BASSETERRE, St Kitts (SKNIS) — The government of St Kitts and Nevis is of the view that geothermal energy can be the solution to the high cost of electricity generated from fossil fuel in the federation.
Speaking on the government’s weekly radio and television programme last Wednesday, minister of public infrastructure, posts, urban development and transport, Ian ‘Patches’ Liburd, recounted the words of a former St Kitts and Nevis leader that when he saw the electricity bill of an elderly person he wanted to cry.
Liburd said, “This statement really epitomises the state of electricity in St Kitts and Nevis.”
Liburd indicated that it is the government’s goal that “everyone should have access to electricity.”
“We believe that irrespective of your social status, everyone in the country, every citizen, should have access to electricity and affordable electricity,” he said.
According to Liburd, “Energy security is important as well because if we are going to continue development and if we are going to have growth we must have energy security,” adding that issues of the climate must also be considered.
The minister said that St Kitts and Nevis is blessed with sunshine, wind and two volcanoes and that renewable energy is the way forward.
He added, “The government believes that geothermal is the way to go.”
Liburd also said that the development of geothermal energy in St Kitts does not create an issue for geothermal energy in Nevis as both islands must maximise the use of its natural resources.
He noted that a memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been signed by the government and Teranov, a French engineering and services company. The MOU was signed on September 4, 2015, in Guadeloupe and, according to Liburd, this is indicative that the government has “already established the road map” to develop geothermal energy on St Kitts on an industrial scale.
He also said that there is an exploration team on St Kitts that arrived about three to four weeks ago. There is a geophysicist, geochemist and geologist and he indicated that by March of 2016, “we will be able to establish, having done the assessments, if there is a geothermal resource on St Kitts.”
According to Liburd, “All early assessments by Teranov would be of no cost to the Government.”