Frustratingly long periods to have renewable energy licence applications approved are over for local and foreign investors, Minister of Energy Kerrie Symmonds has announced.
Symmonds, who is also responsible for Small Business and Entrepreneurship, informed stakeholders and funding partners during the opening of the second Barbados Sustainable Energy Conference and Expo on Monday, that ministers have sanctioned a revised licensing regime which is aimed at fast-tracking the issuing of licences under the Electric Light and Power Act.
He told the delegates that this will accelerate the growth opportunities across Barbados.
“This revised process is designed to improve levels of efficiency and transparency and quite frankly are designed to improve the speed of throughput in the grant of licences. I am expectant that it will permanently end what I can only describe as a regrettable chapter of anguish, which, since the year 2015, has seen applicants for licences; people who are making expressions of interest in being potential investors in Barbados and in our economy, having to wait in some cases, over nine months and more in order to secure renewable energy licences in Barbados,” the minister declared.
“That new process will resolve the obviously problematic lengthy time for approvals which have humbugged potential investors; and it is aimed at replacing current multiple points of entry into the system and with a more ordered and structured process; a more responsive process…and that will begin with one single application point.”
He told the conference the new licensing regime would also introduce the concept of a grant of conditional approval for licences.
“And that is the approval of the licence would be subject to formal Town Planning permission where that is necessary. It thereby will enable applicants to assess or access a licence for renewable energy generation in a fast-track manner,” he said.
“By introducing a digitized parallel course of allowing different Government departments to electronically and simultaneously process their part of each application, applicants will now be able to get a grant of conditional approval for their licence in a maximum time of four weeks in circumstances where no connectivity impact assessment is required and in a maximum time of eight weeks where such a connectivity impact assessment is necessary.”
The minister also revealed that the new regime will feature an automated information and communications system which will enable applicants, installers and the Ministry of Energy to better manage the application process. He disclosed that the soft launch of the automatic system will take place on December 1.
In addition, he said, applicants will now each be able to track their individual applications so as to know the status, be able to upload all necessary documentation and make payment of any requisite fees online.
Symmonds said this new structure will constitute a radical transformation and departure from what has previously existed.
He provided statistics to show how the Electric Light and Power Advisory Committee established in 2020 has accelerated the licensing process since that time.
“In the year 2018 Barbados was able to approve and grant a total of 59 renewable energy licences. This year 2021 to date, a total of 364 renewable energy licences have been approved; and that is a 600 per cent increase in the licensing rate with at least three more Licensing Advisory Committee meetings scheduled before year-end,” Symmonds stated.
But the energy minister pointed out that while the investor would be happy with being granted a licence in a speedy manner, he would still need a “bankable document” that gives financiers a degree of comfort.
“I am delighted to advise you today that the draft form of a standard power purchase agreement for systems which are less than 10 megawatts has been completed. My discussions with the FTC [Fair Trading Commission] as recently as last week have indicated that they expect that the mandatory consultations which must take place with stakeholders, could begin before the end of this month,” the Energy Minister told the conference.
“And I am equally pleased to advise you that my ministry has been able to complete and share the standard form power purchase agreement for those systems which are greater than 10 megawatts. That power purchase agreement standard form has been shared with stakeholders,” Symmonds said.
It was at this point that he called on stakeholders to respond expeditiously with their comments on the power purchase agreement standard forms so as to allow Government to complete the entire process by early next year. emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb
