THE Opposition is charging that Government’s failure to incorporate more renewable energy for electricity generation has led to an over-reliance on expensive fuel, which helped to wrack up the price for electricity in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl.

This in turn, the Opposition said, saw Jamaicans facing exorbitant increases in electricity charges ranging from 30 to 100 per cent for the August billing cycle.

According to Opposition spokesperson on energy and climate change Phillip Paulwell, the economic impact of the hurricane on the sector would have been much less had the Administration further diversified energy supply.

“If we had brought on board new renewable energy sources for the last eight years then the reliance on automotive diesel oil (ADO), which recently caused the price [of electricity generation] to shoot up, would not have been so great. They would have been able to bring back on board renewable energy systems within two days of the hurricane, rather than having to rely on automotive diesel. So the Government has to shoulder the responsibility, the blame for not having brought on board additional renewable systems,” Paulwell told the Jamaica Observer on Sunday. He added that his Administration, while in office, procured significant amounts of renewable energy, mainly solar and wind.

Jamaica Public Service (JPS) said last week that it had to switch to ADO to generate electricity just before the arrival of Hurricane Beryl as the usual natural gas was not available for a five-day period. It said there was a significant tariff impact from the switch to ADO to generate electricity, as the ADO price is markedly higher than LNG and there has been an appreciably higher special consumption tax (SCT) applied to ADO since November 2021 (from $4.5611 per litre to $44.90 per litre).

Paulwell further questioned why, after having gone through the procurement process for 100 megawatts of renewable energy, the Government has not issued a licence for this supply to date.

It was reported in April that 12 proposals were being evaluated by the Government’s Generation Procurement Entity (GPE) for the supply of 100 megawatts of renewable energy to the national power grid on a build, own, and operate basis.

“The Government has failed miserably to bring on board new renewable-generating capacity — even after they went through a process where large corporations submitted bids early in the year for up to 100 megawatts of renewable energy and we are now at the end of August and not one licence has been issued. That, to me, is a disgrace,” Paulwell said.

According to the 100 MW request for proposal (RFP) pre-award report of the GPE, dated July 8, 2024, two pre-awarded bids were approved for solar-energy companies Wigton Windfarm Limited and SunTerra Energy Jamaica Limited, following an economic evaluation process.

The document said two non pre-awarded bids were also approved for Jamaica Energy Partners and InterEnergy Renewables; and Blue Mahoe Energy Company Limited (Braziletto) — solar energy companies.

“At the sole discretion of the GPE, technical proposals of non-pre-awarded bids may be considered, prioritised by bid levelised cost ranking in descending order for consideration in the event of any rejection of pre-awarded bids per Section 9.8 of the RFP. The GPE’s final award decision will be based on the outcome of the technical evaluation,” the document said.

In the meantime, the Opposition’s shadow minister for science, technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship, Dr Andre Haughton, in a media release last Thursday, called on JPS to prioritise innovation and technology to reduce the financial burden on consumers. This, he said, follows the recent rise in electricity bills which JPS has attributed to the use of higher-cost energy sources during the recent hurricane, disrupting their ability to employ more affordable alternatives.

“In an era where advancements in technology are driving down the costs of renewable energy, JPS has a unique opportunity to harness these innovations to provide more efficient and cost-effective energy solutions,” Dr Haughton said. He emphasised that the Opposition People’s National Party (PNP) has long advocated for the expansion of renewable energy sources, with Phillip Paulwell leading the charge in pushing for a diversified energy portfolio.

Dr Haughton said the future of energy in Jamaica should not be dependent on traditional methods but on cutting edge technologies and a diversified approach.

“The focus must shift towards integrating advanced renewable energy systems such as wind, solar, and hydroelectric power, and exploring the potential of emerging technologies. By doing so we can lower the cost per kilowatt hour for Jamaicans and build a more resilient energy infrastructure,” he said.