconnection Agreement
BL&PCo Renewable Energy Power Purchase Agreement
BL&PCo Renewable Energy Interconnection Application
The rider is specific to customers with renewable resource generation facilities utilizing a wind
turbine, solar PV or hybrid (wind/PV) power source located on the customer's owned or rented
premises (which specifically excludes electricity wheeling), and having a capacity of not greater
than 5 kW for domestic and general service tariffs and not greater than 50 kW for other tariffs.
The rider is available to customers on a first-come, first-served basis up to a maximum installed
capacity of 7,000 kWp.
After a very slow initial uptake 39 the programme had a total of 182 customers as at June 2013
with an installed capacity of 1,700 kWp.
It should be noted that during 2011, the Ministry of Energy was in the process of amending
Barbados electricity sector legislation, in order to provide for an orderly deposit of excess
electricity produced outside of the main power company, into the national Grid" 40. The BL&P
RER programme was introduced before completion of this amended legislation.
3.3.5 Conclusion
Barbados has access to ample renewable energy resources and over the past several decades has
made significant use of them, most notably in the forms of solar water heating and bagasse for
providing heat and power to its sugar industry. The deployment of distributed, grid-connected
renewable resources has only recently commenced.
37
The programme was originally proposed in May 2009 and introduced in July 2010 after approval by the Fair Trading Commission (FTC).
FTC Renewable Energy Rider decision. http://www.ftc.gov.bb/library/2013-08-09_commission_decision_rer.pdf
39
At 21 months into the two-year pilot programme, only 13 customers had signed up from a customer base in excess of 100,000. See
The Barbados Advocate, 17 April 2012. Energy Rider Expected to be Renewed.
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/newsitem.asp?more=&NewsID=24095. Accessed 13 Feb 2013.
40
Barbados Government Information Service Media, Lashley, Cathy, 2011. Draft Electricity Act on the Cards.
http://www.gisbarbados.gov.bb/index.php?categoryid=13&p2_articleid=6706
38
Page 30
It is considered that Barbados has the potential to significantly develop additional renewable
resources, particularly in relation to biofuels (bagasse and ethanol), utility-scale wind energy and
grid-connected distributed solar PV systems. 41 Policies and regulatory regimes are in place and
plans are being developed, but implementation must now be the focus.
The Bottom Line: Barbados has an impressive history of achievement in solar water heating over
the past 4 decades. It must now leverage its resources and capabilities to focus on the
implementation of grid-connected RE systems to achieve the necessary energy transition.
41
Castalia Strategic Advisors, 2010. Sustainable Energy Framework for Barbados. Final Report Volume 1. Inter-American Development
Bank for the Government of Barbados.
Page 31
3.4 Belize
3.4.1 Overview
Belize is a sovereign country located on the Central American mainland; bordered by Mexico to the
north, Guatemala to the west/south and the Caribbean Sea to the east. Its land area is 7,883
sq miles (20,418 km2) and its population in 2011 was 356,600. The economy is mostly based on
tourism, other services and agriculture (the export of citrus fruits, sugar & molasses, bananas,
wood and fisheries products). Its per capita income of US$4,061 in 2011 places it in the lower
middle income category of countries (World Bank).
Belize has some limited oil reserves (discovered in 2005) but is a net energy importer. A small
crude oil output of the order of 3,000 barrels per day is produced by Belize Natural Energy Ltd 42
and the vast majority of this is exported, while 63% of the countrys energy consumption in 2010
was imported (Tillett, 2011), with the balance being supplied by biomass (fuelwood and sugar-cane
bagasse), hydro-electricity and a small amount of locally-produced fossil fuel. 43
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) reports that a third of Belizes export earnings are
spent on imported fossil fuels.

The energy sector of Belize is governed by the following legislation:
Belize Electricity Act Chapter 221 (2000)
The Public Utilities Commission Act Chapter 223 (2000)
The Petroleum Act Chapter 225 (2000)
The country has developed a National Energy Policy, which was formally adopted in January 2012.
The energy sector is comprised of the key entities shown in Table 3.4.1 below:
42
A privately-owned company that found the first commercial deposits of oil in the country.
Belizes crude oil is of a low-sulphur (light, sweet) grade, making it relatively easy to refine on a small scale and there had been some
small-scale production of diesel and natural gas from the local crude. These operations now appear to have been discontinued.
43
Page 32
Table 3.4.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Belize

Entity
Type
Responsibility
Ministry of Energy, Science &

Technology and Public Utilities (MESTPU)
Government
ministry
The development of policies, strategic direction

and plans for the national energy sector and
oversight of all matters related to energy and the
electric utility
Geology & Petroleum Department,

MESTPU
Government
Department
Oversight of the countrys oil production sector
Ministry of Finance and Economic

Development
Government
ministry
Regulation of petroleum product prices and

associated tariffs (taxes and import duties)
Belize Electricity Ltd

(BEL)
Verticallyintegrated
44
utility
Generation,
purchase,
transmission
distribution of electricity under licence
Public Utilities Commission

(PUC)
Electricity sector
regulator
To regulate the provision of electricity, water, and

telecommunications to ensure provision of
efficient, high quality, economical services and the
viability and sustainability of each sector
Belize Electric Company Ltd

(BECOL)
Privately-owned
hydro-electricity
generator
Provision of power and energy to BEL under power

purchase agreement
Belize Cogeneration Energy Ltd

(Belcogen)
Privately-owned
bagasse
cogeneration
company
Provision of power and energy to BEL under power

purchase agreement
Belize Natural Energy Ltd

(BNE)
Privately-owned
oil exploration
and production
company
Produces crude oil, natural gas and LPG

(Butane/Propane) for export and domestic
consumption
and

Public electricity is supplied by Belize Electricity Ltd (BEL), a vertically-integrated corporation. In
June 2011, the government moved to acquire the company, which had up to then been owned by a
private investment group. The central government now owns 70.2% of the company, with the
Social Security Board holding 26.9% and others 2.9%.
Most of the countrys electricity supply is purchased by BEL from independent power producers;
the contribution of electricity produced by BEL has decreased steadily from 15% in 2001 to 1.4% in
2011. The largest sources are privately-owned hydro generator Belize Electric Company Ltd
(BECOL), which accounts for 47% of the total supply and imports from Mexicos Comisin Federal
de Electricidad (CFE) which provides 35%.
Belizes electricity grid is comprised of two interconnected transmission systems: a 115 kV system
that covers the entire northern and western sections of the country and which imports energy from
Mexicos CFE, and a 69 kV transmission system serving parts of the countrys south.
Table 3.4.2 summarizes the operations of the electricity sector over 2007 to 2011.
44
Previously privately owned, the utility was nationalized by the Government of Belize in June 2011.
Page 33
TABLE 3.4.2: Operating Statistics Belize Electricity Ltd (BEL)

POWER
CAPACITY
MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
36.2
37.0
33.7
32.3
28.3
40.0
40.0
55.0
55.0
55.0
Total Thermal
76.2
77.0
88.7
87.3
83.3
Biomass - IPP
31.5
31.5
31.5
BEL
(1)
Purchased
(2)
Hydro IPP
(3)
36.5
36.5
36.5
54.5
54.5
Total
Renewable
36.5
36.5
68.0
86.0
86.0
112.7
113.5
156.7
173.3
169.3
70.0
74.3
76.2
80.6
79.3
Diesel
36,078
10,704
18,760
7,608
6,910
Purchased
391,954
439,985
444,963
413,901
402,693
Total Thermal
428,032
450,689
463,723
421,509
409,603
1,330
48,175
70,720
Hydro
10,676
12,898
7,760
13,586
12,518
Total
Renewable
10,676
12,898
9,090
61,761
83,238
438,708
463,587
472,813
483,270
492,841
13.0%
12.2%
11.7%
11.8%
13.1%
Residential
214,925
224,030
234,596
241,777
251,764
Industrial &
Commercial
143,118
158,992
158,452
159,921
152,239
Street Lighting
23,716
23,963
24,326
24,535
24,486
Total Sales
381,759
406,985
417,374.
0
426,233.0
428,489
Residential
71,992
73,492
748,819
76,316
78,007
699
725
724
730
720
72,691
74,217
749,543
77,046
78,727
PEAK DEMAND MW
NET
GENERATION
MWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
Biomass
LOSSES, %
SALES, MWh
CUSTOMERS
Industrial &
Commercial
Total
Customers
Street Lighting
Included in Industrial & Commercial
Note:
1. BEL Installed Capacity only
2. Includes up to 40 MW of capacity contracted with CFE
3. Hydropower purchases from four hydro schemes owned by two IPPs

The contribution of renewable energy to total primary energy consumption is reported 45 to be
30.1% in 2010 and the contribution to the grid of utility-scale renewables has increased in recent
years, from 40% in 2007 to 64% in 2011.
45
Government of Belize, 2012. Ministry of Energy, Science & Technology and Public Utilities: Strategic Plan 2012-2017.
Page 34

The major renewable energy sources utilized in Belize are biomass and hydroelectricity.
a) Biomass
Biomass utilization at present is mainly comprised of traditional fuelwood (used as a source of
primary energy mostly for cooking) and bagasse, which is utilized on sugar plantations to
generate electricity.
Electricity generated from bagasse now accounts for 14% of the countrys total electricity
supply, up from 0% a few years ago, since Belize Cogeneration Energy Ltd BELCOGEN 46, the IPP
that supplies bagasse-derived electricity to BELs grid, commenced operations in 2009. The
government has stated its goals for the further development of indigenous biomass resources,
particularly for the production of liquid biofuels (MESTPU Strategic Plan 2012-17).
b) Hydroelectricity
Hydroelectricity supplied 50% of the countrys electricity consumption in 2011. It is estimated
that Belize possesses about 70 MW of hydro potential, of which 55MW have already been
developed in four hydro schemes (Mollejon, Chalillo and Vaca, owned by BECOL, and
HydroMayas Rio Grande scheme).
The governments stated goal is to fully develop the countrys hydropower resources by 2033
(MESTPU Strategic Plan 2012-17). It is to be noted that existing hydropower developments in
Belize were implemented with much protest by indigenous and environmental groups, and the
same may be the case for future developments. 47
At least one off-grid, run-of-river micro-hydro installation exists at the Gaa RiverLodge at San
Ignacio, an eco-resort located in the interior of the country which generates its own electricity
from hydropower.
c) Other Renewables
No other renewable sources are of significant impact at present. A 2005 project to install a
small standalone solar PV system in San Benito Poite, an isolated rural village, was the first PVpowered rural electrification project in Belize. 48 No formal resource assessments have yet
been done but the government has stated its objectives to develop specific wind and solar
energy development policies and plans during 2012-17.
2. Legal & Regulatory Framework
The Government of Belize (GoB) regulates the operation of the petroleum sector. Four main
companies operate in the sector at wholesale and retail level and the GoB, through the Ministry of
Finance, regulates retail product prices.
The electricity sector in Belize is regulated by the provisions of the Belize Electricity Act Chapter 221
(2000) and the Public Utilities Commission Act Chapter 223 (2000). The Public Utilities Commission
(PUC) has regulatory oversight over the electricity sector in general and Belize Electricity Ltd (BEL)
in particular. In 2011, BEL had power purchase agreements in place with five IPPs which
collectively supplied over 98% of the countrys total electricity requirement;
Belize Aquaculture Limited 49

Belize Electric Company Ltd (BECOL)
46
A subsidiary company of Belize Sugar Industries Ltd

Belizemagazine,com, 2005. The Chalillo Dam: The Greatest Engineering Feat in Modern Belize.
http://www.belizemagazine.com/edition09/english/e09_05dam.htm
48
The current status of this installation is unknown.
49
This IPP was offline during 2011
47
Page 35
Belize Cogeneration Energy Ltd (Belcogen)

Comisin Federal de Electricidad (Mexico)
Hydro Maya Ltd
a) Utility-scale renewable energy

Utility-scale renewable electricity is well-established and has supplied the majority of the
countrys electricity since 2010. Renewable electricity is supplied to the grid by BECOL (hydro),
Belcogen (electricity from bagasse) and Hydro Maya.
It is reported that the matter of distributed generation has been studied by the PUC over the
past three years but no definitive regulations have yet been developed or published. The
MESTPU has however made a commitment to publish draft Rules by the middle of 2013. 50
At present, the Electricity Act makes provision for the PUC to create a "Class license", under
which licensees can be issued standard protocols for construction, operation, grid connection
and commercial terms, up to an installed capacity of 75 kW of grid-connected renewable
energy. In practical terms however, requests for distributed generation are essentially handled
on an ad hoc basis, with the involved parties being the applicant, the utility and the PUC.
Consequently, there is reportedly a negligible amount of small-scale, grid-connected renewable
energy in place in Belize.
3.4.5 Conclusion
Belize is one of CARICOMs success stories in the productive utilization of its renewable energy
resources it is already supplying a majority of electricity needs via grid-connected renewables at
utility scale. There has been little development of the regulatory framework to support the
connection of distributed renewable sources to the grid, and this is the logical next step for the
government, in its efforts to create a modern energy market.
The Bottom line: Belize is already a top performer in the utilization of utility-scale RE, but its costs
are high. The countrys energy sector leaders now need to focus on the development of the
necessary framework for targeted action on the distributed renewables side.
50
Per email communications with Mr Ambrose Tillett, March 2013.
Page 36
3.5 Dominica
3.5.1 Overview
Dominica is a sovereign island country in the Caribbean, located approximately midway along the
Eastern Caribbean chain of islands. It is the largest of the Eastern Caribbean islands, being
(290 sq mi) in area, 47 kilometres (29 mi) in length, and 29 kilometres (18 mi) in width.
The island's population is 67,680 (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is mostly based on
agriculture/agro-processing, services and tourism. Its per capita income of US$7,152 in 2011 places
it in the upper middle income category of countries (World Bank).
Dominica has no proven fossil fuel resources and its energy costs were among the highest in the
region in 2011. During 2009 -2011, projects were implemented to develop a sustainable energy
plan and a national energy policy, but none of the documents has yet been formally approved or
adopted by the government.

