Policy in the works to allow sale of excess power to grid

Government will soon introduce a battery storage policy that could see producers of electricity from renewable sources benefiting from their excess power.

This is according to Minister of Energy and Business Development Kerrie Symmonds who also told Barbados TODAY that several potential investors have interest in putting money into the sector.

He disclosed that Cabinet has already approved a battery storage policy which is now before the Fair Trading Commission (FTC). It is expected to put a tariff system in place to allow local power producers to sell their excess energy to the national grid.

“The Fair Trading Commission is in the process of doing the work it must do on setting a tariff for batteries, and once we get that done I think we solve a major problem, because what you are treating as excess supply will actually then be stored supply, and that stored supply can be drawn on by the utility at a point when they are ready,” explained Symmonds.

He said the grid capacity for renewable energy was nowhere near full capacity, but noted that authorities have acknowledged that battery storage must be a major focus in the buildout of the renewable energy sector.

“Battery storage is now at the front burner of the Ministry’s attention and, equally, the front burner of the Fair Trading Commission, so that very shortly we will be able to come to the country with a tariff for battery storage and that is an entirely new platform and new area of economic activity and further participation for people in a sector of the economy that is being very dynamically developed,” said Symmonds..

It is not yet clear if the battery storage feed-in-tariffs will be similar to those of the feed-in-tariffs for the sale of electricity to the grid from different size systems.

During the FTC’s second renewable energy panel discussion earlier this month, officials identified tariff rates for battery storage as the “next urgent project” on which the Commission would be embarking. However, it cited the Barbados Light & Power Company’s rate increase application as taking precedence at this time.

“We are working on that but we definitely are aware that rates for storage will be an urgent requirement,” said the FTC’s Acting Director of Utility Regulation Kathyann Belle.

In relation to applications for new investments in the sector, Symmonds told Barbados TODAY “there are a few that are being looked at”.

He declined to disclose the exact project, saying only: “I don’t want to jump the gun on that, but let me say that I am anticipating in a few weeks’ time we should have you back again on one that will involve secondary schools in Barbados. So we are working on that.”

Symmonds made the comments on Thursday, on the sidelines of the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Barbados National Oil Company Ltd. (BNOCL), the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) and Emera Caribbean Ltd., an affiliate of the Barbados Light and Power Company Ltd.

This deal will see the investment of some $25 million in a 10-megawatt solar photovoltaic farm on 32 acres of land at Mangrove, St Philip, owned by the BWU.

During the brief signing ceremony, BNOCL Chairman Vic Fernandes suggested a change to the name of the state-owned oil company, given its involvement in ventures other than oil.

“In some respects, the name BNOCL is perhaps one that needs to be reviewed at some point, Minister [Symmonds], because we are more of an energy company today than an oil company,” he said.

“When I look at the range of projects we are involved in . . . I think that there are so many opportunities for Barbadians and for this company to take us into this exciting era of transition from fossil fuels to renewable energy,” he added, as he indicated that the BNOCL was examining other renewable energy projects. marlonmadden@barbadostoday.bb