Webmaster, Author at SolarBuzz Jamaica

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From cooking oil to biodiesel

June 5, 2013 Webmaster

WHAT did you do with the oil left over from the chicken you fried for dinner on Sunday?

Chemistry lecturer Dr Michael Coley (right) displays a biodiesel/glycerol sample to Resource Mobilisation Coordinator, Dr Julie-Ann Grant, and YCWJ Project Manager Edward Dixon. (PHOTOS: KIMONE THOMPSON & UWI)

Storing it for reuse is not good, neither is dumping it in the backyard or throwing it down the drain. The best option, according to scientists, is not only environmentally-friendly, but practical too

Plastic Fuel

June 4, 2013 Webmaster

All around the globe

Alternative Energy Electricity Government News Solar Energy

Get Green! – Opposition Spokesman Mair Proposes All Gov’t Buildings Be Solar Powered

June 3, 2013 Webmaster

Opposition spokesman on Industry, Commerce and Energy Gregory Mair is proposing that the administration make it mandatory for all government buildings to be fitted with solar photovoltaic systems.

“Every government building must have solar panels energising their lights, fans and other equipment. Not only will it bring savings in foreign exchange used by JPS to purchase fuel, but it will also reduce the electricity bills of Government and stimulate the growth of an industry of which Jamaica could become the Caribbean leader,” Mair pointed out during his contribution, last week, to the Sectoral Debate in Parliament.

He also wants the Government to introduce policy to make it compulsory for solar photovoltaic systems to be installed in government-related schemes.

“Let the Government drive demand in solar energy. If done properly, we could see an industry where we have solar photovoltaic panels and solar heating assembly plants exporting to the Caribbean and, by extension, the world,” he added.

Discussing how this project could become a reality, Mair said the Government should make the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) more efficient.

“As we are aware, the PCJ is funded by the one per cent commission earned from the sale of fuel to Petrojam. The PCJ does not require all this funding and the majority of it should be dedicated to building this industry. It is a win-win all around,” Mair explained.

Turning to the PetroCaribe agreement, Mair argued that Jamaica could pay for fuel purchased under this accord with goods made locally, not only manufactured items but also produce.

According to Mair, Article IV of the PetroCaribe agreement states, among other things, that, “With regard to deferred payments, Venezuela shall be able to accept that the partial payments be done with products, goods and/or services, previously agreed by the parties, based on preferential rates proposed by the Government of Jamaica.”

He noted that Venezuela imported a lot of products and Jamaica had failed to take advantage of this clause of the PetroCaribe deal.

“Our Government should meet with our counterparts in Venezuela, like many other countries have, and agree on the goods we will be selling them in exchange for their fuel. Once this is done, Government should encourage the establishment and expansion of the industries that will capitalise on this arrangement,” the opposition spokesman stated.

Big Up JPS’s Boss Lady

June 3, 2013 Webmaster

THE EDITOR, Sir:

Recently, I wrote a letter to the editor sharing a very positive experience I had with a Jamaica

Electricity Government News

Sterling To Arrange Local Financing For LNG Bidder – OUR Sets New Project Deadlines

May 31, 2013 Webmaster

Kevin Richards, Sterling’s vice-president of sales and marketing. – File

Marcella Scarlett, Business Report

Sterling Asset Management Limited has been tapped to arrange US$50 million of financing for joint-venture partners Azurest Partners LLC and Cambridge Project Development Inc, if the companies emerge as the preferred bidder for the LNG-compatible plant, the local investment firm has confirmed.

Azurest-Cambridge is one of five bidders short-listed to bid on the project to develop and operate the power plant to supply the national grid.

The Office of the Utilities Regulation (OUR) announced new timelines for the project on Wednesday for construction of the plant to begin at the end of November and for it to be commissioned two years later in December 2015.

The other four short-listed bids as named by the OUR are Armorview Holdings Limited; Energy World International Limited; Jamaica Public Service Company Limited; and Optimal Energy.

The financing to be arranged by Sterling represents just seven per cent of the plant’s development cost.

Sterling’s vice-president of sales and marketing, Kevin Richards, said the Azurest-Cambridge investment is estimated at US$698 million, including working capital, reserves, capital expenditure, and associated project fees.

The targeted financing mix is 70 per cent debt and 30 per cent equity, with most of the funding to be raised outside of the Caribbean region, said Richards, referring to the entire US$698m project cost.

Sterling says it plans to target local institutional investors for the funds to be raised on behalf of Azurest-Cambridge.

“In the past, there have been a number of acquisitions or new investments by foreigners that did not have any local capital market participation, and we feel that a deal such as this would allow medium- to long-term investors more than sufficient return on investment relative to current market offerings,” Richards said.

Azurest-Cambridge has proposed a 388MW capacity power plant to be mounted on sea barges. The OUR tender is for 360MW.

The partners plan to leverage Azurest’s relationships with major US energy players and financial-services firms “gain easy access to the world’s cheapest supply of LNG,” the partners said in their project summary acquired by

Electricity Government JPS News

Reducefuel Prices For AllJamaicans – Mair

May 30, 2013 Webmaster

GREGORY MAIR, the opposition spokesman on energy, is pushing for a level playing field in the pricing of heavy fuel oil sold by Petrojam to the bauxite industry as against the Jamaica Public Service (JPS), and, by extension, the Jamaican consumer.