Energy policy and legislation in Dominica is determined by the national government and executed
accordingly. Responsibility for the energy sector is distributed across the key entities shown in
Table 3.5.1 below:
TABLE 3.5.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Dominica
Entity
Type
Responsibility
The Ministry of Public Works, Energy &

Ports
Government
ministry
Overall national energy policy and planning
Dominica Electricity Services Ltd
Privately owned
Generation, transmission and distribution of

Page 37
(DOMLEC)
verticallyintegrated utility,
electricity under licence.
Independent Regulatory Commission

(IRC)
Electricity sector
regulator
Regulation of the electricity sector
Retail prices of imported petroleum products are regulated by the Ministry of Trade, and the
Independent Regulatory Commission (IRC), established by the Electricity Supply Act (ESA) of 2006
which replaced the previous electricity sector legislation, is responsible for the regulation of the
countrys electricity sector.

Public electricity on Dominica is supplied by Dominica Electricity Services Ltd (DOMLEC), a
vertically-integrated corporation. As at December 2011, fifty-two percent of the companys shares
were held by Dominica Private Power Ltd, a company registered in the Turks and Caicos Islands,
with the balance held by Dominica Social Security (21%) and the general public (27%). Table 3.5.2
summarizes the operations of the electricity sector in Dominica over 2007 to 2011.
Table 3.5.2: Operating Statistics Dominica Electricity Services Ltd (DOMLEC)
POWER
CAPACITY
MW
MWh
2010
2011
17.2
16.6
19.5
20.1
20.1
Total Thermal
17.2
16.6
19.5
20.1
20.1
Renewable
Capacity
Hydro
7.6
4.8
4.8
6.6
6.6
Total
Renewable
7.6
4.8
4.8
6.6
6.6
24.8
21.3
24.2
26.7
26.7
14.5
14.7
15.6
16.6
17.2
Thermal
Generation
Diesel
64,497
66,944
69,565
76,033
64,571
Total Thermal
64,497
66,944
69,565
76,033
64,571
Renewable
Generation
Hydro
21,885
20,554
23,156
23,132
35,836
Total
Renewable
21,885
20,554
23,156
23,132
35,836
86,382
87,498
92,721
99,165
100,407
14.1%
12.5%
10.3%
9.3%
8.6%
Residential
33,732
34,051
36,369
39,473
40,419
Commercial
30,790
32,306
34,619
38,306
39,512
Industrial
5,600
6,004
7,877
7,449
7,560
Street Lighting
1,298
1,325
1,443
1,547
1,621
Total Sales
71,420
73,686
80,308
86,775
89,112
Residential
28,388
29,183
25,904
28,984
29,838
Commercial
4,524
4,716
4,044
4,478
4,055
Industrial
27
30
30
28
29
Street Lighting
364
430
571
496
469
33,303
34,359
30,549
33,986
34,391
LOSSES, % NET GENERATION
CUSTOMERS
2009
Diesel

SALES, MWh
2008
Thermal
Capacity
PEAK DEMAND MW
GROSS
GENERATION
2007
Total
Customers
Page 38

Dominica has enjoyed significant utilization of its renewable energy resources since the mid-20th
century, when the development of hydroelectricity projects commenced.
a) Geothermal
Dominica has long been considered to have significant geothermal potential and since 2007 the
potential has been actively explored: two separate geothermal explorations were in progress,
one privately funded and the other financed by public (European Union) funds. The private
sector initiative has stalled 51, but the publicly-funded work has proceeded to the completion of
the exploratory drilling phase and has determined that Dominica has commercially viable
geothermal resources located at Wotten Waven in the center of the island. The government
has elaborated its plans to develop the resource and a dedicated Geothermal Project
Management Unit has been established to manage the day to day activities:
The short-term plans include construction of a 10 15MW Geothermal Power Plant at

Wotten Waven and performance of a feasibility study of the submarine electrical
interconnection of Dominica with Martinique and Guadeloupe.
The long-term plan involves the construction of up to 120MW of geothermal power and
installation of submarine interconnections between Dominica and the French territories of
Guadeloupe and Martinique for export of electricity.
b) Hydro
The history of hydroelectricity in Dominica goes back to 1952 with the commissioning of 640
kW of hydro capacity at Trafalgar, culminating in a situation today where renewable energy
supplied by hydro accounts for 23% of electricity production. This renewable energy
penetration is significant and is the highest in the Eastern Caribbean, but has declined from a
peak of 45% in 2002. The decline is partly due to the increase in demand without additional
hydro capacity being added, but has been exacerbated by damage to hydro facilities caused by
the passage of hurricane Dean in 2007. DOMLECs management reports 52 that their lowest
rainfall in 12 years was recorded in 2012, resulting in a record low 26% of generation supplied
by hydro. CREDP-GIZ has provided technical assistance to the government for stream gauging
and the development of a micro-hydro project (the New Town Micro-Hydro Project) for the
water company DOWASCO, having a design capacity of 200 kW. A tender-ready design has
been submitted to DOWASCO but has not yet been implemented.
c) Wind:
Numerous wind power studies have been done over the past decade at different locations
across Dominica. The Dominica Sustainable Energy Corporation (DSEC), a private entity, has
been active in promoting wind energy and has implemented small (approx. 1 kW) pilot projects
as early as in 2002 in the south-eastern village of Delices. DOMLEC has taken wind
measurements at Warner Village. CREDP-GIZ has provided technical assistance for wind energy
development at Temple Estate, but the suggested site was earmarked for hotel development
and not available. To date, one 225 kW wind turbine has been commissioned at the Rosalie
Bay Resort and grid connected under a licence granted by the IRC. CREDP-GIZ continues to
provide technical assistance to DOMLEC for the identification of wind power potential on the
island.
51
52
As a result of what appears to be financial and legal difficulties experienced by the developers.
Personal communication with Collin Cover, Managing Director, DOMLEC
Page 39
d) Solar PV
To date, 11 licenses have been issued for privately owned PV systems, of which 4 have been
installed, having an installed capacity of 85 kWp. 53
e) Other Renewables
Dominica is a fertile, heavily forested island and clearly possesses ample biomass resources,
but no determination has been made of the extent of economically viable biomass resources.

The electricity sector in Dominica is regulated by the Electricity Supply Act of 2006. This act
superseded the previous legislation and brought into being the Independent Regulatory
Commission (IRC), which now has regulatory oversight over the electricity sector in general and
Dominica Electricity Services Ltd in particular.
The new ESA modified some of the existing conditions under which the utility operated. Prior
to 2006, DOMLEC had exclusive license to produce, distribute and sell electricity up to 2025;
under the ESA of 2006, the license period was reduced to 2015 and the utilitys monopoly
status was revoked; for the first time, other entities were allowed to enter the market under
license. Private entities wishing to self-generate must be licensed under the provisions of the
ESA; to date, 12 licenses have been issued for renewable systems.
Dominica has the legislative and regulatory framework in place to facilitate implementation of
distributed small-scale renewable energy systems, but uptake has been relatively slow.
Relations between the regulator and the utility appear to be somewhat strained, which
perhaps does not assist in encouraging uptake.
3.5.5 Conclusion
Dominica has had a long and successful history of the development and productive utilization of its
ample hydro resources in the latter half of the 20th century, but over the past several decades and
during the 21st century so far, the countrys dependence on fossil fuels has increased. However,
work carried out over the past five years has proven Dominicas geothermal reserves and now the
country is faced with the very real prospect of having a majority of its energy supplied from
renewable sources, over the medium to long term.
The Bottom line: Dominica is well-placed to achieve the necessary transformation of its energy
sector to one powered predominantly by renewable sources. Its energy sector leaders must
continue to build on their ongoing work and existing momentum to ensure the countrys
sustainable energy future.
53
The most significant installation to date has been a 50.7 kWp PV system installed on a private manufacturing facility at Canefield.
Page 40
3.6 Grenada
3.6.1 Overview
Grenada is a sovereign multi-island island country in the Caribbean, located towards the southern
end of the island chain, just north of Trinidad and Tobago. It is comprised of the mainland
Grenada, with Carriacou and Petit Martinique islands to the north. The total land area is 344 sq
kilometres (133 sq mi).
The island's population is 104,900 (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is mixed, mostly based on
tourism and agriculture. Grenada is the worlds second largest producer of nutmeg, an exotic
spice, supplying approximately 20% of the global market demand. Its per capita income of
US$7,780 in 2011 places it in the upper middle income level of countries (World Bank).
Grenada has no proven fossil fuel resources, though successive governments have been attempting
to pursue offshore oil exploration in national waters since the 1990s.
Energy costs were among the highest in the region in 2011, as indicated by the average retail price
of electricity compared to other countries (figure 2).
A national energy policy was published in 2011 that sets out the framework for the countrys low
carbon development strategy 54.

Energy policy and legislation in Grenada is determined by the national government and executed
accordingly. Responsibility for the energy sector is distributed across the key entities shown in
Table 3.6.1 below:
54
The National Energy Policy of Grenada. A Low Carbon Development Strategy for Grenada, Carriacou and Petit
Martinique. Government of Grenada, 2011.
Page 41
TABLE 3.6.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Grenada

Entity
Type
Responsibility
The Ministry of Finance, Planning,

Economy, Energy & Cooperatives
Government
ministry
Overall national energy policy. Responsibility for

regulation of petroleum product imports and the local
market.
Department of Energy & Sustainable

Development
Government
department
To develop details and secure implementation of

energy policy, plans and programmes to encourage
and promote the use of renewable energy
technologies and energy efficiency alternatives.
Ministry of Communications, Works,

Physical Development, Public Utilities &
ICT
Government
ministry
To oversee the operations of the electricity sector. A

public utilities commission exists in name only and the
ministry assumes some regulatory functions.
Grenada Electricity Services Ltd

(GRENLEC)
Private company
Generation, transmission and distribution

electricity in the country under license.
of
The energy sector is regulated; retail prices of imported petroleum products and electricity prices
are controlled by the government. The electricity sector is governed by The Electricity Supply Act,
1994 which grants monopoly status to the electric utility, Grenada Electricity Services Ltd
(GRENLEC) through 2073.

Public electricity on Grenada is supplied by Grenada Electricity Services Ltd (GRENLEC), a verticallyintegrated utility. GRENLEC is a subsidiary of Grenada Private Power Limited, of which Floridabased WRB Enterprises Inc is the majority owner. Table 3.6.2 summarizes the operations of the
electricity sector in Grenada over 2007 to 2011.
Table 3.6.2: Operating Statistics Grenada Electricity Services Ltd (GRENLEC)
GROSS
GENERATION
MWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Diesel
185,569
196,957
202,992
208,728
203,974
Total Thermal
185,569
196,957
202,992
208,728
203,974
Renewable
Total Renewable
185,569
196,957
202,992
208,728
203,974
7.5%
8.6%
9.2%
8.2%
8.1%
Residential
65,749
66,232
68,283
72,092
70,463
Commercial
89,569
96,600
99,061
101,966
99,808
Industrial
6,480
5,629
5,668
6,266
6,065
Street Lighting
3,427
4,041
4,317
4,459
4,539
Total Sales
165,225
172,501
177,329
184,783
180,875
Residential
34,225
35,856
37,256
37,932
38,394
Commercial
5,058
5,330
5,636
5,730
5,818
35
36
36
37
37
39,318
41,222
42,928
43,699
44,249

SALES, MWh
CUSTOMERS
Industrial
Total Customers
Page 42

Grenada enjoyed practically no use of its renewable energy resources prior to 2005. Since then, a
small and growing solar photovoltaics industry has developed.
a) Solar Photovoltaics
The solar PV industry in Grenada is young, but has become relatively well-established over the
past few years, largely due to the work of local company Grenada Solar Power Ltd (Grensol),
founded in 2005. Grenada now has the most significant implementation of grid-connected
solar PV in the region on a per capita basis.
In 2007 GRENLEC, in negotiations with the government and Grensol, formulated and
implemented an interconnection programme to facilitate the connection of small renewable
energy systems to the grid. The programme allowed the installation of up to 300 kW of
distributed PV systems under a pilot phase. Grensol installed approximately 54 systems (303
kW) across the island during the pilot phase and another 500 kW of renewable energy
connection capacity is being allowed by GRENLEC under a second phase (commenced 2012).
For phase 2, GRENLEC revised its tariff arrangement, which previously had been a 1:1 net
metering arrangement that paid the renewable energy system owner the retail electricity price
for any surplus delivered to the grid. The new arrangement is a net billing arrangement, which
pays a rate based on the annual average of avoided fuel cost with a fixed ten-year option and a
variable option 55.
Notwithstanding its growth over the past few years, the penetration of solar PV in relation to
the total of electricity demand is small PV output amounted to only about 0.3% of total
electricity consumed in Grenada in 2011.
b) Other Renewables
Some solar water heating is used in the hotel industry and in the residential sector. The
penetration of solar water heating in Grenada is estimated (Gardner, 2012) to be in the region
of 80 kWth per 1,000 inhabitants small compared to Barbados, but relatively high compared
to the rest of the region. No other significant commercial renewable energy resources are used
in Grenada, but plans are in progress for the following:
The Government of Grenada in partnership with the European Union and GRENLEC in
September 2012 launched a 5.3 million Euro project to implement up to 2 MW of wind
energy on the island of Carriacou. This is said to be the first of two utility-scale wind energy
installations that that GRENLEC plans on installing.
Consultations with key stakeholders are ongoing in relation to the investigation and
development of the countrys geothermal energy resources , as well as the development of
the requisite legislation to manage the exploitation of the resource.

