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KINGSTON — Talks on the merger between Digicel and Claro Jamaica are far advanced with the Government to announce a decision within a week or two. Minister with responsibility for Information, Telecommunications and Special Projects, Hon. Daryl Vaz, said that the Government is awaiting the comments of the Spectrum Management Authority, the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR) and the Fair...

KINGSTON — A total of 52 community access points (CAPs), which enable persons to access  the Internet, have been established across the island at a cost of $152.4 million, since the initiative began in 2007, Managing Director of the Universal Access Fund (UAF), Hugh Cross, has informed.   Additionally, he tells JIS News that work is currently in progress for the...

As part of its overall programme to facilitate training and development opportunities in alternative energy, the University of the West Indies (UWI) in collaboration with the Wigton Windfarm, the Scientific Research Council and Alternative Power Sources will offer a summer course in alternative energy. The course will be offered in three one-week modules from July 11-29, 2011 with the first...

KINGSTON — An advertising programme geared at expanding the span of economic activities at the Half-Way-Tree Transport Centre in Kingston, as well as its public appeal and ambience, was officially launched on Wednesday (June 29). Management of the Centre’s advertising programme will be undertaken by IPrint Digital Limited, an outdoor advertising company that will be responsible for all advertising and...

KINGSTON — Minister of State for Energy and Mining, Laurence Broderick, said the Government is examining the feasibility of introducing smart grid technology to the island’s electricity distribution network. “Yes, we are looking at it.  We just had an expert down, who has been assisting us in that direction,” he told a recent JIS Think Tank, informing that technical discussions...

KINGSTON — Preliminary work has commenced on the implementation of a major islandwide broadband network project, at a cost of just over $500 million, over a five-year period. Managing Director of the Universal Access Fund Company Limited (UAF), Hugh Cross tells JIS News that the project’s infrastructure, which is slated to be constructed over an 18-month period, was approved by...

KINGSTON — State Minister for Mining and Energy, Hon. Laurence Broderick, is urging students to help promote and support Government’s conservation thrust, by carrying out energy saving activities at home, particularly during the summer holidays. He was speaking at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica’s (PCJ) Energy Conservation Incentive Programme for Schools 2011 awards ceremony, at the Knutsford Court Hotel, New...

KINGSTON — Public and private sector energy stakeholders turned out Wednesday (June 22) for the second Jamaica Carbon Market workshop on the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) and energy efficiency, at the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ) Auditorium, New Kingston. The seminar, held under the theme, “Capacity Building for CDM Development, Carbon Training and New Approach to Energy Project Financing”, assisted...

KINGSTON — The Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce launched its central online database for the Micro, Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise (MSME) sector, the Jamaica Business Information System (JBIS), during a ceremony at the Knutsford Court Hotel, New Kingston , on Friday (June 24),. The database, formally launched by State Minister, Hon. Michael Stern, is a shared facility which enables...

KINGSTON — Government Senator, Dennis Meadows is recommending that the administration engage the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPSCo) in discussions, with a view to breaking the monopoly of the sole distributor of electricity. In a Private Member’s Motion tabled in the Senate yesterday June 10, Senator Meadows noted that the government should conduct a review of existing legislation, with a...

KINGSTON — A project to enhance the competitiveness of Small and Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs), by increasing their access to Information Technology (IT) service, was launched on June 1, at the offices of Jamaica Promotions Corporation (JAMPRO), in New Kingston. Called the Centralised Information Technology System Project, the initiative is funded by the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce and...

MANDEVILLE — The Mandeville Regional Hospital, in Manchester, should see annual energy savings of $2.2 million, as a result of a steam system energy efficiency improvement project, and rehabilitation of its solar water heating system, done by the Petroleum Corporation of Jamaica (PCJ). The steam system project will result in a reduction in fuel consumption by some 20,583 litres of...