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As prices fall… BOJ predicts oil price rise in early 2016

November 25, 2015 Webmaster

WEST Texas intermediate benchmark pricing for crude was a low of US$42.63 per barrel yesterday and Wall Street analysts continue to predict a further slump into the new year. But the Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) is convinced otherwise.

The bank said in its latest quarterly monetary policy report (QMPR) that prices of international commodities, particularly crude oil, are projected to reflect some modest increases, starting in the December 2015 quarter, contributing to an increase in domestic inflation over the near term; a consequence of gradual improvement in global demand conditions as well as a reduction in shale production by the United States of America.

The BOJ indicates that it expects inflation to pick up in both the December 2015 and March 2016 quarters to end fiscal FY2015/16 within the target range of 5.5 per cent to 7.5 per cent, a forecast mainly based on a projected surge in food and oil prices.

Price declines in electricity and fuel resulted in deflation in energy and transport for the September 2015 quarter, largely reflecting the impact of the reduction in crude oil prices.

Headline inflation at the end of the September quarter fell to 1.8 per cent compared to 4.4 per cent at the end of the preceding quarter.

“The reduction largely reflected declines in the cost associated with energy and transport, while agriculture and processed foods prices increased at a slower pace,” the BOJ stated.

However, the BOJ thinks oil price increases will change the trajectory. It is the bank’s assessment that there will be an uptick in the price of crude oil in the last quarter of the fiscal year.

Additionally, year-end inflation will also be affected by prices of domestic agricultural commodities which the bank expects to increase in December due to the recent dry conditions.

Meanwhile, the bank is also predicting that inflation from agricultural commodities will be reduced in the latter part of the December 2015 quarter as drought conditions improve with concurrent price reversals in the March 2016 quarter.

Jamaica Observer

Alternative Energy JPS LNG News Oil

JPS Announces Preferred Bidder For Old Harbour Plant

November 20, 2015 Webmaster

The Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS) has announced the selection of Spanish firm Abengoa as the preferred bidder to build the 190 megawatt Combined Cycle plant in Old Harbor, St Catherine.

The announcement follows the approval by the Electricity Sector Enterprise Team for the company to start negotiations with US-based New Fortress Energy for the supply of natural gas to the plant.

The JPS says once contracted, Abengoa will be responsible for the design, engineering and construction work on the plant.

It will be built close to company’s existing power station in Old Harbour Bay.

The JPS says it is in the process of procuring the necessary permits for the construction of the plant.

It says as part of its public education, it has shared the Environmental Impact Assessment on its website and will host a public consultation meeting next Tuesday in Old Harbour Bay.

The JPS says the gas terminal and the new gas-fired power plant will allow it to retire 220 megawatts of existing oil-fired steam generation units at Old Harbour and Hunts Bay in 2018.

It says this will ultimately result in a reduction of over 1.2 million barrels of oil per year and allow for power generation below 13 United States cents per kilowatt hours.

The Gleaner

Alternative Energy Electricity Energy Saving News Solar Energy

Apple will run all its operations in Singapore on Solar Power

November 19, 2015 Webmaster

Apple will power all its operations in Singapore—including its first retail location in there–with renewable energy. The iPhone maker confirmed to Reuters on Sunday (Nov. 15) that Singapore-based solar developer Sunseap Group will provide it with 100% renewable electricity from solar energy systems built atop more than 800 buildings.
The systems will generate 50 megawatts of solar energy, enough to power the equivalent of 9,000 homes. Apple will receive 33 MW of the new project’s capacity, according to Reuters.
The news is the latest in a string of Apple announcements about renewable energy. In October it announced it would build 200 MW of solar power in China and push suppliers to make similar commitments. That came on top of two previously announced solar farms in the country producing a combined 4 MW of power.
Earlier this year Apple said it was partnering with First Solar to build a massive farm of solar panels to power its upcoming “Campus 2” headquarters in California. The “spaceship campus” will be powered entirely by renewable energy sources, the company has said.

“We’re doing this because it’s right to do,” Tim Cook said at the time to an audience at a Goldman Sachs event. “But you may also be interested to know that it’s good financially to do it.”
In any case, Apple can afford to make investments in renewable energy, however long they take to pay off.

Surprisingly, Apple does not yet have a retail store in Singapore, a major shopping hub in Southeast Asia. The city-state gets hordes of shoppers from nearby countries, especially Indonesia, the world’s fourth most populous nation. This year, Jakarta alone will send Singapore some 1.7 million visitors, who will spend about $2.7 billion, according to the MasterCard 2015 Global Destination Cities Index.
Apple products in Singapore are currently sold through third-party retailers, mobile carriers, and its online store. The company did not disclose the exact location of the upcoming store, but the Straits Times reported last month on a fitness chain moving out of a prime spot on Orchard Road—Singapore’s leafy, mall-lined shopping mecca—to “make way for Singapore’s first Apple store in 2016.”

Quartz

Alternative Energy Electricity Government News

OUR No Longer Responsible For Net Billing Programme

November 13, 2015 Webmaster

The Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) has announced that it no longer has responsibility for the Net Billing Programme.

The net-billing system, which was introduced in 2012, allows persons who own renewable energy generators to generate electricity for personal use, and sell excess energy to the national grid.

This process was being led by the OUR.

However, the OUR said the deletion of Condition 18 of the Amended and Restated All-Island Electric Licence and the provisions in the Electricity Act, 2015, which came into effect in August, means that it no longer has authority to lawfully engage in the addition of generating capacity to the national grid.

ELECTRICITY ACT

It said Section 9 (2) of the Electricity Act specifically excludes the OUR’s involvement in accepting applications and making recommendations to the minister of science, technology, energy and mining for licences.

The OUR said that section provides that the minister has exclusive authority over the issuing of licences.

The OUR said that as a result, it cannot lawfully assume responsibility for the licensing process and, therefore, it considers its substantive role in the Net Billing Programme at an end.

The Gleaner

Electricity Energy Saving JPS LNG

LNG Suppliers Selected – Power Plant In Operation By 2018

November 13, 2015 Webmaster

Head of the Electricity Sector Enterprise Team (ESET) Dr Vin Lawrence says there was a vast number of credible bids that were put forward for the supply of natural gas to the new power plant to be built by Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS).

New Fortress Energy, the same entity which won the bid to supply gas to the Bogue power plant in Montego Bay, has been selected as the entity to supply LNG to the new plant, on which construction is expected to begin by the second quarter of next year. The arrangement will see New Fortress installing the facilities to receive, store and re-gas the fuel for use at the new 190-megawatt gas-fired plant at Old Harbour.

“Six entities submitted 16 variations of proposals and we were quite delighted at this because we have gone through 15-20 years of attempting to get LNG to Jamaica without much success, and on this RFP, we have had six credible entities submitting 16 variations of supply proposals,” Lawrence said.

The ESET chair, who was addressing a Jamaica House press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister yesterday, also announced that the JPS has selected Spanish firm Abengoa to construct the new plant.

Lawrence said the agreement is for New Fortress Energy to build a terminal and supply the JPS with 200,000 metric tonnes of LNG per annum. New Fortress Energy will build, own and operate the plant which Lawrence said must be expandable.

In Ja’s Best Interest

The company will spend more than $200 million on the terminal, which is expected to be constructed at Rocky Point, Clarendon.

“We have been trying for 20 years to bring natural gas to Jamaica, and so, we believe it is also in our interest that we have a terminal facility that can expand and grow,” he said.

The gas plant is due to be finished by the fourth quarter of 2017 and the power plant is due to be ready at the beginning of 2018.

With Jamalco indicating that it is reviewing its decision on whether it will go ahead with the building of a coal plant or switch its plans to using natural gas, Lawrence said the demand for LNG could be about 500,000 metric tonnes per year.

Schedule Not Affected

Lawrence said the bauxite-producing company is being allowed another two to three weeks to “have discussions with the possible gas supplier for a final decision to be taken”.

“This period will not affect the scheduling that we had proposed for Jamalco. If they shift to gas, we would have a two-year rather than a three-year construction period and the capital cost would be significantly less,” Lawrence added.

The new building of the JPS power plant represents part of an effort to lower electricity costs on the island. The plant will replace 292 megawatts of heavy fuel oil power plant at Old Harbour in St Catherine, and will be combined with energy from renewable sources and cogeneration facilities from Pan-Caribbean Sugar Company and bauxite companies.

The final electricity price to the grid will be less than US$0.13 cents per kWh, the ESET head said, which would mean at least a 30 per cent cut in light bills.

Lawrence said Jamaica has been looking at getting one million metric tonnes per year, and that New Fortress Energy is expected to construct a terminal that can supply the 200,000 metric tonnes that the JPS requires.

He said the demand for LNG from other sources would determine how quickly the facility is expanded.

Technical assistance was provided by the Galway Group and Hatch Mott McDonald, two reputable international firms.

Critical issues such as the security of supply, capability of delivering the project, ability to expand the terminal, ability to meet the power plant schedule, and a commitment to achieve a timely financial close were considered in selecting New Fortress Energy as the preferred bidder.

The Gleaner

Alternative Energy Energy Saving Government Jobs News Solar Energy

Environmentally friendly Green Village homes up for sale

November 10, 2015 Webmaster

POTENTIAL home owners in search of environmentally friendly surroundings have just got lucky.

Developers of what is being touted as Jamaica’s “first green residential community” last week broke ground for the construction of 114 energy-efficient homes in Greendale, St Catherine, called Green Village.

Project manager Paul Soegaard told the Jamaica Observer that the phased development will begin later this month and is expected to cost roughly $1 billion. He added that the developers are looking to employ up to 200 individuals to complete the project.

The gated community features 48 two-bedroom single-family homes, 24 two-bedroom apartments and 42 super studio apartments, spanning roughly 930, 717 and 475 square feet respectively.

Starting at $7.9 million, the complex is located a few metres before entering Spanish Town and is overlooked by the well established residential community, St Jago Heights. Amenities of the community include a swimming pool, clubhouse, BBQ and green area and a play area.

The development is a joint financing project with the National Housing Trust and the Green Village Country Club developers.

“Under a short- to medium-term housing programme developed by the NHT, some 9,000 housing solutions will be funded by the Trust over the next two years to enable thousands of families to realise their dream of owning a home,” the NHT stated in a release to the public.

The government agency hopes to boost the housing solutions available to contributors and noted that some 42 housing solutions are currently buimg built across the island. Of that number, St Catherine has a total of 11 developments including the Green Village, followed by Clarendon and Kingston and St Andrew, which each have seven developments.

“It’s driven by fundamentals,” Soegaard told the Sunday Finance. “First of all, attainable lands are not easy to find these days and this development is really the closest to Kingston. That’s the main driver.

“We were lucky enough to own these lands for a number of years, and with the demand for housing we just decided to build the first green housing development in Jamaica. There is great demand for housing coming out of the Kingston area, spilling all the way over to Old Harbour as annual surveys by the NHT indicates.

“The connection to the Green Village in Greendale, St Catherine, is by coincidence, our name is driven by best practices and building strategies, but I think they complement each other,” the project manager stated.

Green Village is designed to be energy-efficient and includes features such as solar water heaters, water and energy-reducing features for faucets and toilets. The development is also designed to take advantage of passive energy and natural light instead of purchased electricity or natural gas.

“It means that the houses are built of aerated concrete to foster cooler homes than the traditional ones and designed so that you can get a lot of sunlight without the rays passing through,” Soegaard explained.

The architectural design of the complex also provides for renewable energy-powered street lighting, Bahamas sun shades which also function as hurricane shutters and burglar bars, biodigester and reed bed sewage treatment plants which give a much higher level of treatment than septic tanks, storm water retention, grey water recycling, and xeriscaping — the practice of landscaping the common area with plants that use little to no water.

With regards to further expansion, Soegaard says there are plans underway for the development of a second phase based on sales demand.

“It’s dependent on a number of factors, but we have the option to do a phase two — though nothing is confirmed at this point,” he said.