The Electricity Supply Act of 1994 regulates the utilitys operations. No specific legislative or
regulatory framework exists for the participation of large-scale independent power producers
(IPPs) in the electricity sector, or of small-scale private generators in Grenada. However,
55
Grensol contends that this modification to the terms has harmed the market by reducing the incentive for customers to invest in PV
systems.
Page 43

No utility-scale renewables are in operation in Grenada.
Grenada has developed into the predominant example of the successful implementation of
distributed, grid-connected renewables in the region. A collaborative approach to the issue
was taken by the parties (private company Grensol and the utility, GRENLEC) which resulted in
the growth of a significant customer base of installed grid-connected PV.
3.6.5 Conclusion
Grenada has only just begun to exploit its renewable energy resources and the countrys energy
sector leaders (ie: the government and the electric utility) have plans to do more: according to
GRENLECs website, the utility has set strategic objectives to utilise renewable energy to meet 10%
of energy demand by 2013 and 30% by 2016. These plans and schedule are however ambitious
and already being unmet. Even with its lead in solar PV investment, the energy supplied by PV to
the national grid is still only a fraction of 1% of the countrys total electricity consumption.
The Bottom line: Grenada has made good progress in developing an action framework for
delivering distributed-scale renewables. The critical journey towards energy transition is in
progress and must be expedited, particularly at utility scale.
Page 44
3.7 Guyana
3.7.1 Overview
Guyana is a sovereign country located on the South American mainland, bordered by Venezuela to
the west, Suriname to the east, Brazil to the south and the Caribbean Sea to the north. It is the
largest country in CARICOM, with an area of 214,970 square kilometres (83,000 sq miles), but has a
relatively small population of approximately 753,000.
Guyanas economy is mostly based on mining (bauxite, gold) and agriculture (sugar, rice, seafood
and lumber). Its per capita GDP of US$3,409 places it in the lower middle income country category
(World Bank, 2011).
Notwithstanding its proximity to Venezuela 56, Guyana produces no oil or natural gas and is largely
dependent on imported fossil fuels. It is reported57 that petroleum products supplied 74% of
Guyanas primary energy needs in 2011 with the remaining 26% being derived from renewable
energy sources (mostly biomass sources such as bagasse, rice husks, fuelwood and charcoal, along
with small contributions from off-grid solar photovoltaics and biodiesel).
Energy costs and retail prices are high: the average retail price of a residential unit of electricity was
US$0.27 at June 2011.
3.7.2 Energy Sector Legal & Regulatory Framework

Guyanas official energy policy is the National Energy Policy that was prepared in 1994 but it is
notable that many of the policys stated objectives have not been achieved to date.
Responsibility for the governance of the energy sector in Guyana is centred on the Guyana Energy
Agency (GEA) under the direction of the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM). The OPM has principal
policy-making and regulatory responsibility for the energy sector, including for granting licences to
56
57
A founding member of OPEC and the country with the worlds largest proven oil reserves.
Guyana Energy Agency, 2012. Guyana Energy Agency Strategic Plan 2012 2016.
Page 45
the public utilities and independent power producers; approval of development and expansion
plans and operating standards and performance targets.
The mandate and activities of the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) are governed by the following
legislative instruments:
Guyana Energy Agency Act 1997
Energy Sector (Harmonisation of Laws) Act 2002
Guyana Energy Agency (Amendment) Act 2004, 2005 and 2011
Petroleum and Petroleum Products Regulations 2004
Hydroelectric Power Act and Regulations 1956
Hydroelectric Power (Amendment) Act 1988.
Responsibility for the energy sector is shared by a mix of government ministries, state-owned and
private enterprises, as shown in Table 3.7.1 below:
Table 3.7.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Guyana
Entity
Type
Responsibility
Office of The Prime Minister

(OPM)
Government
ministry
The development of policies, strategic direction

and plans for the national energy sector
Guyana Energy Agency (GEA)
State-owned
corporation
To ensure the rational and efficient use of

imported petroleum-based energy sources,
while encouraging, where economically feasible
and environmentally acceptable, increased
utilization of indigenous new and renewable
sources of energy.

(PUC)
Utilities
Regulator
Responsible for monitoring and enforcing utility

compliance with standards and targets set by the
OPM; determines and approves tariffs.
Guyana Power and Light Inc

(GPL)
State-owned,
verticallyintegrated
electric utility
Generation, transmission and distribution of

electricity. GPL also owns generation facilities
that are operated under contract by power plant
manufacturer Wrtsil.
Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc

(GuySuCo)
Licensed Utility
Operator
Provides bagasse-derived electricity to the GPL

grid at Skeldon, a sugar-producing town on the
coast.

Public electricity in Guyana is supplied by the Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL), a state-owned,
vertically-integrated corporation, within the framework of the following laws and regulations:
Electricity Sector Reform Act 1999 and Amendment 2010
Public Utilities Commission Act 1999
Public Utilities (Amendment) Act 16/2010
Amendment to GPLs License (October 2010)
Revision of GPLs By-laws (October 2010)
Adoption of Corporate Governance Code (October 2010)

Page 46
Supply licences issued to GPL and other licensed operators, and exemptions to licensing
requirements issued to other public and private suppliers
Residential Consumers Interface Regulations 2001
Environmental Protection Agency Act 1996
GPL has a 25-year, non-exclusive licence 58 to generate electricity and has exclusive rights to
distribute and sell electricity to the public except in the Linden area (home to the countrys second
largest city and the birthplace of Guyanas mining industry) and in any other area where GPL might
be unable provide a service and for which other providers might be licensed. As the government
describes it, 59 GPLs licence gives them the right of first refusal to supply electricity.
Overall electricity coverage in Guyana is reported at 81%, and GPLs service area covers most of
this, except in isolated areas where supply is provided by licensed operators. GPL itself also
operates several isolated systems in coastal areas.
GPL has approximately 175 MW of thermal capacity and serves approximately 161,000 customers.
Only about 100 MW of the installed capacity is reliable and this coincides with the system peak
demand; customer demand sometimes exceeds capacity and unscheduled outages are not
uncommon. As a consequence, several businesses in Guyana operate self-generation thermal
systems, totaling an estimated 70 MW. 60
Electrification of unserved areas is a major policy concern of the government, which in 2005
initiated the Government of Guyana Unserved Areas Electrification Programme (UAEP), 61 primarily
focused on extending the national grid to areas not yet served. A complementary component of
the UAEP is the Hinterland Electrification Strategy 62 which guides the design of various initiatives
and projects to deliver electricity to residents of isolated areas in the countrys interior that are
beyond the economic reach of the electricity grid. 63
In 2011, Guyanas installed capacity of 175 MW (including purchases), produced some 653,000
MWh of electricity, of which 8% was from sugar cane bagasse, and delivered service to 161,422
customers, with total losses of some 31.6%.

Guyana's renewable energy potential is made up of hydropower resources, biomass and solar
energy. The vast majority of the potential remains untapped.
a) Hydro
Historically known as the Land of many waters, Guyana has vast potential for hydropower
development. According to documentation published by the government,64 many potential
sites were identified and preliminary studies made during the 1970s and 1980s that identified
over 7,000 MW of potential across more than 67 locations. Despite this, no significant
hydropower facilities have been successfully developed in Guyana to date. According to the
GEA, construction on the proposed 165 MW Amaila Falls Hydroelectric Project, a large
58
Effective 1999.
Government of Guyana, 2007. Strategy for sustaining the Guyana Power & Light, Inc.
http://www.electricity.gov.gy/GOG%20Strategy%20for%20GPL.pdf
60
(IDB, 2012)
61
Initiated by the government in collaboration with GPL and financed by a loan from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)
62
Projekt-Consult, 2007. Government of Guyana Hinterland Electrification Strategy.
http://www.electricity.gov.gy/policies.php?id=hinterland.txt
63
Approximately 100,000 people (13% of the population) live in remote hinterland areas of the country.
64
Government of Guyana, 2006. Guyana Unserved Areas Electrification Programme: Feasibility studies for two proposed hydro-power
schemes - Terms of Reference
59
Page 47
transformative hydropower development, is scheduled to commence in 2013 and other plans

are in place to exploit additional hydro resources, to eventually supply almost 90% of Guyanas
electricity supply from hydro.
b) Biomass
Guyanas sugar industry has long used bagasse as an energy source and since 2008,
independent power producer GuySuCo has delivered bagasse-fired electricity to the GPL grid;
in 2011 bagasse cogeneration accounted for 8% of electricity supplied to GPLs customers.
Sugar cane bagasse and rice husks are potential options for additional, grid-connected power
generation and the GEA has outlined goals and strategic actions to continue the development
and utilization of additional biomass sources to provide utility-scale, grid-connected electricity.
c) Solar
Under the Hinterland Component of the Unserved Areas Electrification Project (UAEP), the
government has been actively installing standalone solar photovoltaic systems in remote
hinterland communities. The GEA reports that it has been able to document 203.85 kW [of]
installed solar photovoltaic systems as at the end of 2011 and advises that this capacity will be
boosted with a programme to install an additional 715 kWp of standalone solar PV under the
Low Carbon Development Strategy.
The GEA has also installed, as part of its mandate to promote the use of renewable energy, an
8kW grid-tied PV pilot project 65. This pilot project is intended as a demonstration project that
will help to stimulate private investment in grid-connected PV systems.
2. Legal & Regulatory Framework for Interconnection of Renewables

Utility-scale renewables are already in use and the existing legislative framework will support
the development of additional resources; IPPs will be licensed to supply electricity to the grid
as is already the case.
b) Small-scale, distributed RE
There are no significant distributed, grid-connected renewable systems in place in Guyana; the
small renewable systems being utilized are standalone systems providing power in isolated
areas.
Although the GEA is currently operating a grid-connected demonstration project, there is no
written policy for private installation of grid-connected renewable energy systems, nor is there
a licensing regime that would govern such installations.
The intention of the GEA is to eventually propose an interconnection policy (which will most
likely be based on net metering) along with the necessary legislative amendments for licensing
of private suppliers to the grid.
3.7.5 Conclusion
Guyana has massive indigenous resources, but it has not developed these over the past decades (in
contrast to some CARICOM countries that developed their hydropower resources in the 1960s and
earlier). The government has more recently initiated programmes and projects that have started
65
The output and performance data of the system can be viewed at http://egauge2733.egaug.es/
Page 48
to utilize these resources and has also developed plans and for the optimal, long-term exploitation
of the potential in hydro, biomass and solar energy.
The Bottom Line: Guyana has the indigenous, renewable energy resources that can supply 100%
of its electricity needs, using mature, proven technology. It needs to urgently move forward its
action plans for doing so.
Page 49
3.8 Jamaica
3.8.1 Overview
Jamaica is a sovereign island nation in the Caribbean and is the largest of the English-speaking
Caribbean territories, being 10,990 square kilometres (4,240 sq mi) in area.
The island's population is 2.7 million (World Bank, 2011) and its economy is mostly based on
services, tourism, remittances, and bauxite/alumina exports. Its per capita GDP of $5,330 places it
in the upper middle income country category.
Jamaica produces no oil or natural gas and is heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels; the
Ministry of Energy & Mining (MEM) estimated in 2009 that 91% of the countrys total energy
supply in 2009 was from imported fossil fuels.
Energy costs and retail prices are among the highest in the region: the average retail price of a unit
of electricity was US$0.35 at June 2011.

Energy policy and legislation in Jamaica is set by the national government and executed
accordingly. Since 2009, Jamaica has had a fully-developed policy framework for guiding the
necessary transition to sustainable energy. The documents are:
National Energy Policy 2009 - 2030
National Renewable Energy Policy 2009 - 2030
National Biofuels Policy 2010 - 2030
The responsibility for production, supply and distribution of energy is shared by a mix of
government ministries, state-owned and private enterprises; these are shown in Table 3.8.1 below:
Page 50
Table 3.8.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Jamaica

Entity
Type
Responsibility
The Ministry of Science,

Technology, Energy & Mining
(formerly the Ministry of Energy &
Mining)
Government
ministry

The Office of Utilities Regulation

(OUR)
Independent
regulator
Regulation
of
electricity
services
including
responsibility for oversight and determination of ratesetting, service standards, least-cost capacity
expansion
programmes,
grid-interconnection
programmes and ensuring fair trade and competition.
Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica

(PCJ)
State-owned
corporation
The importation, production, refining and distribution

of petroleum products in Jamaica. PCJ has also been at
the forefront of developments in renewable energy on
a national scale and operates four subsidiaries in
pursuit of its mission Petrojam Limited, Petrojam
Ethanol Limited, Petcom Limited and Wigton Wind
Farms Ltd.
The Jamaica Public Service

Company Ltd (JPSCo)
Privately-owned,
verticallyintegrated electric
utility
Generation,
electricity
transmission
and
distribution
of
The Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica in particular is an entity whose activities cross the entire
energy spectrum, from the importation of liquid fuels for transportation, to the production and
delivery of wind energy. It activities are governed by the following legislation:
1.
2.
3.
4.
Petroleum Act of 1979 Revised

Petroleum Act (Extension of Function) Order for Renewable Energy
The Petroleum (Quality Control) Act
The Petroleum (Amendment ) Act - The Petrocaribe Development Fund
The energy sector is described 66 as liberalized and competitive and retail prices of petroleum
products are no longer controlled by the government, though taxes and duties may be levied based
on government tax policies. Electricity tariffs are regulated by the Office of Utilities Regulation.
The Electric Lighting Act 1958

The Electricity Development Act 1958

Public electricity on Jamaica is supplied by the Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd (JPSCo) 67 which
operates under the auspices of the Amended and Restated All-Island Electric Licence 2011 which
confers on JPSCO the right to purchase power and energy from independent power producers
(IPPs) and the exclusive right to distribute electricity. As at the end of 2011, five IPPs were
contracted to supply electricity to JPSCo:
Jamaica Energy Partners (JEP)

The Jamaica Private Power Company Limited (JPPC)
66
Government of Jamaica. Green Paper: The Jamaica Energy Policy 2006 - 2020
A privately owned company with 80% of its shares held jointly in equal proportion by Marubeni Corporation and Korea East-West
Power (EWP); 19.9% by the government and the remaining 0.1% by individuals.
67
Page 51
Jamaica Aluminium Company Limited (JAMALCO)

Wigton Wind Farm Limited (Wigton)
Munro College (Munro)
Two of these IPPs Wigton and Munroe operate wind turbines, but the status of the Munro
college supply during 2011 is unknown. In 2011, JPSCo produced 66% of the total electricity
supplied. Table 3.8.2 below shows summary data for electricity sector for the years 2007 to 2011.
Data for wind energy delivery to the grid were not available for this report, but it is estimated that
6.3% of net electricity generation in 2011 was derived from renewables.
Table 3.8.2: Operating Statistics Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd (JPSCo)
JPSCo Summary Data
SALES, MWh
CUSTOMERS
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Residential
1,064,068
1,048,399
1,082,599
1,090,619
1,064,535
Small Comm & Ind
1,416,149
1,432,323
1,435,284
1,402,748
1,437,283
Lg Comm & Ind
561,602
599,850
589,560
593,360
615,041
Street Lighting
89,675
98,506
96,435
100,761
99,131
Total Sales
3,131,494
3,179,078
3,203,878
3,187,488
3,215,990
Residential
520,085
526,492
521,837
509,660
513,970
Small Comm & Ind
61,419
62,347
62,029
60,782
61,401
Lg Comm & Ind
116
124
130
138
145
Street Lighting
208
199
222
221
246
581,828
589,162
584,218
570,801
575,762
23.2%
22.9%
24.0%
23.0%
22.3%
Total Customers
Note: The Breakdown of energy production into Wind, Thermal, Hydro and Wind Energy was not available.

