Energy sector urged to unite for renewable push

Energy industry figures have been urged to work more collaboratively as Barbados races towards its 2035 renewable energy target, with the Barbados Renewable Energy Association (BREA) warning that fragmentation in the sector is slowing progress.

Delivering the president’s report at the BREA’s 12th annual general meeting last Friday, outgoing vice-president Meshia Clarke pointed to persistent delays in project approvals, grid instability, a shortage of technical staff in key agencies, and regulatory bottlenecks that continue to undermine confidence in the sector.

She said the industry had made notable gains over the past year, including the proclamation of the Electricity Supply Act, the removal of the energy storage threshold, the launch of the utility-scale battery energy storage project, and a decision from the Energy Transition Committee supporting distributed energy resources. But the sector is still struggling to function as a cohesive unit.

“The energy sector at times has adopted fragmented approaches to addressing the challenges faced,” Clarke told the members gathered at Baobab Tower.

“This has resulted in increased uncertainty, project delays, and in some cases, erosion of investor confidence.”

She also noted that key government agencies faced their own capacity constraints, explaining: “There are resource constraints in the ministry, and this will affect the pace at which the ministry is able to support sector development. This must be taken into consideration as the sector continues to grow.”

Clarke encouraged BREA members to get more involved, noting that the association needed members to serve on working groups, bring their technical expertise, and help represent BREA in stakeholder engagements.

She acknowledged internal challenges within the association, including limited funding and a lack of available board members with time to serve, but said BREA remained committed to advocating on behalf of the sector.

The executive director of the Caribbean Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency (CCREEE), Dr Mohammed Nagdee, outlined several regional strategies designed to attract private investment and provide more technical support to Caribbean countries, including those, like Barbados, that no longer qualify for traditional development finance.

He said the centre’s new “5 by 2035” strategy was targeting large-scale investment in renewable energy to help make the Caribbean “an unavoidable destination for global investors”.

Since joining CCREEE in August last year, Dr Nagdee said he had signed US$1.4m in project support and was hoping to secure at least US$6m by year-end.

He also highlighted a new regional energy help desk aimed at quickly deploying technical expertise to countries and institutions with limited staffing.

“We had 78 applications, of which 77 were successful,” he said.  “Many of those came from Barbados… It shows the technical talent we have in this region, and we want to build on that.”

Dr Nagdee also stressed the critical role of the private sector in the region’s energy transformation.

“The energy transition cannot occur without strong private sector support, focus, involvement, and in many cases, leadership,” he said.

His remarks echoed those of Brian Reece, CEO of the Fair Trading Commission, who, in his featured address, stressed the need for ongoing collaboration.

“It’s important that we foster this type of collaborative relationship with stakeholders such as BREA,” he said.

“This is not a nice-to-have. We need to continually build this relationship if we, as a small developing country, wish to move forward together.”

At least five long-serving board members were recognised for their contributions to BREA and the wider energy movement, receiving tokens of appreciation during the morning’s proceedings.

Among them were Richard Goddard and past president Robert Goodridge. (SM)