Mr Speaker, I rise to update this Honourable House on matters related to energy, and specifically the matter of LNG.
Electricity prices are the most important impediment to economic growth and job creation facing Jamaica today. Mr Speaker, there is no delicate way to repeat this: Jamaica will not move forward with electricity rates of 40 US cents per kilowatt hour. For us to achieve competitiveness in the global economy, we must reduce this burden on our manufacturers, our businesses and our people.
Mr Speaker, it is my goal to oversee the reduction of electricity costs in Jamaica, to between 15 and 18 cents per kilowatt hour, a rate that will allow Jamaicans to build industry, create jobs, and be competitive.
In November 2010, recognising the urgency of our nation