Government Updating National Energy Policy

The Government is updating the National Energy Policy (2009-2030) to ensure that it reflects global and local changes and positions the energy sector to become a more secure, sustainable, clean and reliable sector over the next 30 years.

The updated Policy will also provide guidance towards achieving the target of 50 per cent renewables within the electricity sector.

This was stated by Governor-General, His Excellency the Most Hon. Sir Patrick Allen, as he delivered the Throne Speech to open the 2023/24 session of Parliament, on February 14 at Gordon House, under the theme ‘A Stronger Jamaica: Consolidating Our Recovery, Reigniting Our Decade of Growth’.

“As we build a stronger Jamaica, we recognise the value of energy security and technology adoption,” the Governor-General said.

Noting that access to technology is an imperative to Jamaica’s inclusive growth, he emphasised that the National Broadband Initiative (NBI) is a major activity for the Government and is geared towards deepening the penetration of affordable high-capacity networks islandwide.

“The initiative will establish an emergency fibre backbone and connect public educational institutions and places of safety to a government wide-area network,” he said.

During the last year, through a mixed use of government and private-sector fibre, the emergency fibre backbone achieved 80 per cent completion.

To date, all municipal corporation buildings and parish courts have been connected via fibre, with the exception of the Court at Duncans, Trelawny. In addition, all Parish Courts were connected via microwave.