Prime Minister
ENVIRONMENTAL FOCUS
Hon. Kenny D Anthony
Commits to
Higher
National Renewable Prime Minister Dr. Kenny Anthony, Sir Richard Branson and Members of the Carbon War Room at the Signing of the MOU On Moskito Island in the British Virgin Islands, on Thursday 6th February, 2014, Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Kenny Anthony and Sir Richard Branson signed the Memorandum of Understanding that made it official - Saint Lucia became the second island to join the Ten Island Challenge. The Ten Island Challenge was launched at the Rio+20 Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 2012 by Sir Richard Branson and Christiana Figueres, the Executive Director of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC, and provides a platform for progressive island governments to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels “through the acceleration of commercial opportunities on islands”
Hon. Dr. James Fletcher Addressing the Creating Climate Wealth Meeting BusinessFocus Mar / Apr
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Energy Targets
by attracting investments and technologies in renewable energy and energy efficiency. At the Creating Climate Wealth Summit that was held in the British Virgin Islands and hosted by Sir Richard Branson’s Carbon War Room, Saint Lucia joined Aruba, which itself Prime Ministers and Energy Ministers with had joined the Ten Island Challenge Sir Richard Branson at Close of Meeting in 2012. In signing the Memorandum of and geothermal and in the process, to Understanding with the Carbon War Room, cause Saint Lucia to meet 20% of its energy Saint Lucia unlocks significant technical needs from renewable sources by the year and legal support for its geothermal 2020. However, Prime Minister Anthony development programme, the mapping is sufficiently convinced that Saint Lucia is of its energy ecosystem, the development capable of meeting and surpassing those of a utility-scale solar-photovoltaic facility, goals that last week, in the British Virgin and the implementation of a waste-to- Islands, he requested that his Energy energy project, among other energy- Minister increase this target to 35% by the related initiatives. year 2020. Critical to meeting this goal will Saint Lucia’s participation in the be the development of our geothermal renewable energy meeting, at which it resource and two weeks ago, a team from was represented by the Prime Minister, the World Bank visited Saint Lucia at the the Energy Minister Hon. Dr. James invitation of the government to help Fletcher and the Chief Energy, Science and advance the geothermal development Technology Officer Ms. Judith Ephraim, programme. In the coming weeks, the was made even more memorable by a Government of Saint Lucia will intensify commitment given by Prime Minister discussions with private investors and Dr. Kenny Anthony at the closing of the developers in the geothermal and wind event. In 2011, on assuming office, the energy sectors with a view to making Kenny Anthony administration committed concrete steps toward meeting the 35% by to increasing the production of electricity 2020 target. from renewable sources like solar, wind,