The Ministry of Energy and Mining estimated that in 2009, renewable energy accounted for 9% of
total energy consumption in Jamaica, which increased from 6% in 2008, primarily due to the
development and implementation of various programmes such as the full roll out of ethanolblended fuel (E10) for use in motor vehicles.
a) Hydro
Jamaica has eight hydroelectric installations with a combined installed capacity of 23 MW. The
oldest dates back to 1945, the most recent to 1989. All eight plants are owned and operated
by JPSCo. Recent studies 68 conducted for the PCJ in 2009 have confirmed additional hydro
resources in Jamaica and the JPSCo was moving ahead in 2011 to develop a new 6.3 MW hydro
plant at Maggotty.
b) Wind
The modern history of wind energy in Jamaica goes back to 1996 when Munro College, a
private boarding school for boys, installed and commissioned a 225 kW wind turbine the first
in the English-speaking Caribbean and entered into a PPA with JPSCo for the delivery of its
output to the national grid. That turbine is no longer in service but wind generation has taken
off in Jamaica since then. Wigton Windfarms Ltd (a subsidiary of the Petroleum Corporation of
68
supported by CRETAF, the Caribbean Renewable Energy Technical Assistance Facility (CRETAF)
Page 52
Jamaica) owns and operates the largest windfarm in the English-speaking Caribbean which has
an installed capacity 69 of 38.7 MW and delivers about 115,000 MWh of electricity per year to
the grid; which is expected to offset the import of 60,000 barrels of oil per year and to reduce
CO2 emissions by 85,000 tons. 70 Wigton was developed in two phases commencing in 2004;
the second phase was one of the successful projects planned and implemented per the
National Renewable Energy Policy 2009 2030.
A much smaller wind farm of 3 MW installed capacity (4 x 750 kW), owned and operated by
JPSCo, was put into service in 2010/11.
c) Biofuels
Over 300 biogas digesters treating farm animal waste are located in various parts of the island,
having an equivalent production of approximately 10,000 m3 of biogas per annum. Another
200 biodigester-type septic tanks, treating domestic sewage equivalent to the production of
approximately 2000 m3 of biogas are also installed across the island. It is however not known
how much of this biogas potential is actually being delivered to end users for cooking and none
is being used for electricity generation.
Jamaica imports anhydrous ethanol primarily from Brazil, which it processes to create fuelgrade ethanol, some of which is exported and the balance blended locally with gasoline to
produce E10 fuel, which was introduced in November 2009.
d) Solar PV
In May 2012 JPSCo published their Net Billing policy and connected their first official
distributed generation customer (solar PV) in November. 71
Despite rising interest, very few distributed renewable energy installations exist in Jamaica: as
at September 2013, ninety net billing licenses had been issued and four PV systems with a total
installed capacity of 109 kWp were connected to the grid. 72
e) Other Renewables
The National Renewable Energy Policy outlined plans for the development of two projects over
the 2009 2012 timeframe: the development of 65 MW of waste-to-energy plants at two
locations and the development of biodiesel projects based on indigenous feedstocks such as
jatropha and castor beans. None of these has yet materialized.
Jamaica is not considered to possess any significant geothermal resources that could be
exploited at utility scale.
Although the penetration of solar water heating is low relative to the regional average 73,
Jamaica is the regional leader in SWH use in the health sector (Gardner 2012), due to a
deliberate, government-led project that targeted the installation of SWH in public hospitals.
69
Installed in two phases: one in 2004 of 20.7 MW and the second in 2010 of 18 MW.
Worldwatch Institute, September 2011, Wigton Wind Farm: Jamaicas Commitment to Renewable Energy Starts Paying Off
http://blogs.worldwatch.org/revolt/wigton-wind-farm-jamaicas-commitment-to-renewable-energy-starts-paying-off/
71
Jamaica Gleaner, Nov 26 2012. JPS Connects First Net-billing Customer. http://jamaicagleaner.com/gleaner/20121126/lead/lead5.html
72
Source: Caribbean Energy Information System (CEIS)
73
Jamaicas SWH penetration is estimated by Gardner (2012) at 6.1 kWth per 1000 inhabitants, compared to the regional average of 48.9
kWth per 1000 inhabitants.
70
Page 53
Utility-scale systems provide practically all of the renewable energy supplied to the grid in
Jamaica. All of the hydro power is owned by the utility and power purchase agreements are in
place between the utility and the two IPPs producing wind energy.
The interconnection of distributed generation RE systems in Jamaica is allowed under the OURapproved Net Billing Standard Offer Program. The program was introduced in May 2012, in
response to the government of Jamaicas target for grid-connected renewable energy of 15%
by 2015 and seeks to encourage the installation of distributed generation systems of up to 10
kW for household systems and 100kW for commercial systems.
To date, although 90 licenses have been issued and other applications are in the pipeline, only
five PV systems were connected to the grid as at September 2013.
3.8.5 Conclusion
Jamaica has access to significant renewable energy resources and has successfully made use of
them at utility scale since the 1940s. However, the development of new utility scale renewable
energy projects has not always gone according to plan and several projects of significant potential
output are today faced with delays and uncertainty.
On the other side of the coin, a constraint to the development of small-scale, distributed
generation has been the lack of mechanisms and incentives for accelerating the growth of
investment in small-scale systems. Now that JPSCo has launched (May 2012) its Net Billing
programme it is anticipated that this will change. However, both types of investment need to be
accelerated if Jamaica is to progress in its transition to clean energy.
The Bottom Line: Jamaicas energy sector leaders must continue and redouble their efforts to
increase the penetration of renewable energy in the countrys energy matrix if the country is to
meet its stated renewable energy targets.
Page 54
3.9 Saint Lucia

3.9.1 Overview
Saint Lucia is a sovereign island nation in the Eastern Caribbean with an area of 617 square
kilometres (238 sq mi) and a population of 176,000 (World Bank, 2011).
Saint Lucias economy is mostly based on tourism, offshore banking, light manufacturing and
export of agricultural products, particularly bananas. Its per capita GDP of $7,153 places it in the
upper middle income country category.
Saint Lucia is entirely dependent on imported fossil fuels for its commercial energy supply.
Energy costs are high (though not the highest in the region); the average retail price of a unit of
electricity was approximately US$0.27 in June 2011.

The energy sector is regulated by the government, through several ministries. The government
published its National Energy Policy in January 2010, which sets out the policy and planning
framework for the countrys energy sector. Responsibility for oversight and operation of the energy
sector is shared by a mix of government ministries and private enterprises; these are shown in
Table 3.9.1 below:
Table 3.9.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Saint Lucia
Entity
Type
Responsibility
The Ministry of Public Service,

Sustainable Development, Energy,
Science and Technology.
Government
ministry

plans for the national energy sector.
Ministry of Infrastructure, Port

Services and Transport
Government
ministry
Responsible for oversight and regulation of public

utilities, including issues of consumer protection,
quality of service and licensing of electricity providers.
Page 55
Ministry of Finance and Economic

Affairs
Government
ministry
Responsible for petroleum product pricing matters.
Ministry of External Affairs,

International Trade and Civil
Aviation
Government
ministry
Responsible for petroleum product imports.
Saint Lucia Electricity Services Ltd

(LUCELEC)
Privately-owned,
verticallyintegrated utility
Generation,
electricity.
Hess Oil Corporation
Privately-owned
multinational oil
company
Hess operates a 10-million barrel facility used for the

storage and trans-shipment of crude oil and refined
petroleum products.
transmission
and
distribution
of

Public electricity in Saint Lucia is supplied by the St Lucia Electricity Services Ltd (LUCELEC), under
the terms of the Electricity Supply Act 10 of 1994 (last amended in 2001). The Act gives the utility
exclusive rights to generate, transmit and distribute electricity on the island to 2045. No
independent regulatory body exists for the electricity sector and though LUCELEC is regulated by
the relevant ministry, the company largely functions autonomously and is primarily answerable to
its shareholders through a board of directors. No IPPs operate in Saint Lucias electricity sector.
100% of public electricity is generated from imported diesel fuel.
Table 3.9.2: Operating Statistics Saint Lucia Electricity Services Ltd (LUCELEC)
POWER
CAPACITY MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
LUCELEC
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
Under Contract
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Total Thermal
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
76.0
52.7
54.1
55.9
59.2
60.3
Total Renewable

PEAK DEMAND MW
NET
GENERATION
MWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
LUCELEC
332,513
338,079
348,678
366,762
370,609
Under Contract
Total Thermal
332,513
338,079
348,678
366,762
370,609
332,513
338,079
348,678
366,762
370,609
10.0%
10.2%
9.3%
9.5%
9.7%
Residential
104,784
103,214
107,820
113,757
113,505
Commercial
168,151
170,624
178,518
188,640
190,846
Industrial
15,789
18,626
19,002
18,373
18,761
Street Lighting
9,117
9,510
9,741
9,959
10,263
Total Sales
297,841
301,974.0
315,081
330,729
333,375
Residential
50,163
51,444
52,986
53,566
54,415
Commercial
5,938
6,169
6,479
6,557
6,641
101
98
100
100
101
56,209
57,718
59,572
60,232
61,166
Total Renewable

LOSSES, %
SALES, MWh
CUSTOMERS
Industrial
Street Lighting
Total Customers
Page 56

No comprehensive assessment of Saint Lucias renewable energy potential has been performed but
various preliminary studies 74 suggest that the island possesses significant potential for solar, wind
and geothermal energy development.
a) Geothermal Energy
Geothermal energy has long been considered one of Saint Lucias major potential renewable
energy sources. Clear manifestations of extensive geothermal resources are readily visible in
the south of the island and over the past decades, various entities have been involved in the
effort to determine the parameters of the resource. Despite this, no definitive studies of the
potential have been concluded and there appears to be no clear path forward for the countrys
exploitation of the resource.
b) Hydro
Saint Lucia has some economic mini-hydro potential, amounting to less than 500 kW. This
includes an estimated 150 kW of capacity at the existing Roseau Dam, which is owned and
operated by the national water utility, and an estimated 240 kW of capacity at the Troumasse
River. 75 No implementation of any related projects is currently on the cards.
c) Solar Energy
A handful of privately-owned residential PV installations, one utility-owned system and several
institutional projects of size 3 25 kWp comprise the approximately 61 kWp installed base of
grid-connected photovoltaic systems in Saint Lucia. 76 By contrast, the market for solar water
heating has developed significantly over the past few years and Saint Lucias penetration of
SWH is estimated at 111.4 kWth per 1,000 inhabitants, the second highest in CARICOM
(Gardner, 2012).
d) Wind
Despite recent plans for wind energy development (dating back to 2005), no grid-connected
wind energy resources have been developed on Saint Lucia. CREDP-GIZ has provided technical
assistance in the development of a prospective wind farm project at Sugar Mill, but no
immediate prospect is in the offing for any such development.
e) Other Renewables
There has been recent, though inconclusive activity in relation to other renewables potential.
CREDP-GIZ has provided technical assistance for the planning and design of a mini-hydro
project at the water companys John Compton Dam. Discussions had taken place in recent
years between private interests and LUCELEC regarding the development of a waste-to-energy
project. Despite these, no significant project developments appear to be on the horizon.

74
Including several carried out with technical assistance provided by CREDP-GIZ

geoMinds GbR, 2013. Hydropower Potential Analysis Saint Lucia. geoMinds Gbr and CREDP-GIZ, Bonn Germany and Castries, Saint
Lucia.
76
Several of these installations are PV demonstration projects (at Pigeon Island, the Castries Craft Market and the Vieux Fort Secondary
School Campus B) supported by CREDP-GIZ.
75
Page 57
Saint Lucias regulatory framework allows for the participation of IPPs to deliver utility-scale
energy to the grid. However, no IPPs are present.
Only a small number of distributed-scale renewable energy systems are connected to the grid,
on an ad-hoc basis, as no legal framework exists for interconnection and the utilitys
interconnection policy remains unpublished. The grid interconnection arrangement currently
offered by LUCELEC is for residential customers who are typically allowed to connect small (5
kWp or less), under a net-metering payment arrangement.
3.9.5 Conclusion
It seems clear that Saint Lucia has the indigenous energy resources to transform its electricity
sector but to date there has been no significant progress in the exploitation of these resources, and
the way forward seems not to be well defined at this point.
The Bottom Line: Saint Lucia has lagged behind in its exploitation of its ample renewables
potential. The energy sector leaders must now urgently focus their efforts on action towards the
necessary transition.
Page 58
3.10 St Kitts & Nevis

3.10.1 Overview
The Federation of St Kitts and Nevis is a twin-island federation in the Eastern Caribbean with an
area of 261 square kilometres (100 sq mi) and a population of 53,050 (World Bank, 2011). It is the
smallest country (both by area and population) in the Americas.
The economy is based on tourism, export-oriented manufacturing and offshore banking. Its per
capita GDP of $13,144 places it in the high income non-OECD country category.
Although governed by one federal constitution, the two islands of St Kitts and Nevis operate with a
certain amount of autonomy and their energy sectors, particularly in relation to electricity, are
separately organized and managed. The federation is largely dependent on imported fossil fuels
for its commercial energy supply, but has made recent and significant inroads in the deployment of
utility-scale renewables, with the 2010 commissioning of a 1.1 MW wind farm on Nevis.
Energy costs are high: the average retail price of a unit of electricity was approximately US$0.38 in
June 2011. The federation has developed a sustainable energy plan and a draft national energy
policy.