BY KARENA BENNETT

The Observer

Alternative Energy Biodiesel Energy Saving Government Jobs Oil

US-based biodiesel producer exploring Jamaica for plant investment

November 6, 2015 Webmaster

HERO BX, one of the largest biodiesel producers in the US, is currently exploring possibilities to develop Jamaica’s first commercialscale biodiesel plant.

The firm’s representatives have been visiting the island since Jampro’s “Jamaica Investment Forum” earlier this year, and have been meeting with various government and private sector stakeholders with serious interest in confirming the project.

The plant would boost Jamaica’s renewable energy programme and would also impact a number of industries, since biodiesel uses feedstock such as waste oils from the hospitality industry and plant feedstock from the agricultural industry.

The investment would also be a significant source of employment and could empower the Government to benefit from the sale of biodiesel produced here on the island, which would operate as the hub of HERO BX’s Caribbean operations.

HERO BX produces 50 million gallons of fuel per year from multiple raw materials and has achieved the highest quality accreditation available. The company is investigating expanding into the Caribbean region, as the growing global renewable energy market is estimated to grow to US$614.92 billion by the end of 2015.

Glen F Garth, executive vice-president of US consulting firm Garth Solutions Inc, and representative of HERO BX, stated that Jamaica has received top billing for the development of the plant due to the country’s strategic location, amongst other factors.

“The location of Jamaica strategically in the Caribbean basin, the access to a quality, educated labour force, the access to all of the benefits that are available due to commitments made by the Jamaican government to encourage foreign direct investment, are all factors.

Those attributes are what first attracted our attention and have further strengthened our interest in establishing a biodiesel hub in Jamaica.” Garth also commended the country’s strong national energy policy and renewable energy sub-policy, saying those components were seen as favourable, and increased the company’s interest in Jamaica.

Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce Anthony Hylton noted that Jamaica continues to receive more investment interest.

“This robust investment climate and investment in a variety of sectors in the economy is the result of work across Government to improve the business environment, facilitate economic growth and create opportunities for job creation,” Hylton said.

Jampro President Diane Edwards is pleased that the country’s strides to promote its renewable energy strategy have been bearing fruit. She stated that following on the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce’s mandate, the agency has been campaigning for more investments in newer sectors to diversify Jamaica’s economy.

“We are seeing more interest in sectors such as energy and technology as the Government makes moves to improve the business atmosphere and the country’s readiness for investments. Jampro will monitor the progress of this and other projects closely as we try to bring more significant, sustainable investments to Jamaica,” she said.

The Observer

News

Jamaicans walk for the climate

November 4, 2015 Webmaster

MORE than 1,500 people joined Environmental Solutions Limited on October 24 — the International Day of Climate Action– when it staged Jamaica’s Climate Walk in Kingston under the theme Walk for Health Stand for Earth.

Participants trekked from Emancipation Park up Knutsford Boulevard, onto Trafalgar Road, down Hope Road, down Half-Way-Tree Road, and back to Emancipation Park via Oxford Road. The intention was to heighten public awareness about the impact of climate change, as well as mitigation and adaptation measures. For those of you who missed it, here are some shots by ace photographer Michael Gordon.

The Observer

Alternative Energy Electricity Government Jobs News Solar Energy

CaPRI to present country report on renewable energy options in Barbados

November 2, 2015 Webmaster

CO-EXECUTIVE director of The Caribbean Policy Research Institute (CaPRI), Dr Christopher Tufton, will this week travel to Barbados to chair a workshop on Barbados’ country report on renewable energy options at the Caribbean Development Bank Conference Centre in St Michael.

With funding from the European Union (EU) under its Energy Facility II programme, CaPRI has been implementing the ‘Frameworks, Policies and Instruments for Mobilising Renewable Energy in the Caribbean’ project over the past two and a half years.

The overall objective of the project is to empower both the public and private sectors and other energy consumers in the Caribbean to make informed decisions on renewable energy investments, and to provide input to policymaking in order to create an enabling environment to accelerate such investment.

