The government of Antigua and Barbuda reaffirmed its commitment to a long-term transition towards renewable energy at last week’s Caribbean E-Mobility Conference held at the John E St Luce building in Antigua.
The first-of-its-kind forum in the region brought together dozens of industry leaders and experts from Caribbean countries as well as the United States, Germany and several countries in Latin America.
Speaking during an address on the country’s evolving energy strategy, Energy Minister Melford Nicholas outlined the multi-faceted approach being taken to reduce the nation’s reliance on imported fossil fuels and embrace sustainable alternatives such as solar, wind, and geothermal power.
“There are legal issues in our way that we have to traverse,” he acknowledged, adding that the government is in the process of mapping out a clear strategy for energy transition. “The future for all of us is one where renewable energy is going to play a more important role in each of our lives and in each of our economies.”
The range of topics delved into the development of government policy and regulations, education, employment, insurance and funding, gender disparity concerns and implementation of electric vehicles into Caribbean society.
The Minister shared that through the Sustainable Low Emissions Island Mobility (SLIM) project, Antigua and Barbuda will begin phasing out its fleet of over 1,100 government-owned vehicles, replacing them with electric alternatives.
“There are some other policy issues that we have to take in terms of do we create an incentive, the environment for some of our other partners, the car dealers, to be able to bring this into the center,” the minister said.
At the policy level, the government has already reduced duties on electric vehicles and is working to create incentives for local car dealerships to stock and promote these vehicles.
Infrastructure is also a key component of the plan. The West Indies Oil Company has signed an MOU with the Department of Environment to roll out charging stations across the country. Additional policies are under review, including mandates for developers of commercial buildings to include EV charging infrastructure in their parking facilities.
Beyond mobility, the government intends to bring together all energy stakeholders — including the Antigua Public Utilities Authority (APUA), West Indies Oil Company (WIOC), and LNG operators — for what was described as a “reset conversation” later this year.
Nicholas spoke to a future where we become less reliant on fossil fuel generating energy and make a commitment to exploit more of the cheaper, new long-term renewable energy sources.
The three-day forum included panel discussions with Mikyle Mohammed Project Coordinator and Chelsea Carter SLIM Project Apprentice at the Department of Environment. It ended with an E-Mobility Road Show at the Department of Environment where schools came out to see how electric vehicles operate and to learn why they are better options for the environment.
The Chief of Fire Department, Vivian Parker and two other officers, also attended the road show for a first-hand view of the vehicles and to share their concerns regarding how to extinguish possible road accident threats with this unfamiliar technology.
