THE ELECTRIC UTILITY INDUSTRY is undergoing a transformation and Barbados Light & Power (BL&P) will be focused on keeping up.
This is according to Chris Huskilson, president and chief executive officer of Emera Inc., the company that recently acquired almost 80 per cent of Light & Power Holdings.
Speaking during a Press briefing last Wednesday at the Island Inn Hotel, he said it was necessary to find productive ways to reduce the reliance on carbon products.
“We also see the opportunity to invest in transmission as part of that and also to invest around natural gas investment,” he said.
Huskilson noted that the transformation would start slowly with stabilizing electricity, then diversifying it.
“Stabilizing electricity is a very important part of making sure we have a successful economy,” he said, noting that a diverse approach could provide “a new future” as it relates to electricity supply and energy supply in general.
Meanwhile, BL&P managing director Peter Williams said the electricity business was becoming increasingly complex. “It’s faced with many challenges . . . certainly the issue of renewable energy, removing ourselves off the carbon-intensive diet we’re on, meeting the challenges of supply reliability, and adapting to new technologies,” he said.
Williams noted that BL&P was already investing in a fibre-optic network and cable to interconnect its substations.
“We have sophisticated customer information systems. All of those things require a lot of support and we see that this expertise can be shared through the Caribbean,” he said.
