The Barbados Light & Power (BL&P) solar farm in Trents, St Lucy, is saving the country an estimated $10 million a year.
Barbados Light & Power (BL&P) managing director Roger Blackman gave this latest update on the 42-acre site on Friday during a press conference at the BL&P’s Bay Street, St Michael headquarters.
“It has met all the expectations and is delivering fuel savings for customers as a result,” Blackman said.
“When that is at full output, what it means is that we don’t have to run another generator that is bringing fuel and when that’s at 10 megawatts, that’s 10 megawatts worth of fuel that we’re saving from another plant.
“I think the estimates that I get would be between eight and ten million dollars a year that that plant is producing . . . and of course that is a straight pass through to customers, so that will be reflected in the slight drop in the fuel charge,” he said.
The solar farm started production two years ago, pumping solar-generated electricity into the grid.
Following its creation, the BL&P announced plans for another solar farm and a wind farm to put more power into the country’s network.
Blackman said the company earmarked land at Lower Estate in St George for the solar farm and was working hard to make a wind farm a reality. They are also exploring other areas.
“One of the things that we had hoped would have been on the network by now would have been biomass and waste energy. Those are firm renewable energy options that would allow us to get to our 100/100 vision,” Blackman said.
“In order to do that, in addition to solar and wind, you need firm renewables – renewables that are on 24 hours a day. And renewables like waste energy and bio-mass allow us to do that,” he added. (AD)