The workshop will present the country report which included analyses of renewable energy technology options as well as a number of tools aimed at the public and private sector, including:

*Technology assessment tool — an online calculator which will enable Caribbean businesses and energy consumers to size and cost renewable energy systems to meet their energy needs;

* Renewable energy financing database — a searchable database of local and international financing schemes to allow energy consumers, businesses and project developers to identify appropriate financing for their renewable energy projects, large and small;

* Policies and incentives database — a complete database of incentives available for renewable energy investments in the Caribbean;

*Cost benefit analysis tool.

According to Tufton, the workshop will also include a practical session using the cost benefit tool, and an opportunity for participants to provide feedback on its usefulness. So far CaPRI has presented country reports in Haiti, St Kitts and Nevis, Grenada, and Jamaica with Barbados and Guyana left.

This CaPRI EU programme is valued at approximately 500,000 Euros over four years and represents the most in-depth database on renewable energy in the Caribbean.

CaPRI is hopeful that this database will be used by policymakers, the private sector and the general public to increase the use of renewables in the region, Tufton said.

The Observer

Alternative Energy Case Study Confrence Energy Saving Government LPG News Research Solar Energy

UTech to unveil findings of cooking with hydrogen study

October 30, 2015 Webmaster

University of Technology Jamaica (UTech) File Photo

THE findings of a University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech)-led research project focusing on the sustainable production of hydrogen as a fuel for domestic cooking will form the basis of presentations and discussions at an International Hydrogen Conference and Exhibition being hosted by UTech at its Papine campus, November 3 – 4, 2015. The conference is first of its kind in the Caribbean region.

In 2012, UTech, along with research partners from Brunel University, United Kingdom; University of the West Indies; Bureau of Standards Jamaica; and the Ministry of Science, Technology, Energy, and Mining began a research project on ‘The Application of Solar-Powered Polymer Electrolyte Membrane (PEM) Electrolysers for the Sustainable Production of Hydrogen Gas as Fuel for Domestic Cooking’. The project is co-funded by the European Union under the ACP Caribbean & Pacific Research Programme for Sustainable Development.

Dr Ruth Potopsingh, Associate Vice- President, Caribbean Sustainable Energy & Innovation Institute in the School of Graduate Studies, Research and Entrepreneurship at UTech, and coordinator of the conference, explains that the issue of hydrogen as a sustainable energy source is particularly relevant to Jamaica at this time.

“The use of hydrogen, whether for cooking at the household or commercial level, clean transportation fuel or utility scale applications, such as power to gas, are options which the Caribbean region needs to further examine,” she said.

Conference presentations by local and international research experts will highlight global trends in hydrogen as a key enabling pathway for renewable energy applications. Thematic areas to be examined include hydrogen from renewable resources, environmental issues and climate change, hydrogen as a transportation fuel, the future of hydrogen technology, hydrogen storage systems, education and public awareness for using hydrogen as a domestic fuel, and case studies on successful hydrogen projects.

Keynote speakers will be:

* Phillip Paulwell, minister of Science, Technology, Energy, and Mining (MSTEM)

* Paola Amadei, ambassador, head of delegation of the European Union in Jamaica

* Prof Maria Kolokotroni, Professor / theme leader for Resource Efficient Future Cities at Brunel University

* Dr Andrei Tchouvelev, Chairman of ISO’s primary technical committee on hydrogen technologies based in Canada.

Other presenters include the project research team led by Dr Earle Wilson, lecturer, School of Engineering, UTech; Dr Zahir Dehouche, Brunel University; Dr Kurt Edward, UWI; Omar Alcock, MSTEM; and Hunstan Hunter, Bureau of Standards, Jamaica. Presentations will also be delivered by representatives from industry and the European Union ACP Research Programme for Sustainable Development.

The international hydrogen conference will also include an exhibition featuring faculty and student research as well as innovations and service providers from the local energy sector. It will be free and open to the public, but participants are being asked to register owing to limited capacity. The public exhibition opens to the public from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm on each day. Further information is available at http://www.solarhydrogen.utechsapna.com or via email CSEII@Utech.edu.jm.

The Observer

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