The energy sectors of St Kitts and Nevis are entirely government-regulated. The federal
government in St Kitts takes a lead role, but energy matters on Nevis are the direct responsibility of
the Nevis Island Administration, under the direction of the office of the Premier.
The energy sector legislative framework is comprised of legislation including
The Petroleum Ordinance, which governs the importation, storage, licensing, and
distribution of petroleum products;
The 1993 Electricity Act;
The 1998 Electricity Ordinance;

Page 59
The Electricity Supply Act (2011);
The Public Utilities Commission Act;
The Nevis Geothermal Resources Development Ordinance (2008), which provides for the
reconnaissance, exploration, drilling, production and use of geothermal resources and for
the vesting of the resources as state-owned assets, to be regulated and utilized
accordingly.
Responsibility for oversight and operation of the energy sector is shared by the entities shown in
Table 3.10.1 below:
Table 3.10.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in St Kitts & Nevis
Entity
Type
Responsibility
St Kitts Ministry of Finance,

Sustainable Development and
Human Resource Development
Government
ministry
Responsible for the development of policies, strategic

direction and plans for sustainable development in the
country; responsible, along with the Ministry of Trade,
for regulation of petroleum product imports.
St Kitts Ministry of Public Works,

Housing, Energy and Utilities
Government
ministry
Responsible for oversight and regulation of public

utilities, including issues of consumer protection and
quality of service.
State-appointed
regulator
Responsible for the regulation of the electricity sector

on St Kitts.
Saint Kitts Electricity Company

(SKELEC)
State-owned,
utility

distribution of electricity on St Kitts and for ensuring
quality of service.
Nevis Island Administration
Local government
body
Responsible for the oversight and administration of

public matters on Nevis island.
Nevis Ministry of Communications,

Works, Public Utilities, Posts,
Physical Planning, Natural
Resources and Environment
Government
ministry under
the NIA
Responsible for the oversight of energy matters,

environmental and natural resource matters and
NEVLEC.
Nevis Electricity Services Ltd

(NEVLEC)
A verticallyintegrated electric
utility; statutory
organisation
wholly-owned by
the NIA

distribution of electricity on Nevis; ensuring quality of
service and equitable setting of tariffs.

Public electricity, which covers 95% of the population in the country is supplied by two separate
companies: the St Kitts Electricity Company (SKELEC) which up until July 31, 2011 was operated as a
St Kitts government department, located in the Ministry of Public Works, Housing, Energy and
Utilities, and the Nevis Electricity Services Ltd (NEVLEC), which has operated since 2000 as a public
corporation under the governance of the Nevis Island Administration (NIA). Both utilities are run
by government-appointed boards of directors and have monopoly status under the laws of the
country.
The St Kitts electricity department previously operated no corporate structure, no financial or
utility performance metrics and operated no metering of any government buildings. Since then, it
has been corporatized and the St Kitts Electricity Company Ltd (SKELEC) now operates under the
auspices of the Electricity Supply Act (2011) and a Public Utilities Commission (PUC) empowered by
the Public Utilities Commission Act.
Page 60
One IPP (WindWatt, a privately-owned company) operates in Nevis, providing wind energy to the
Nevis electricity grid. No detailed operations data are available for the operations of the electricity
sector in St Kitts or Nevis; the following are some summary details as at 2011.
Table: 3.10.2: Operating Statistics St Kitts & Nevis
Capacity & Demand
St Kitts
Nevis
28.5
13.2
1.1
Total Installed Capacity
28.5
14.3
Peak Demand, MW
25.3
11.0
Installed Capacity, MW:

Thermal
Renewables (Wind)

St Kitts and Nevis has only recently begun to develop its renewable energy resources. An
interesting feature of the St Kitts & Nevis experience is that the development of renewable energy
projects commenced even before the development and publication of a national energy policy,
which is still in its draft form.
In 2007 Nevis embarked on the development of a geothermal energy project that was initially
planned to result in implementation of up to 35 MW of geothermal power capacity on Nevis,
which would be used to supply 100% of Nevis baseload power demand and the balance
exported via submarine cable to St Kitts.
The privately-financed project, being implemented by West Indies Power (Nevis) Limited,
proceeded to the stage where all exploratory drilling work had been completed, proving a
geothermal resource estimated 77 to be in the hundreds of MW; a 10MW power purchase
agreement (PPA) was signed by NEVLEC and contracts for production drilling and construction
of an 8.5 MW geothermal plant were entered into by the developer.
However, by early 2012, financing problems had come to a head; the project stalled and the
Nevis Island Administration filed suit against the developer in court later in 2012. The proven
geothermal capacity remains to be tapped at some point in the future.
b) Wind Energy
In 2007, discussions commenced on the development of a wind energy project for Nevis. The
project to date has resulted in the commissioning of 1.1 MW of grid-connected wind power at
the Maddens Wind Farm, which was officially inaugurated in September 2010. This wind farm
is the first to be implemented in the OECS and only the second to be implemented in the
CARICOM region.
Separately, the St Kitts energy sector leaders are pursuing the development of a 5.4 MW wind
farm at Belle Vue; the project is at the stage of early negotiations with prospective developers.
77
By some estimates; as much as 300 - 500 MW
Page 61
c) Solar Energy
St Kitts & Nevis has made significant strides of late to develop a local PV market. In June 2013,
a Taiwanese-owned solar PV panel manufacturing plant was opened at the C.A. Paul Industrial
Park, a unique development in the region, 78 and as at September 2013, two significant PV
projects were being completed: a 72 kW installation at the CAP Industrial Park and a groundmounted 1 MW solar farm installed at the Robert L Bradshaw International Airport. The airport
installation is a joint venture of the governments of St Kitts & Nevis and Taiwan, the St
Christopher Air, Sea and Ports Authority (SCASPA), the Sugar Industry Diversification Fund
(SIDF), and SKELEC. 79
d) Biomass
Sugar production was, up to 2005, a major occupation of the government and people of St
Kitts. Since the closure of the sugar industry, the option for utilization of former sugar-cane
lands for the production of biomass for energy has been considered. The status of any projects
that may yet arise in this sector is unknown and the option does not appear to be a
government policy priority at this time.

With its recent power purchase agreement with a wind-energy IPP, NEVLEC has made its mark
in the interconnection of utility-scale renewable energy and has set the stage for the same to
be done on St Kitts, where a 1 MW PV project is being built and a wind power project is in its
early development stages.
There is no significant utilization of grid-connected, distributed energy from wind or solar
resources, which the country has in abundance. Neither SKELEC nor NEVLEC has developed or
published a grid interconnection policy or guidelines, although they are said to be working to
develop these.
3.10.5 Conclusion
St Kitts and Nevis may be the smallest country in the Americas, but it has recently made significant
moves into utility-scale renewable energy and is setting the pace for others to follow, even in the
absence of an official energy policy. Only two other CARICOM countries Belize and Jamaica
have seen the implementation of utility-scale renewables projects in the 21st century. Though the
flagship Nevis geothermal energy project has suffered serious setbacks, the countrys geothermal
resource has been proven, and the stage is set for the country to dramatically and definitively
reduce its dependence on fossil fuels. The missing link in the overall energy sector plan is a lack of
action on grid-connected distributed renewables and the development of a specific regulatory
framework for these should be urgently brought forward on the agenda.
The Bottom Line: St Kitts & Nevis has taken an action-oriented approach to the delivery of utilityscale renewables to the grid. In conjunction with the continuation of ongoing actions, the
immediate priority should now be to develop an equally aggressive action framework that
encourages investment in distributed renewable energy systems.
78
79
Source: http://cipore.org/taiwanese-solar-panel-manufacturing-plant-opens-in-st-kitts/
http://www.caribbeannewsnow.com/topstory-St-Kitts-debuts-solar-energy-farm-18038.html
Page 62
3.11 St Vincent & the Grenadines

3.11.1 Overview
St Vincent & the Grenadines is a multi-island sovereign nation in the Eastern Caribbean with an
area of 389 square kilometres (150 sq mi) and a population of 109,400 (World Bank, 2011).
The economy is mostly based on agriculture, services and tourism. Its per capita GDP of $6,289
places it in the upper middle income country category (World Bank).
St Vincent & the Grenadines has a long and successful history of renewable energy use for
electricity production, dating back to the first hydropower station commissioned on mainland St
Vincent in 1952 and with subsequent developments in the 1960s and 1980s.
Notwithstanding its significant proportion of hydro-electricity, energy and electricity costs are
among the highest in the region; the average retail price of a unit of electricity was approximately
US$0.39 in June 2011.

The energy sector is regulated by the government, recently under the guidance of a national
energy policy and action plan that was published in 2009, setting out the policy and planning
framework for the development of the countrys energy sector.
The entities shown in Table 3.11.1 are responsible for the governance and operation of the energy
sector.
Page 63
Table 3.11.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in St Vincent & The Grenadines
Entity
Type
Responsibility
Office of The Prime Minister /

Minister of Finance
Government
ministry
Responsibility for the development of policies,

strategic direction and plans for the national energy
sector rests with the Office of the Prime Minster, who
has responsibility for energy and oversight of the
electricity sector. This office includes the office of the
Director of Energy.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign

Trade and Consumer Affairs
Government
ministry
Responsible for petroleum product imports and

pricing.
National Energy Committee
Governmentappointed
committee
The NEC is charged to act in an advisory role to the

Office of The Prime Minister and the Director of
Energy, for the development of national policy and
plans.
Saint Vincent Electricity Services

Ltd (VINLEC)
State-owned,
verticallyintegrated utility
Generation,
electricity.
transmission
and
distribution
of

Public electricity in St Vincent & the Grenadines is supplied by the state-owned St Vincent
Electricity Services Ltd (VINLEC), under the Electricity Act of 1973, which gives VINLEC the exclusive
right to generate, transmit and distribute electricity in the country, to 2033. No independent
regulatory body exists for the electricity sector and the government exercises a hands-on approach
to the operations of the utility. No IPPs operate in St Vincent & the Grenadines.
Table 3.11.2: Operating Statistics St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd (VINLEC)
POWER
CAPACITY
MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
St Vincent
40.6
40.6
38.0
40.4
42.7
Grenadines
8.7
8.7
8.7
7.5
10.0
Total Thermal
49.4
49.3
46.7
47.8
52.7
Hydro Inst. Cap
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
Total RE
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
5.6
55.0
54.9
52.3
53.4
58.3
19.2
20.0
20.6
21.1
21.1

PEAK DEMAND MW
GROSS
GENERATION
MWh (St
Vincent only)
Thermal
Generation
St Vincent
118,379
115,456
116,105
115,482
109,798
Total Thermal
118,379
115,456
116,105
115,482
109,798
Renewable
Generation
Hydro
22,714
23,674
26,108
24,506
30,910
22,714
23,674
26,108
24,506
30,910
141,093
8.7%
139,130
8.4%
142,213
7.8%
139,988
7.2%
140,708
7.4%
56,748
55,532
58,081
61,380
60,355
58,941
58,281
58,752
54,230
55,459
6,832
2,931
125,452
6,183
2,929
122,925
6,736
2,935
126,504
6,894
2,979
125,483
6,854
3,086
125,754
33,705
34,495
35,218
35,571
35,970
4,147
4,208
4,239
4,264
4,377
28
27
26
24
22
47
48
48
48
48
37,927
38,778
39,531
39,907
40,417
Total
Renewable
SALES, MWh
Residential
(St Vincent
Commercial
only)
Industrial
Street Lighting
Total Sales
CUSTOMERS
Residential
(St Vincent
Commercial
Only)
Industrial
Street Lighting
Total
Customers
Page 64

The country possesses significant potential for renewable energy use and indeed has a long and
successful history of doing so.
Mainland St Vincent is home to La Soufrire, an active volcano, and is considered to possess
significant exploitable geothermal resources. However, despite the interest shown in the
potential over the past several decades, no definitive exploration or assessment has been
made of these resources to date.
b) Hydro
St Vincent has three operating hydro plants with a total installed capacity of 5.64 MW and an
aggregate output amounting to 22% of total electricity generation in 2011. The earliest hydro
plant, at South Rivers, was commissioned in 1952 and the most recent at Cumberland in
1987/88. A CREDP-GIZ sponsored study confirmed in 2009 that an additional 1.1 MW of
installed capacity could feasibly be added to the existing hydro plant infrastructure at the South
Rivers and Richmond powerstations. Implementation of this additional capacity has not taken
place.
c) Solar Energy
There are about 14 grid-connected PV systems installed in St Vincent and the Grenadines,
having a total installed capacity of about 300 kWp. The vast majority (88%) of this capacity is
institutional, owned by the government and VINLEC. These systems include a 10 kWp system
on the governments Ministry of Finance building; a 75.9 kWp grid-connected system in Bequia,
installed primarily to power a reverse-osmosis desalination plant that provides potable water
for the local community 80 and a 177 kWp installation at VINLECs engineering headquarters. In
August 2013, VINLEC announced its intention to increase its total installed PV capacity to 555
kWp through the end of 2013.
Approximately 24 kWp of privately-owned (residential and commercial), grid-connected PV
systems are installed in St Vincent and approximately 14 kWp in Bequia.
d) Wind
Commencing in 2008 VINLEC requested proposals for the proposed development of a 6MW
8MW wind farm at Ribishi, on mainland St Vincent. This initiative has not proceeded beyond
the proposal stage and has more recently been scaled down to a 3MW project. It appears
unlikely that this project will be implemented in the near future.
e) Other Renewables
Opportunities are considered to exist for sources such as biomass to be exploited, but no
specific studies of the potential have been done.

