Belco has started public consultation about plant location and alternative energy sources in order to better plan for the future.

Total Marketing and Communications carried out a telephone survey on behalf of Belco asking people if they would support the construction of a new power plant or sub-plant. They also asked members of the public where they think a new plant should go, if it were built.

Alternative energy sources were also featured prominently in the telephone survey with people being asked if they were open to developments such as wind turbines and solar panels.

Belco vice president Linda Smith Wilson said the company's aim was to gather information that would allow them to assess the interest in various energy options in order to gauge what the demand for them would be over the next 20 years.

With Bermuda's demand for energy expected to rise 1.5 percent annually over the next 20 years, she said it is something the company has to look into.

She said: "We want to know what people are doing now to conserve energy and if they are interested in becoming more energy efficient.

"Are people interested in solar panels? Do they want them on their house or is that not aesthetically pleasing?

"We want to get a sense of what the interest is on the Island and if there is a demand for it. These are things we need to know as we plan for the future."

Environmentalist Stuart Hayward said he supported the direction Belco has taken in gathering information about the public's knowledge and interest in alternative energy sources.

He said: "I support public consultation about anything, particularly the environment .The discussion about renewable energy is one that is taking place around the world."

It was important that the public had information about energy sources, he said, in order to make informed discussion in the future.

Mr. Hayward added: "Like many things the more you know the better you can evaluate it."

In the 2005 Annual Report Belco stated: "As a community, we need to be creative and committed to investigate ways to do things differently, while also maintaining our high standard of living.

"The future will see us entering into partnerships where there are opportunities to supplement traditional power generation with renewable energy sources or fuel based applications in other locations of the Island."

Last February Belco signed an agreement with Current to Current Bermuda Limited to purchase up to 20 MW of power. The Massachusetts based corporation and Belco hope to sink the world's first underwater power generator off the south coast of the Island.

The Current to Current scheme would capture ocean currents to initially provide nearly ten per cent of the Island's electricity needs.

Ms Smith Wilson said it was important to gather public opinion on the various options available to Belco in order to "gauge the demand for the variables in the mix".