In his contribution to the Sectoral Debate in Parliament on Tuesday, Mair contended that players in the bauxite industry purchased heavy fuel oil from Petrojam for 15 per cent less than the state-owned oil refinery sells to the light and power company.

“Why don’t we level the playing field, have a real competitive environment in the fuel sector and give JPS, and, by extension, the consumers of electricity, the same status as the alumina/bauxite producers,” Mair asserted.

According to Mair, the Bauxite and Alumina Industries (Encouragement) Act, exempts alumina and bauxite producers from paying customs duty or similar imposition on the importation of petrol fuel oil or diesel.

“Let JPS initiate a tender process where all providers of HFO/ADO (heavy fuel oil/automotive diesel oil) in the world will compete and where we will see the consumers of electricity benefiting from close to a 15 per cent reduction of the fuel cost, which would be approximately 10 per cent of our bills.

Bauxite industry enjoys reduced rates

I say this based on information I have in my possession. The bauxite industry purchases HFO 15 per cent cheaper than JPS,” Mair told his parliamentary colleagues.

He explained that the HFO used in the generation of electricity is purchased by JPS from Petrojam at a cost of some $6 billion per month.

Turning to electricity theft, Mair wants the crafting of legislation to impose stiffer fines on persons involved in the illegal act.

“The Government must sit down with JPS and agree on a clearly defined strategy for tackling the theft of electricity,” Mair said, noting that it was costing legal customers of JPS about $3 billion annually for illegal connections. The JPS is said to absorb a similar sum each year.

edmond.campbell@gleanerjm.com

Solar-Powered Mirebalais Hospital Now Open in Haiti

May 29, 2013 Webmaster

The solar-powered H

News

Guyana Says PetroCaribe Provides Significant Benefits

May 28, 2013 Webmaster

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds says Guyana has benefitted significantly from the Venezuelan oil initiative, PetroCaribe, launched in 2005.

Hinds, speaking during a programme on the state-owned National Communications Network, said the initiative came at a time when many Caribbean countries were having difficulties purchasing petroleum given the high prices on the world market.

Under the initiative, the brainchild of the late Venezuelan leader

Electricity Government JPS News

Poll Results: The energy initiative

May 28, 2013 Webmaster

Have you been monitoring your energy consumption with a view to reducing monthly bills?

Yes, I have installed energy saving devices 40.38%

Somewhat, every so often I try to cut down on my energy use 38.5%

No, I still have to pay whether or not I use it 21.13%

JPS, ATL partner on energy-saving retail products

May 22, 2013 Webmaster

THE Jamaica Public Service (JPS) and appliance giants Appliance Traders Limited (ATL) have partnered to provide energy-saving products and services to customers.

The partnership, which was sealed in a Memorandum of Understanding yesterday, will see ATL extending its distribution of alternative and energy-efficient products through the JPS’s eStore.

ATL Group CEO and Deputy Chairman Adam Stewart presents President and CEO of the JPS Kelly Tomblin with a bag of goodies at the signing ceremony yesterday. (PHOTO: ASTON SPAULDING)

JPS customers will also benefit from a wider range of cost-cutting products as well as technical and consultative services through ATL’s Energy Solutions arm.

“I think it demonstrates a genuine intent by JPS to want to show Jamaicans how to reduce their energy bill,” group CEO Adam Stewart said, describing the move as “uncharacteristic” of a power company.

The leadership of this company (JPS) has made it clear that they want their consumers’ bills to go down, Stewart reasoned, noting the similarities in both companies mandate to promote energy conservation and efficiency.

For JPS chief executive officer, Kelly Tomblin, “this is an example of two companies coming together and saying we can provide help and not in three years, but today.”

She said though the planned construction of the 360 megawatt (MV) plant will aid the reduction of the nation’s energy woes, “educating and empowering customers to responsibly manage their energy use today will go a far way to solving the country’s energy challenges.

“We can understand the insanity of a company who wants to sell products to its clients that will ultimately drive down our sales, and people ask me if I’m crazy,” the JPS head said.

She noted, however, that her 25 years in the energy sector had inspired her conclusion that “if we do the right thing, if we train people the right way, economic development happens (and) the world grows.”

While noting the susceptibility of the JPS to shifts in the economy, Tomblin said the company hoped the partnership would be viewed as “our next step in redefining who we want to be in our hearts and in our delivery”.

ATL made its expansion into the alternative energy business with the launch of its Energy Solutions store earlier this year.

“Record energy prices in Jamaica as well as in the international marketplace have heightened the need for sustainable alternatives,” ATL’s energy and engineering manager, Paul Grey said.

An expansion into the energy business was therefore a “natural progression” for the company, Grey reckoned.

“We are at a transformational period in the Jamaican energy sector that requires us to either heavily curb our existing consumption patterns or look to alternative sources of power,” he suggested.

For Stewart, “What we find is that the average consumer doesn’t understand the appliances in their homes that consume the most power.

“So what we find lacking is the key words