Minister of Economic Development, Grant Gibbons, yesterday led a take note debate on the National Electricity Sector Policy of Bermuda in the House of Assembly.

Dr Gibbons said the policy “represents a significant milestone in the evolution of Bermuda’s energy policies”.

Objectives include the provision of high quality electricity services at the least cost, that are environmentally sustainable, affordable and secure.

Other initiatives include the consideration of the viability of introducing LNG (liquefied natural gas) for power generation, opening the energy market to Independent Power Producers, and the transfer of regulatory responsibility to the Regulatory Authority (RA).

One Bermuda Alliance MP Glen Smith said that Bermuda must join the rest of the world by providing cleaner and more sustainable energy sources that are more reliable and financially viable and welcomed the transfer of regulatory responsibly to the RA.

Mr Smith said that using natural gas would be a lot cleaner, but concluded that Bermuda must step up its energy alternatives.

MP Jeff Sousa said the main objective of the policy was to open the market so it can be more competitive and drive down energy costs.

Some members of the Opposition, however, raised concerns about the policy.

Shadow Minister of Economic Development, Wayne Furbert, called for action to be taken more quickly, stating the policy was not as comprehensive as he had hoped.

Mr Furbert questioned if Government would consider introducing a sovereign fund for consumers to fund the installation of solar systems on their property instead of having to take out a bank loan.

He also said that Government should consider nationalising energy distribution because of the “smallness” of Bermuda.

Shadow Minister of Public Safety, Walter Roban, said the policy was “very specific” and “much more limited” than the 2011 Energy White Paper. He added that it does not appear to be “pushing aggressively for any targets” and called on Government to provide a progress report on present energy consumption and where the Island is in relation to previous targets.

Mr Roban also questioned why solar power was the only alternative energy source mentioned in the report and added, “our goals should be bigger with solar”.

He said commercial use of solar could be expanded and suggested placing solar arrays on commercial buildings because some roofs are used “for absolutely nothing”.

Mr Roban also said an effort should be made to change the Building Code to include provisions for solar systems, and that consumers should be encouraged to install them when they renovate.

Opposition Leader Marc Bean said the report showed a continuation of the work begun by the previous Government, but added that the overriding premise in switching to natural gas, which would be “much cleaner environmentally”, would still be an economic one, not an environmental one.

He also called on the Government to ensure that the cost of BELCO transitioning to natural gas would not be shifted to the consumer.

Furthermore, Mr Bean called for the energy strategy to be directed towards alleviating the struggles of those who are already having a hard time paying their monthly bills.

“As legislators our focus should be on those who can least afford it,” he said.

Mr Bean added that the initial cost of solar installations is still off-putting to consumers because it is “too much of a cost” for some to pay back the initial expenditure over 2½ to three years.

He called on Government to consider other energy options, such as tidal energy and generating electricity from the Pembroke dump.