80
Technical support for these projects was provided by CREDP=GIZ. The output of the GEF system is publicly available at
http://sunnyportal.de/Templates/PublicPageOverview.aspx?plant=274e4d44-ffec-4a07-ac98-bb2717d7a868&splang=en-US; the results
of the government demonstration systems have not been made public.
Page 65
The existing hydro stations are owned and operated by VINLEC. The electricity act grants an
exclusive license to VINLEC, along with the right to issue sub-licenses to approved entities. At
present, no sub-licenses have been granted and there are no IPPs in operation.
Two special cases exist in the Grenadines: On Mustique, operated as a private resort island
under the terms of a lease held with the state, the Mustique Company owns and operates the
diesel-based power generation and distribution system that services the entire island, including
local communities. On Canouan, the Canouan Resorts Development Ltd (CRD) owns and
operates a diesel-powered electricity system 81 that services its luxury resort (the secondlargest single electricity consumer in the nation). VINLEC supplies electricity to the remainder
of the island. Conceivably, these operators could implement renewable energy systems within
the context of their operations.
No regulatory framework exists for the interconnection of small-scale renewable sources to the
national grid, but the utility has commenced a programme 82 that facilitates the
interconnection of residential and commercial systems. Residential applicants are offered a
modified net metering / net billing arrangement (customer is paid a fixed price per unit for
surplus production) and commercial customers are offered a net billing tariff that requires all
production to be sold to the grid at a fixed price.
3.11.5 Conclusion
During the latter part of the 20th century, St Vincent & the Grenadines utilized its indigenous
renewable energy resources wisely: investments in hydropower in the 1950s, 1960s and 1980s
have paid off and created significant economic and other benefits. It is considered that significant
potential exists for existing and new renewable energy resources to be developed, both at utility
scale and distributed scale, and after a hiatus of some two decades, the countrys energy sector
leaders are making efforts to develop these resources.
The Bottom Line: St Vincent & the Grenadines has greatly benefited from long-ago investments in
utility-scale renewable energy. Urgent, focused action is now needed for the renewed
exploitation of its resources at utility scale and distributed scale.
81
82
CRDs resort had previously been a VINLEC customer but in November 2009 separated its system from the local VINLEC grid.
The interconnection programme has been announced, but specific details have not been officially published by VINLEC.
Page 66
3.12 Suriname
3.12.1 Overview
Suriname is a sovereign state located on the South American continent, directly to the east of
Guyana. Formerly a colony of Holland, its native language is Dutch and it has an area of 163,821
square kilometres (63,252 sq mi) and a population of 529,419 (World Bank, 2011).
Surinames economy is dominated by the mining industry, with exports of aluminium ore and gold
being the primary factors. Agricultural products (rice, bananas) are also important exports and
ecotourism is becoming a growing niche activity. Surinames 2011 per capita GDP of $8,130 places
it in the upper middle income country category.
Suriname currently produces some crude oil and refined oil products. In 2009, production by the
state-owned oil company Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname NV was 15,400 barrels per day (b/d)
which was greater than the total demand of 13,000 b/d, but the companys refinery capacity is only
7,000 b/d and refined oil products, including diesel and gasoline are imported 83. No natural gas is
produced or utilized in the countrys energy sector.
Electricity is produced primarily from hydropower (over 75% of total) and Surinames retail
electricity prices are the lowest in the region.84 The country has no national sustainable energy
policy and CREDP-GIZ is assisting the government in developing a draft national energy policy.
83
It is reported (GEF Project Document of 1st October 2012, under the IADB project Suriname: Development of Renewable Energy, Energy
Efficiency and Electrification of Suriname) that one of the objectives of Staatsolies Strategic Plan 2008-2012 is the expansion of its
refinery capacity to 15,000 bbl/day, which was planned to become operational in 2013.
84
The low price is not entirely due to the source of supply; some part of the cost is subsidized but no information on the value of the
subsidy is available.
Page 67

The countrys energy sector is overseen by the state; the guiding legislation is the 1990 Petroleum
Act. No dedicated energy regulator exists in the country and regulatory responsibilities are
assumed by the electric utility and the state oil company, with input from the Energy Advisory
Commission (in relation to setting electricity tariffs).
Responsibility for oversight and operation of the energy sector is shared by the entities shown in
Table 3.12.1 below:
Table 3.12.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Suriname
Entity
Type
Responsibility
Ministry of Natural Resources

Natuurlijke Hulpbronnen, (MNH)
Government
ministry
Responsible for the development and execution of

policies, strategic direction and plans for the national
energy sector
Ministry of Labour, Technological

Development and Environment
Arbeid, Technologische
ontwikkeling en Milieu (ATM)
Government
ministry
Other Government departments involved in the

development of the energy policy are the
Ministry of Regional Development

(Regionale Ontwikkeling, RO)
Government
ministry
Responsible for the development of rural villages;

works in collaboration with DEV for electricity
development
Staatsolie Maatschappij Suriname

NV
State- owned,
integrated oil
company
Responsible for exploration, production and refining

of crude oil; products are marketed and sold locally
and regionally. Is also the entity responsible for
advice on policy related to the countrys hydrocarbon
resources. It is also an IPP supplying diesel-based
power and energy to EBS
Energie Bedrijven Suriname (EBS)
State-owned
utility

distribution of electricity. Operates under the policy
direction of the MNH with a monopoly for the
transmission and distribution of electricity
Department of Rural Energy (DEV)

of the MNH
Government
department
Responsible for rural electrification; installs, operates

and manages small, isolated power systems in the
interior
Energy Advisory Committee

Energy Advies Commissie (EAC)
Ad hoc committee
commission
Responsible for providing input to the electricity tariffsetting process
The Business Development

Directorate
State-owned
agency
Collaborates with the MNH to develop policies and

projects relating to RE
Suriname Aluminium Company LLC

(Suralco)
Privately-owned
local subsidiary of
aluminium
company Alcoa
Independent power producer operating large

hydroelectricity facilities supplying power and energy
to EBS under terms of a power purchase agreement

The supply of public electricity in Suriname is a complex affair. Electricity is not supplied via an
integrated national grid; a main grid (the EPAR system) serves the capital Paramaribo and
surrounding areas; other power distribution systems serve other population centres across the
country; privately-owned grids serve the bauxite and gold mining districts and more than 130
Page 68
villages in the interior, occupied by perhaps as much as almost 10% of the nations population, are
each served by small, standalone diesel generator systems. 85
Three main electricity producers operate within the main grid system:
the state-owned Energie Bedrijven Suriname (EBS) which supplies diesel-based power;
the aluminium company Suriname Aluminium Company LLC (Suralco), a Suriname-based

subsidiary of international conglomerate Alcoa. In the 1960s Alcoa implemented a 189
MW hydropower project to provide power for its own operations and which, under the
terms of its mining concession, was required to provide power and energy to the state.
Suralco currently provides power and energy (hydro) to the national grid under the terms
of its concession agreement;
Staatsolie Power Company, a subsidiary of the national oil company Staatsolie, which
entered the energy market in 2006 with 15 MW of diesel capacity.
Other power plants that supply the main transmission & distribution grid are owned by private
companies and operate under the terms of contracts with EBS.
Surinames electricity sector appears not to have a well-developed regulatory or legislative
framework. The existing power purchase and supply agreements and arrangements are built upon
a framework of ad hoc contracts and agreements, rather than on a legislative, policy and regulatory
framework. For example, the Brokopondo Agreement (1957) between the state and Suralco was
developed on the basis of the bauxite mining concession granted to Suralco and is now, along with
other contracts, the de facto legislative instrument underpinning the electricity sector.
A 2008 report by KEMA Consulting 86 advises that these concessional arrangements do not cover
the production, transmission and distribution of electricity across the country and do not provide
an adequate basis for the development of a reliable, modern electricity sector. KEMA also reports
that Surinames electricity supplies are subsidized, tariffs are artificially low and insufficient to
ensure full cost recovery and financial sustainability of the utility or the electricity sector.
Due to the un-coordinated complexity of the countrys electricity sector, no comprehensive
summary of operating statistics is available and some basic statistics 87 for the year 2009 are shown
in Table 3.12.2
Table 3.12.2 Operations Estimates, Suriname
Item
Total Installed Capacity
All systems, MW
Total Demand
All systems, non-coincident, MW
Total Generation
All systems, MWh
2009
374
244
1,469,500
85
The Rural Electrification Department of the Ministry of Natural Resources is responsible for fuel and electricity supply
to these rural villages. Supply is provided by standalone diesel-based installations in the 10 150 kW range. Supply is
unreliable as it depends on monthly fuel supplies provided by the ministry.
86
KEMA Consulting, December 2008. Suriname Power Sector Assessment and Alternatives for its Modernization (ATN/SF9038-SU). Ministry of Natural Resources of the Republic of Suriname, Paramaribo
87
Source: Mehairjan, Samuel and Mehairjan, Ravish, June 2010. Developments and expansion potential in Suriname.
Presentation. NV EBS, Suriname
Page 69
EBS Sales
EPAR system only, MWh
Domestic
335,800
Commercial
205,500
Industrial
225,800
Domestic
73,450
Commercial
8,650
Industrial
710
Number of EBS Customers

EPAR system only

Surinames utilization of renewable energy for electricity generation is the highest in CARICOM and
among the highest in the hemisphere. Hydroelectricity supplies more than three-quarters of
Surinames electricity needs and the government has plans to expand the use of the countrys
ample hydro resources, at large and micro-scale.
a) Hydro
Large-scale hydro-electricity has been utilized in Suriname since the 1960s and now accounts
for over 75% of electricity generation. The government is considering two large hydropower
expansion projects:
The Jai-Tapanahony Diversion potentially adding 116 MW and
The Kabalebo Hydro Power Project potentially adding 1200 MW in 2 phases
Several micro-hydro projects, to a total of about 0.5 MW, are being considered for
development in rural areas.
b) Solar Energy
There is no significant use of solar energy in the country. A number of very small, standalone
solar photovoltaics projects in interior locations have been installed and/or are being
considered, but no focus is currently placed on grid-connected systems. The utilization of solar
water heating is insignificant and is the lowest in CARICOM.
c) Wind
The potential for wind energy appears to be limited and there is no significant use of wind
energy at present, although some research into suitable locations is ongoing and CREDP-GIZ is
providing technical assistance to the University of Suriname in the execution of wind
measurements in promising locations.
d) Other Renewables
Surinamese rice producers generate approximately 50,000 tonnes of rice husk each year which
currently is burned with no benefit (and with an associated environmental cost). The
government estimates that this biomass resource could be utilized to provide approximately 5
MW of electricity capacity.
Page 70

There is no legislation, policy, or regulation in place, at any level, to stimulate the
implementation of grid-connected renewable resources. Furthermore, the existence of
significant energy price subsidies creates disadvantages for renewables: fair tariffs cannot be
determined, investment horizons and risks are increased and the energy market generally is
distorted. Simply stated: new private investments in small-scale renewables, outside the terms
of the existing concessions and agreements, will not be made at existing price levels.
Surinames legislative framework, such as it is, is built on a concession for the delivery of largescale hydroelectricity to the grid. It is however considered that the legislative framework
requires modification and updating to allow for the orderly and rational development of new
hydro and other renewable resources, at any scale.
No legislative or policy framework exists for the connection of distributed renewable sources
and the utility has not developed or published any interconnection policy, requirements or
guidelines for same.
3.12.5 Conclusion
Suriname is blessed with ample hydro resources that, if developed, are more than sufficient to
power its medium-term electricity needs. However, there are large areas of unserved and underserved energy needs in areas of the country, which conceivably could be partly addressed by the
appropriate investments in smaller-scale renewables. There also appears to be an urgent need for
rationalization of the countrys legislative and regulatory framework for the energy sector and an
attendant development in sustainable energy policy and energy pricing matters, in order for the
energy sector to develop in a rational and sustainable fashion.
The Bottom Line: Surinames immediate tasks must be the organization and rationalization of its
complex energy sector to create a reliable framework on which to build a sustainable energy
future, in collaboration with a focus on creating a 100% renewables-powered electricity sector.
Page 71
3.13 Trinidad & Tobago

3.13.1 Overview
Trinidad and Tobago is a twin-island republic at the southern extreme of the Caribbean chain, just
off the north-eastern coast of Venezuela. Its area is 5,128 square kilometres (1,980 sq mi) and its
population is 1,346,000 (World Bank, 2011).
Trinidad & Tobago is one of the oldest oil-producing countries in the world and its economy is
based on the production and export of oil and gas products (petroleum fuels, liquefied natural gas,
methanol, ammonia and other petrochemicals), 88 manufactured products (including iron & steel
and cement) and food and beverage products. Its per capita GDP of $16,701 places it in the high
income non-OECD country category.
Trinidad & Tobago is the only net exporter of energy in CARICOM. As a result of its large
indigenous oil and gas reserves and generous government subsidies, Trinidad & Tobago enjoys very
low retail energy prices, though (as the chart in Figure 1 shows) not quite the lowest electricity
prices in CARICOM.
Trinidad & Tobago has not yet published a national sustainable energy policy, but work has recently
commenced towards the development of a sustainable energy program for the country.

