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Study Tour of Wind and Solar Farms

By: , August 22, 2017

The Key Point:

Several senior officers of the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation on Friday (August 18) participated in a study tour aimed at engaging stakeholders with renewable sources of energy and the mitigation and adaptation work being done locally.
Study Tour of Wind and Solar Farms
Photo: Mark Bell
General Manager of Wigton Windfarm Ltd., Earl Barrett (second left), and Project Manager, Michelle Chin Lenn (left), share details about the facility with (from third left), Chief Technical Director in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation, Col. Oral Khan; Principal Director of Climate Change in the Ministry, Una May Gordon; and Director of the Meteorological Service of Jamaica, Evan Thompson, during a tour of the facility on Friday, August 18. The tour was organised by the Climate Change Division and included a visit to Wigton Windfarm in Manchester and the Caribbean Coastal Area Management (C-CAM) Foundation in Clarendon.

The Facts

  • The tour to the Wigton Windfarm in Rose Hill, Manchester, included presentations on the facility and its contribution to the national electricity grid. This was followed by a stop at the Content Solar Farm in Clarendon, which features 160 acres of some 90,000 solar panels.

The Full Story

Several senior officers of the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation on Friday (August 18) participated in a study tour aimed at engaging stakeholders with renewable sources of energy and the mitigation and adaptation work being done locally.

Among those on the tour were Chief Technical Director in the Ministry, Colonel Oral Khan; Principal Director for Climate Change, Una May Gordon; Principal Finance Officer, Franklin Thomas; Director of the Meteorological Service of Jamaica, Evan Thompson, and several key officials in the Climate Change Division.

The tour to the Wigton Windfarm in Rose Hill, Manchester, included presentations on the facility and its contribution to the national electricity grid. This was followed by a stop at the Content Solar Farm in Clarendon, which features 160 acres of some 90,000 solar panels.

The team made a final stop at the Caribbean Coastal Area Management (C-CAM) Foundation in Salt River, where they were introduced to the work being done in the area and the organisation’s conservation efforts in partnership with the communities in which it operates.

Colonel Khan, in an interview with JIS News, said the tour gave him a better understanding of renewable energy generation and confirms that it is a worthwhile investment for the Government.

“This is an excellent experience, and when we speak now about the need to go with more renewables, we have a much greater appreciation of what we are talking about, what is doable and what can be achieved, so we can be even more forceful in our argument,” he said.

Climate Change Principal Director, Una May Gordon, meanwhile, said it is important for staff in the Ministry to be engaged with what is happening on the ground as it relates to climate-change mitigation and adaptation.

She further noted that the understanding gained from the tour will also be important in formulating strategies for accessing climate-change financing, particularly through the Green Climate Fund.

Last Updated: August 22, 2017

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