(BIS Photos/Anthon Thompson; Drone Photographer/Courtesy Anthon Thompson)
NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The government is continuing to make good on its promise to reduce reliance on fossil fuels by 2030.
On Thursday, August 22, 2024, the Minister of Energy and Transport the Hon. JoBeth Coleby-Davis led an inspection of solar panels being installed on the rooftop at C.H. Reeves Junior High School off Robinson Road — a renewable energy project being implemented for several public schools.
She was accompanied by Dr. Sterling McPhee, school principal; Oral LaFleur, project coordinator; Lorneska Hepburn, engineering specialist; ministry officials; and representatives from AnO Tech, a company that provides solar energy as a viable option.
The installation is a move to reduce the school’s carbon footprint, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and bring down the cost of electricity, the latter being welcomed by the school’s principal.
Some 144 panels will be installed at the school, at an estimated cost of $130,000. The work is expected to be completed by the end of August, in time for the September 2 start of the school year.
The minister confirmed that the Ministry of Energy and Transport will collaborate with the Ministry of Education to analyze electricity bills at the various schools where panels will be installed to see what the overall energy savings look like.
Principal McPhee also deemed it an opportunity to educate the student body on renewable energy and its benefits to the environment.
The minister noted that the solar panel initiative involves other schools throughout the country, another step towards energy reform as promised in the government’s ‘Blueprint for Change’.
