Jamaica is to partner with Cuba for the transfer of knowledge and technology to facilitate the local manufacture and assembly of cost effective solar light panels.
This undertaking is part of the government’s move towards incorporating renewable alternatives into the local energy mix, to reduce the country’s huge energy bill.
Phillip Paulwell, Energy Minister said the Rural Electrification Programme Limited will guide the process, in keeping with the agency’s new mandate.
The mandate will focus on developing renewable energy solutions for households further than three kilometres from the national grid and for promoting energy efficiency and conservation.
In his contribution to the 2013/2014 Budget Debate in May, Paulwell announced that the Rural Electricity Programme would be known as Jamaica Energy Solutions Limited and given a new role.
He then indicated, that the renewable energy solutions to be developed by the agency would target the remaining four per cent of rural households yet to receive electricity, in order to bring electrification island-wide to 100 per cent.
He said the Government is committed to supplying the remaining four per cent of households with electricity even as problems related to terrain and distance from the national grid infrastructure makes bringing the grid to them unfeasible.
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