On Monday, November 22, 2021, the Ministry of Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship organizes the Barbados Sustainable Energy Conference 2021, under the motto “Championing our Future to a Sustainable Energy Sector”. The event will be hosted by the Honorable Kerrie Symmonds, Minister of Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and Mr. Andrew Gittens, Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Energy, Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
This Barbados Sustainable Energy Conference 2021 is part of the CARICOM's Energy Month and it’s being held in conjunction with the Seventh Caribbean Sustainable Energy Forum (CSEF-VII). Therefore, the registration takes place through its web page, just make sure to choose the Barbados Sustainable Conference 2021 in the dropdown menu.
The Conference will have a series of panel discussions, powerpoint presentations and video presentations. Through the Sustainability Hall, you will be able to access the various sessions and contents, by clicking on the different screens.
The sessions will focus on the following topics:
- Session #1 - Progress of Barbados’ 100% Energy Transition. The intention of the session is to address matters of an overarching nature such as defining what the energy sector will look like in the coming decade as we approach and by-pass 2030. This panel discussion will set the stage for conversations around topics such as the role of oil and gas in the future energy mix, the need for sustainable transportation options, and posit a general picture of where the region is realistically in achieving pre-determined targets for energy.
- Session #2 - The Electric Mobility Transition. The need for a transition away from fossil fuel dependence faces its greatest challenge in the transportation sector. Numerous bodies of work have already been undertaken which prove that the sector, as the user of one-third of liquid fossil fuels, also poses the most tedious logistical challenges for transitioning. In this session, the intention is to highlight the achievements of the government to date, with a heavy emphasis on the new electric buses and the savings which are being seen from their use. The panellists will also speak to issues with the preparation of a national Transportation Policy and include international best practices in the preparation of such a policy as well as how concerns with electrification of heavy duty vehicles and new technologies can be incorporated.
- Session #3 – The potential for Wind Energy in Barbados. Wind exists as an alternative source of electricity to help Barbados achieve its 2030 targets. However, there are still a number of regulatory and legislative frameworks which must be developed before the sector can achieve its truest potential whether on or offshore. It is intended that this discussion will build out matters relevant to potential linkages with oil and gas, fisheries and the environment.
- Session #4 - Financing the Transition. The Division of Energy acknowledges that financing the Transition of the sector away from fossil fuels into more sustainable sources of energy will require a collaborative mix of both private and public players. Also, this conference will provide an excellent opportunity to promote the recapitalized Energy Smart Fund II. Discussion will cover not only financing the transition but correspondingly, elements of the challenges facing small businesses in finding financing and the possibilities which exist for crowd funding and blended financing.
Partners
Participants
Click on each of the images below to see the speakers' biographies.