Trinidad & Tobagos energy sector is a complex mix of state-owned and privately-owned energy
producers, downstream consumers, exporters and facilitators, all managed by the countrys
Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs (MEEA), which is responsible for the monitoring, control and
regulation of the countrys energy and mineral industries and for energy policy determination and
implementation.
88
Trinidad & Tobago is the worlds largest exporter of ammonia and methanol and one of the top 20 exporters of natural
gas. Source: Trinidad & Tobago Energy Conference, Facts on the TT energy sector:
http://www.ttenergyconference.org/facts-on-the-tt-energy-sector/
Page 72
The pre-eminent decision-making body in the energy sector is however the Cabinet Standing
Committee on Energy, an ad hoc committee chaired by the prime minister and comprised of
ministers of government, senior MEEA and other technocrats and the chairs and chief executives of
the energy sector state enterprises NGC, NEC, Petrotrin and T&TEC.
The Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources engages in policy and decision-making
related to environmental matters and oversees the state-owned Environmental Management
Authority (EMA).
A major issue in the economics of Trinidad & Tobagos energy sector is its high level of energy
subsidies. It has been the policy of successive governments to significantly subsidize local energy
prices. One unintended outcome of this policy has been to hinder investment in renewables and
energy efficiency, by making such investments economically uncompetitive compared to
investments in fossil-fuel-based technologies.
The major enterprises are shown in Table 3.13.1 below (note however that the table does not
include the several major private-sector oil producing companies operating in the sector):
Table 3.13.1: Responsibility for the Energy Sector in Trinidad & Tobago
Entity
Type
Responsibility
Standing Committee on Energy
Ad hoc cabinet
committee
chaired by the
prime minister
Responsible for high-level oversight and decisionmaking in the energy sector. Comprised of cabinet
ministers and supported by senior technocrats from
the MEEA, Ministry of Finance and Ministry of
Planning, and the top brass of the energy sectors
state enterprises
Ministry of Energy and Energy

Affairs (MEEA)
Government
ministry

Renewable Energy Committee

(REC)
Working
Committee of the
MEEA
To review and advise on the potential of renewable

energy technologies, to set realizable targets and
timeframes for RE in the energy mix and to
recommend incentives and legislation to facilitate the
market shift
Petroleum Company of Trinidad &

Tobago Limited (Petrotrin)
State-owned,
integrated oil &
gas company
T&Ts largest producer of crude oil and operator of

the sole petroleum refinery in the country
National Gas Company of Trinidad

& Tobago (NGC)
State-owned
diversified energy
company
Purchases, transports, distributes and sells natural gas

to industrial and commercial users. Owns, operates
and maintains the countrys offshore and onshore
pipeline network; through its subsidiaries develops
gas-related industrial sites, infrastructure and services
and is involved in upstream gas and oil and LNG
production
National Energy Company (NEC)
A wholly-owned
subsidiary of the
NGC
To develop and manage suitable infrastructure so as

to facilitate and promote the activities relevant and
appropriate to all natural gas-related operations in
T&T
The Energy Chamber
Private-sector
trade association
The trade association representing the collective

interests of its membership, comprised of companies
operating within the energy sector in T&T
Regulated Industries Commission
Independent
statutory body
To ensure high-quality, fair and equitable utility

services, including matters related to licensing, ratesetting, customer care and quality standards,
efficiency and competition
Trinidad & Tobago Electricity

Commission (T&TEC)
State-owned,
vertically
integrated utility
Generation,
electricity
transmission
and
distribution
of
Page 73
Power Generation Company of

Trinidad & Tobago (PowerGen)
Public/private
joint venture IPP
Trinity Power Limited
Privately-owned
IPP
Trinidad Generation Unlimited

(TGU)
Privately-owned
IPP commissioned
in 2011
Environmental Management
Authority, Ministry of Housing and
the Environment
Statutory agency
Responsible for providing power capacity and energy

to the T&TEC grid, under the terms of a power
purchase agreement (PPA)
The EMA operates under the 1995 Environment

Management Act and is mandated to develop and
enforce criteria, standards and regulations for
environmental management across all sectors of the
economy, and to educate the public about the
nation's environmental issues through awareness
programmes.

The electricity sector in Trinidad and Tobago is under the purview of the Ministry of Energy and
Energy Affairs (MEAA). The sector is governed by the Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission Act
42 of 1945 (as amended up to 2009, under which electricity is supplied by the state-owned Trinidad
& Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC), a vertically-integrated corporation. T&TEC purchases
the majority of its generation from three independent power producers, under the terms of
individual power purchase agreements.
The act gives T&TEC retains the exclusive right to purchase, transmit, distribute and sell electricity
under the auspices of the Regulated Industries Commission (RIC), an independent regulator.
The electricity sectors operations summary is shown in Table 3.13.2 below.
Table 3.13.2: Operating Summary Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC)
POWER
CAPACITY MW
Thermal
Capacity
Renewable
Capacity
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
T&TEC
NA
NA
85.7
85.7
85.7
PowerGen
NA
NA
1,386.0
1,386.0
1,386.0
Trinity Power
NA
NA
224.0
224.0
225.0
TGU
NA
NA
0.0
0.0
720.0
Total Thermal
NA
NA
1,695.7
1,695.7
2,416.7
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
Total
Renewable
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
NA
NA
1,695.7
1,695.7
2,416.7
1,132
1,181
1,182
1,222
1,287
T&TEC
NA
NA
NA
NA
NA
PowerGen
NA
NA
NA
NA
NA
Trinity Power
NA
NA
NA
NA
NA
TGU
NA
NA
NA
NA
NA
Total Thermal
NA
NA
NA
NA
8,589,000
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
0.0
PEAK DEMAND MW
NET
GENERATION
MWh
Thermal
Generation
Renewable
Generation
Total
Renewable
Page 74
NA
NA
NA
NA
8,589,000
NA
NA
NA
NA
5.9%
Residential
NA
2,398,345
2,071,165
2,271,090
2,412,000
Commercial
NA
700,958
739,583
765,224
773,000
Industrial
NA
4,345,892
4,336,105
4,763,733
4,825,000
Street Lighting
NA
91,086
150,210
110,666
109,000
Total Sales
NA
7,536,281
7,297,063
7,910,714
8,119,000
Residential
NA
359,231
368,057
375,569
384,294
Commercial
NA
36,824
37,673
38,336
39,178
Industrial
NA
2,927
3,047
3,165
3,362
Street Lighting
NA
110
49
38
49
Total
Customers
NA
399,092
408,826
417,108
426,883

SALES, MWh
CUSTOMERS

Not surprisingly, given Trinidad & Tobagos status as a global oil and gas exporter with very low
energy prices, there is no significant use of renewable energy in the country. However, the
country is faced with the prospect of declining oil and gas output in the medium term: oil
production has declined significantly since 2006 from 178,000 barrels per day to 135,000 b/d in
2011. Over the same period, gas production increased but has declined over the period 2010-2011
and per capita energy consumption has increased throughout the period.
Although there has been some study of the potential for the utilization of renewables, 89 no specific
assessments have been made of the countrys renewable energy resources.
a) Solar Energy
Solar insolation levels are sufficient for the technical utilization of the resource, but the
development of solar resources has been negligible. There has been a small-scale, off-grid
solar PV demonstration project and a small-scale solar water heating pilot project implemented
in the past several years. The MEEA is involved in a study of the development of a PV module
manufacturing industry in Trinidad & Tobago, but the status of the study is not known.
b) Wind
An experimental 10 kW wind turbine was installed in 1995 by T&TEC in Tobago, which
produced what were deemed to be favourable results, but the project was short-lived and was
not replicated. Government energy sector leaders have expressed an interest in the
development of utility-scale wind energy projects and T&TEC has an item in its 2011-16
business plan 90 for the implementation of pilot project comprised of 4 x 1.4 MW wind turbines
along Trinidads east coast, over the period 2012-15. A Wind Resource Assessment Program
(WRAP), a joint project of the Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs, the Green Fund, the
University of the West Indies and the NEC, is in progress to develop a comprehensive national
wind resource map.
89
Renewable Energy Commission, 2011. Framework for development of a renewable energy policy for Trinidad &
Tobago. Ministry of Energy and Energy Affairs, Trinidad & Tobago
90
Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission Business Plan 2011 2016, Section 3.5.24
Page 75
c) Other Renewables
The situation with other sources such as biomass and waste to energy is as outlined above:
interest has been expressed but specific studies of potential and feasibility have not been
made.
The T&TEC Act allows generation licences to be granted to utility-scale operators and this mode
of operation is now predominant in the sector.
In its current form, the T&TEC Act does not allow for the interconnection of small, distributed
RE sources to the grid and T&TEC has no specific policy on the matter. As at the end of 2011 no
such systems were connected.
3.13.5 Conclusion
Over the past decades, Trinidad & Tobagos energy sector leaders have successfully focused on the
development of an economy based on its ample, indigenous oil and gas resources, and renewable
energy and energy efficiency have not been on the policy agenda until very recently. The limits of
local oil and gas production into the medium and long terms have been recognized and the
government has now committed to the development of a sustainable energy framework for the
countrys development and is taking action in this regard. However, a major challenge is the longstanding policy of maintaining significant energy subsidies for locally-produced fossil fuels; such
policy is not consistent with the development of a sustainable energy economy. With the best
intentions, no meaningful transition to renewable energy can occur if such fundamental matters
are not addressed.
The Bottom Line: In the renewables arena, Trinidad & Tobago is essentially starting from zero,
with the necessary resources at its disposal, but with a weight tied around one leg: the
fundamental matter of price subsidies must be definitively addressed in its quest for energy
transition.
Page 76
Annexes
Annex A Country/Utility Summaries
Country
National
Sustainable
Energy
Policy
Antigua
and
Barbuda
National
Energy Policy
(incl. Action
Plan) 2011
The
Bahamas
Study and
recommendat
ions for
national
energy policy
2010
Electric
Utility
Antigua Public
Utilities
Authority
(APUA)
Bahamas
Electricity
Company
(BEC)
Grand
Bahama
Power
Company
Various
Franchise
Holders
Barbados
National
Energy Policy
Draft 2006
adopted in
2010
Belize
National
Sustainable
Energy
Strategy 2012
Dominica
Draft
Sustainable
Energy Plan,
Draft National
Energy Policy
2011
Dominica
Electricity
Services Ltd
(DOMLEC)
Grenada
Sustainable
Energy Plan
2009,
National
Energy Policy
2011
Grenada
Electricity
Services Ltd
(GRENLEC)
Barbados
Light & Power
Company Ltd
(BL&P)
Belize
Electricity Ltd
(BEL)
Utility
Ownership
Structure
Utility
Operational
Structure
Thermal
RE
Total
Electricity
Regulations
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
with power
purchases
Public Utilities Act

1973
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
Private 100%
Vertically
Integrated
Private 100%
Vertically
Integrated
Emera 80% National

Insurance
Board 13% General
Public 7%
Government
70.2%, Social
Security
Board 26.9%,
Others 2.9%
(Note 1)
Guyana
Jamaica
Saint
Lucia
Energy Policy
for Guyana
1994
Jamaica
National
Energy Policy,
National
Energy
Conservation
and Efficiency
(ECE) Policy
2010 - 2030,
National
Biofuels Policy
2010 - 2030
National
Energy Policy
approved
2010
IPPs Connected to Grid
Dominica
Private
Power Ltd
52% - Public
27% - Social
Security 21%
Grenada
Private
PowerLtd
50% - NIS
11% Government
10% - Public
29%
Electricity Act of
1956. Hawksbill
Creek Agreement.
Out Islands
Electricity Act. Out
Islands Utility Act
Vertically
Integrated
Electricity Act.
Electric Light and
Power Act. Fair
Trading
Commission Act.
Utilities
Regulation Act
Vertically
Integrated
with most
power
purchased
from IPPs
Belize Electricity
Act Chapter 221
Revised 2000
Vertically
Integrated
Electricity Supply
Act 10 of 2006
Vertically
Integrated
Electricity Supply
Act 1994
Electricity Sector
Reform Act 1997
Electricity
Development Act
1958 (Amended
1971)
Electricity Supply
Act No 10 of 1994,
Amended by Act
Nos. 12 & 13 of
2006
Guyana Power
and Light
(GPL)
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
Jamaica Public
Service
Company Ltd
(JPSCo)
Marubeni
Corp 40% Korea East
West Power
40% - Govt
of Jamaica
19.9% Other 0.1%
Vertically
Integrated
with power
purchases
St Lucia
Electricity
Services Ltd
(LUCELEC)
Emera 20% First Citizens

Bank 20% National
Insurance
Corporation
16.79% Castries City
Vertically
Integrated
Page 77
Council
16.33% GoSL 12.44%
- Public
14.44%
St Kitts
and Nevis
St Vincent
and the
Grenadine
s
Suriname
Trinidad
and
Tobago
Sustainable
Energy Plan
2007, Draft
National
Energy Policy
2011
National
Energy Policy
(2009) and
National
Energy Action
Plan (2010)
None
Published
None
Published
St Kitts
Electricity
Services Ltd
(SKELEC)
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
Nevis
Electricity
Services Ltd
(NEVLEC)
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
St Vincent
Electricity
Services Ltd
(VINLEC)
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
Energie
Bedrijven
Suriname,
(EBS)
Various
private
suppliers
Trinidad &
Tobago
Electricity
Commission
(T&TEC)
Government
100%
Private 100%
Government
100%
Vertically
Integrated
with power
purchases
Produce and
supply to
specific areas
Distribution
Company with
Power
Purchases
from IPPs
Notes
1. The government of Belize nationalized BEL in June 2011. Previous ownership was 70.2% Fortis, 26.9% Social
security Board and 2.9% others
Electricity Act
1993; Electricity
Ordinance 1998.
Electricity Supply
Act (2011). Public
Utilities
Commission Act.
Nevis Geothermal
Resources
Development
Ordinance 2008
The Electricity
Supply Act, 1973
(Act No. 14 of
1973)
Electricity sector
legislation not
developed
Trinidad and
Tobago Electricity
Commission Act
Chapter 54:70. Act
42 of 1945
Amended by 6 of
2009
Page 78
Annex B Renewables Contribution to Electricity Generation

