ST JAMES, Jamaica – Minister of State in the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce, Dr Norman Dunn, is encouraging businesses to consider driving their operations utilising renewable energy.

Dr Dunn, who was addressing the commissioning of a solar-powered plant at Austrojam Limited in Bluntas, St Elizabeth, on Saturday, said customers and big investors are switching allegiance to companies that pay greater attention to how their operations impact the natural environment.

He pointed out that as the global agriculture industry adopts more efficient and sustainable production techniques, the government of Jamaica signals its readiness to support models that are particularly responsive to climate change.

“Our local businesses are, therefore, being encouraged to include renewables in their practices as part of their core business model, especially as we approach 2030, the decade of growth and development,” he said.

The State Minister added that the government continues to invite more private sector-led projects to strengthen Jamaica’s energy resilience and to accelerate the adoption of distributed renewable energy.

Dr Dunn further stated that this will create a more sustainable energy future for all Jamaicans.

In addition, he congratulated the entity’s Chief Executive Officer, Martin Zsifkovics, for making the switch to solar energy.

“The conversion of this 2,100 square feet facility to 100 per cent solar energy demonstrated that there are still effective mechanisms, which businesses can use to scale up, while supporting significant energy conservation and climate adoption imperatives,” he said.

“With our perpetual sunlight, large water volumes [and] strong wind currents, Jamaica is ideally suited for renewable projects. So, projects in agriculture, such as yours at Austrojam, will be useful in supporting the Government’s goal of increasing the ratio of energy generated from renewables to 50 per cent by 2050,” he said.

Dr Dunn also encouraged businesses to take advantage of energy loans being offered by the Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of Jamaica to help entities in retrofitting their operations to accommodate energy-efficient fixtures, energy conservation, and alternative energy projects.

“This will be useful in supporting greater diversity in our energy supply, which is already looking good following the submission of several proposals to the Government this year, including solar and hydroelectricity,” he pointed out.

Minister without portfolio in the Office of the Prime Minister and Member of Parliament for St Elizabeth South West, Floyd Green, also commended Zsifkovics.

“I think Austrojam is a model that we all can emulate, [because Zsifkovics is] a strong believer in community. If you go and interact with the workforce, you will realise that they come from the area,” he said.

“[He] is a strong believer in engaging the small farmers through the model farm concept, which has gone well, and a strong believer in using technology to move the company forward,” he added.

Zsifkovics stated that Austrojam Limisted started the process of transitioning to renewable energy two years ago, said the solar plant will power Austrojam’s refrigerated warehouses.

“It’s an off grid [plant]… We have over 210 solar panels,” he said.

“We just [want] to save energy and cut down our cost because, as you know, production costs of the raw material for the farms went up significantly, so we have to cut down on some of the other expenses,” he added.