The Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) says it will be spending $5.6 million to upgrade the lighting facilities in three public-sector entities as part of efforts to drastically reduce their energy bills.
The upgrading work will be carried out on the May Pen and Spanish Town hospitals, as well as the Jamaica Police Convalescent Centre (JPCC).
According to the PCJ, this is projected to result in energy savings of 29,780 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per year, which translates into cost savings of more than J$950,000 annually.
Under the programme, the maternity ward at the Spanish Town Hospital will be retrofitted with fixtures “and other equipment” to reduce the use of electricity in the facility.
“The upgrade will cover restrooms, storerooms and general patient areas, most of which will be equipped with sensors to regulate lighting based on occupancy. The PCJ anticipates that the improvements will cut the hospital’s energy usage by 36,000 kWh per year,” said Dr Peter Ruddock, manager of Renewable Energy and Energy Efficient at the PCJ.
Similarly, the PCJ will be installing a solar photovoltaic system, rehabilitating old lighting poles and replacing existing halogen lighting with LED (light-emitting diode) lamps.
In addition, the JPCC is set to reduce its energy usage by 17,000 kWh per year as a result of the lighting-efficiency improvements recently undertaken at that institution.
The PCJ said during the last fiscal year, it invested more than J$53 million on public-sector energy-efficiency projects which are projected to result in more than $19.7 million in savings annually.
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