ELECTRICITY FROM ALL SOURCES, 2011 (MWh)
Thermal
Hydro
Wind
PV
Biomass
Other
TOTAL
RE
RE % of
Total
120,000
120,000
0%
2,000,000
0%
0%
169,145
314,126
483,270
314,126
65%
76,033
23,132
75.3
19.0
99,259
23,226
23%
203,974
550
204,524
550
0.27%
601,000
52,000
653,000
52,000
8%
3,877,233
152,087
107,559
4,136,879
259,646
6.3%
370,609
370,609
0%
Not
Available
Not
Available
0%
54,000
3,377
57,377
3,377
6%
109,798
30,910
31
140,739
30,941
22%
EB Suriname
Not
Available
Not
Available
Trinidad &
Tobago
Electricity
Commission
(T&TEC)
9,000,000
Utility
Antigua Public
Utilities
Authority
(APUA)
Bahamas
Electricity
Company
(BEC)
Barbados Light
& Power
Company Ltd
(BL&P)
Belize
Electricity Ltd
(BEL)
Dominica
Electricity
Services Ltd
(DOMLEC)
Grenada
Electricity
Services Ltd
(GRENLEC)
Guyana
Power and
Light (GPL)
Jamaica Public
Service
Company Ltd
(JPSCo)
St Lucia
Electricity
Services Ltd
(LUCELEC)
St Kitts
Electricity
Services Ltd
(SKELEC)
Nevis
Electricity
Services Ltd
(NEVLEC)
St Vincent
Electricity
Services Ltd
(VINLEC)
2,000,000
(Est 2011)
Approx
75%
Not Available
9,000,000
0%
Sources: Utility reports, estimates
Page 79
Annex C Status of Distributed Interconnection Policy

Utility
Antigua Public
Utilities
Authority
(APUA)
Bahamas
Electricity
Company (BEC)
Barbados Light
& Power
Company Ltd
(BL&P)
Belize
Electricity Ltd
(BEL)
Dominica
Electricity
Services Ltd
(DOMLEC)
Grenada
Electricity
Services Ltd
(GRENLEC)
Guyana Power
and Light (GPL)
Jamaica Public
Service
Company Ltd
(JPSCo)
St Lucia
Electricity
Services Ltd
(LUCELEC)
St Kitts
Electricity
Services Ltd
(SKELEC)
Nevis Electricity
Services Ltd
(NEVLEC)
St Vincent
Electricity
Services Ltd
(VINLEC)
Energie
Bedrijven
Suriname, (EBS)
Trinidad &
Tobago
Electricity
Commission
(T&TEC)
Selfgeneration
allowed
Small-scale
RE
interconnect
ion policy
exists
Policy &
rules
published
Effective
Date
Max. allowable
interconnection
capacity, kWp
License
required
Tariff Type
Yes
Yes
Yes
1st Dec
2011
50 kW
No
Net
Metering
No
No
No
Not
Applicable
150 kW max per

system, to a total of
7,000 kW
No
Modified
Net
Metering/
Net Billing
Not
Applicable
Yes
Yes
Yes
Pilot: July 1
2010.
Permanent
program:
Jan 1 2013
No
No
2008
Category 1: 5 kW
Category 2: 100 kW
Category 3: 1 MW
Yes
Modified
Net
Metering /
Net Billing
No
Net Billing
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
2007
Up to an aggregate
total of 300 kW.
Extended by
additional 500 kW
in 2012
No
No
Yes
Yes
Yes
1st May
2012
Up to 10 kW
Residential; up to
100 kW Commercial
Yes
Modified
Net
Metering /
Net Billing
Yes
By
arrangement
with the utility
No
5 kW, Residential
customers only
No
Net
Metering
No
No
No
No
No
No
Yes
By
arrangement
with utility
No
Not published
No
No
Not
Applicable
No
No
No
Yes
Not
Applicable
Modified Net
Metering/Net Billing for
Residential customers;
Net Billing for
Commercial customers
Page 80
Annex D Status of Interconnection Tariffs

Utility
Antigua
Public
Utilities
Authority
(APUA)
Bahamas
Electricity
Company
(BEC)
Tariff Type
Tariff
Published
Details of Published Interconnection Tariff
Information
Net Metering
No
Net Metering
www.apua.ag/interco
nnection-policy/
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
www.blpc.com.bb/sea
rch_details.cfm?Item_
ID=75
Barbados
Light &
Power
Company Ltd
(BL&P)
Modified Net
Metering/ Net
Billing
Yes
Belize
Electricity Ltd
(BEL)
The utility purchases surplus energy produced by the renewable

system at 1.6 times the Fuel Clause Adjustment (FCA), up to a
maximum of 1.5 times the amount of energy the customer uses
within the period. Any amount produced by the renewable
system in excess of 1.5 times the amount of energy used by the
customer will be credited at the FCA.
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
No
Customer sells any surplus generation to the utility at the

avoided cost of fuel, which is calculated by the utility monthly.
Note that tariff details have not been published (although the
grid interconnection policy has been published).
www.ircdominica.org/
files/downloads/2011
/11/DistributedRenewable-EnergyGenerationInterconnectionPolicy-2010.pdf
http://grenlec.com/in
dex.php/customerservice/renewableenergy.html
Dominica
Electricity
Services Ltd
(DOMLEC)
Modified Net
Metering /
Net Billing
Grenada
Electricity
Services Ltd
(GRENLEC)
Net Billing
Yes
Guyana
Power and
Light (GPL)
Customer sells all power generated and buys all power needed.
Price offered to customer based on annual average of avoided
fuel cost, with a fixed 10-year option and a variable option.
Fixed Option: EC$0.45/kWh (US$0.167) over 10 years
Variable Option: Average of avoided fuel cost adjusted annually.
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
Jamaica
Public Service
Company Ltd
(JPSCo)
St Lucia
Electricity
Services Ltd
(LUCELEC)
St Kitts
Electricity
Services Ltd
(SKELEC)
Nevis
Electricity
Services Ltd
(NEVLEC)
St Vincent
Electricity
Services Ltd
(VINLEC)
Energie
Bedrijven
Suriname,
(EBS)
Trinidad &
Tobago
Electricity
Commission
(T&TEC)
www.myjpsco.com/ne
t-billing/
Yes
Customer is paid for surplus production at the short run

avoided cost of fuel plus a 15% premium. Avoided cost is
calculated monthly.
5-year contract offer.
Net Metering
(residential
customers
only)
No
Net metering allowed for residential customers, but no credits

are allowed to be rolled over into subsequent years.
No interconnection arrangement exists for commercial
customers.
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
Modified Net
Metering/ Net
Billing for
Residential
customers;
Net Billing for
Commercial
customers
No
Residential customer is paid for surplus production at EC$0.45

per kWh (US$0.167). Commercial customer is paid EC$0.45 per
kWh for all production and must purchase all consumption at
retail (these rates were announced but full details are not
published).
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
Not Applicable
No Policy
Not Applicable
Modified Net
Metering /
Net Billing
http://www.myjpsco.c
om/wpcontent/uploads/JPSC
oStandardOfferContra
ct-FINAL.pdf?
Page 81
Annex E Laws & Regulatory Authority

Utility
Governing Laws
Regulatory
Authority
Antigua
Public
Utilities
Authority
(APUA)
Public Utilities Act

1973
None
Bahamas
Electricity
Company
(BEC)
Electricity Act of 1956;

Hawksbill Creek
Agreement; Out Island
Electricity Act; Out
Island Utilities Act;
Public Utilities
Commission Act, 1993
(No 20 of 1993);
Public Utilities
Commission
Regulations, 2001,
Utilities
Regulatory
Competition
Authority
(URCA)
The commission exists, but is not functional as an electric utility regulator
Barbados
Light &
Power
Company Ltd
(BL&P)
The Electricity Act.

The Electric Light and
Power Act. The Fair
Trading Commission
Act. The Utilities
Regulation Act
Fair Trading
Commission
(2001)
To establish rate-setting principles; determine fair and reasonable rates;

encourage investment by allowing efficient operators to earn a reasonable
return on capital; promote efficiency in the provision of the utility service;
sets and monitors standards; receive and investigate customer complaints.
Although on a strict reading of the existing legislation the FTC is not legally
bound to weigh in on RE interconnection rates proposed by the utility, the
FTC considers it within its remit to do so.
Belize
Electricity Ltd
(BEL)
Belize Electricity Act

Chapter 221 Revised
Edition 2000; Public
Utilities Commission
Act Chapter 223
Public Utilities
Commission
To regulate and ensure the provision of satisfactory services at fair &

reasonable rates; promote efficiency and economy of service provision;
investigate and address customer complaints regarding service provision.
Dominica
Electricity
Services Ltd
(DOMLEC)
Electricty Supply Act

10 of 2006 Commonwealth of
Dominica
Grenada
Electricity
Services Ltd
(GRENLEC)
Electricity Supply Act

1994
Guyana
Power and
Light (GPL)
Guyana Electricity
Sector Reform Act 30
of 1997; PUC Act
1999; PUC
(Amendment) Act
2010, Hydro-Electric
Power Act, Energy
Agency Act 1997
Public Utilities
Commission
Electricity
Development Act
1958 (Amended 1971)
Office of
Utilities
Regulation

No 10 of 1994,
Amended by Act Nos.
12 & 13 of 2006
None
Jamaica
Public Service
Company Ltd
(JPSCo)
St Lucia
Electricity
Services Ltd
(LUCELEC)
Independent
Regulatory
Commission
(IRC)
Established
2006
A PUC exists in
law but has not
performed its
role &
functions
Scope of Regulatory Authority
Not Applicable
Ensure orderly development of a competitive power market; Ensure efficient,

safe & adequate production of electricity; Promote competition & private
sector participation; Protect consumers & the public interest; Evolve stable
& equitable rates; License & regulate entities engaged in electricity business;
Settle disputes; Establish & administer the Power Consumer Assistance Fund
for subsidizing underprivileged consumers.
Not Applicable
The functions of the PUC are regulatory, investigatory, enforcement and such
others as conferred on it by the PUC Act. The PUC has the power to initiate
and conduct investigations into operations and standards of service. The PUC
does not issue licenses for the operation of any utility, nor is it involved in
policy matters, but may be called upon to act in an advisory capacity.
Regulation of electricity services (rate-setting, service standards, least-cost

capacity expansion programmes, etc.), ensuring fair trade and competition.
Not Applicable
Oversee the safe, efficient and economic production, supply and sale of
electricity; promote consumer interests in terms of rates, reliability and
quality of supply; ensure the viability of the electricity supply in St Kitts
through the conduct of an efficient long-term supply planning process with
due regard for future potential generation sources such as renewable energy.
St Kitts
Electricity
Services Ltd
(SKELEC)

(2011); The Public
Utilities Commission
Act
Public Utilities
Commission
Nevis
Electricity
Services Ltd
(NEVLEC)
The Electricity
Ordinance (1998);
Nevis Geothermal
Resources
Development
Ordinance (2008)
None
Not Applicable
The Electricity Supply

Act, 1973 (Act No. 14
of 1973)
None
Not Applicable
St Vincent
Electricity
Services Ltd
(VINLEC)
Page 82
Energie
Bedrijven
Suriname,
(EBS)
Trinidad &
Tobago
Electricity
Commission
(T&TEC)
Electricity sector
legislation not
developed
None
Trinidad & Tobago

Electricity Commission
Act; The Regulated
Industries Commission
Act
Regulated
Industries
Commission
Not Applicable
Making recommendations on the award of licenses; Monitoring & enforcing
compliance; Establishing rate-setting principles & monitoring compliance;
Prescribing standards for services & monitoring compliance; Facilitating
competition where same is possible and desirable; Investigating complaints
by consumers; Imposing & collecting license fees; Ensuring that service
providers earn sufficient return to finance necessary investment.
Page 83
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Page 87

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CARIBBEAN RENEWABLE ENERGY

Carried out for:

Antigua Public Utilities Authority

Bahamas Electricity Company

Belize Electricity Ltd

Barbados Light & Power Company Ltd

German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development

Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation

Caribbean Public Health Agency

Caribbean Renewable Energy Development Programme

Dominica Electricity Services Ltd

Energie Bedrijven Suriname

Gross Domestic Product

Deutsche Gesellschaft fr Internationale Zusammenarbeit GmbH

Guyana Power and Light

Grenada Electricity Services Ltd

Inter-American Development Bank

Independent Power Producer

Jamaica Public Service Company Ltd

kiloWatt-hours per square meter per day

St Lucia Electricity Services Ltd

Nevis Electricity Services Ltd

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development

Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion

Power Purchase Agreement

St Kitts Electricity Services Ltd

Solar Water Heating

Trinidad & Tobago Electricity Commission

St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd

Grid-connected utility-scale 1 power generation (wind, hydro, photovoltaic systems,

Solar thermal applications such as water heating and space cooling.

2. Overview of the CARICOM Energy Sector

Figure 1: The Broad Components of Fossil Fuel Dependency

Figure 2: Retail electricity prices, selected CARICOM countries, as at June 2011

Sources: US Energy Information Administration, St Vincent Electricity Services Ltd

HOVENSA announces closure of St Croix refinery. Retrieved 30 Jan 2013, http://hovensa.com

2.2 Renewable Energy Overview

Antigua & Barbuda

St Kitts & Nevis

St Vincent & The

Total Preliminary Estimate 10 of Renewable Energy Potential, MW

b) Renewable Energy Utilization

c) Renewable Energy Utilization at Utility Scale

Table 2: Utility-scale, Grid-connected Renewable Energy in CARICOM

Antigua & Barbuda

Hydro, Biomass (Bagasse)

St Kitts & Nevis

St Vincent & The

Trinidad & Tobago

d) Renewable Energy Utilization at Distributed Scale

Table 3: Distributed-scale, Grid-connected Renewable Energy in CARICOM

Incl. 1 Wind system

Incl. 1 x 225 kW Wind

No programme for grid-connected systems.

(of which 263 kWp

Trinidad & Tobago

St Vincent & The Grenadines

2.3 Policy Overview

Jamaica National Energy Policy, National Energy

National Energy Policy covering the period 2008

St Kitts & Nevis

St Vincent & The

Trinidad & Tobago