Environmentalist groups have welcomed the Bermuda Government’s stated aim to move towards “least cost, high quality and sustainable” electricity.

This week, the Bermuda Government tabled the Electricity Bill, which will open up the Island’s power generation sector to competition, while providing for a new regulatory framework to oversee electricity production and distribution. Reacting in a joint statement, Greenrock and BEST said: “The objective of the proposed act is ‘to achieve, as far as possible, least cost, high quality, environmentally sustainable, secure, and affordable electricity service for the people of Bermuda’.

“Greenrock and BEST feel that it is important that Bermudians are involved and informed in the current debate. Greenrock and BEST support a transition to an electricity system that is moving towards 100 per cent renewable energy.

“In our opinion this is the best way to safeguard our future, to support jobs in a new industry supplying energy conservation technology and installing renewable energy, and to stop sending tens of millions of dollars each year overseas to pay for fossil fuels.

“This is arguably the best choice for our long-term economic interests.”

The press release stated “least cost, high quality, environmentally sustainable, secure, and affordable electricity service” can best be achieved with the following ideas:

• Efficiency and conservation should be prioritised — this will reduce costs and make it more likely that we can take advantage of new technology.

We believe that immediate investment in smart grid infrastructure is an important part of this effort.

• Environmental externalities should be costed into every electricity investment decision — the pollution and greenhouse gas emissions associated with continuing to use fossil fuels will have an impact on Bermuda, and so “least cost” electricity should include these costs.

• Standardised Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) should be finalised immediately to facilitate non-traditional energy sources, which are likely to be lower cost and lower impact than burning fossil fuels.