3 weeks ago
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Having given the green light to two investors to develop renewable energy plants under its 100-Megawatt project, the Generation Procurement Entity, GPE, indicated that it is preparing a new project round for the tender of another 168MW.
Under its current project, Wigton Energy Limited, one of two successful bidders for the supply of new renewable energy capacity, will proceed with the development of a 49.83MW solar plant.
The facility, to be built in Clarendon, is expected to supply 102,508.28MWh of power, annually.
The other bidder selected by the GPE, under its 100MW project, was SunTerra Energy Jamaica Limited, which will install 50MW of renewable solar power in Trelawny. That company is to build a plant that has annual average guaranteed energy of 117,889.30MWh.
Both companies will develop, own, and operate the respective plants, GPE said in its report on the bids. They were previously shortlisted from among about a dozen candidates.
The energy they produce will be supplied to the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited, JPS, under power-purchase agreements, the GPE report said.
The state body also announced that another tender for 168MW of renewable energy would be launched in the current financial year, that is, by the end of March 2025.
SunTerra, which is owned and headed by a former CEO of the JPS, Emanuel DaRosa, has previously indicated that it plans to invest US$60 million in the development of its solar plant, financed by a mix of debt and equity. The nascent firm, operational since 2022, has been installing solar energy solutions across the Caribbean.
Wigton Energy Limited operates Jamaica’s largest wind energy generating facility, a 62.7MW wind farm complex located in Rose Hill, Manchester. The wind farm currently comprises three plants. When the new Clarendon solar facility is completed, production capacity at Wigton Energy should stand at nearly 113MW. The company said in a statement that it would cement Wigton Energy’s position as the leading renewable energy provider in Jamaica and the English-speaking Caribbean.
The Wigton and Sunterra plants will compete in capacity with the current holder of the title of largest solar farm, Paradise Park, a 51MW facility that operates from Westmoreland.
Wigton Energy CEO Gary Barrow, who is also a former JPS executive, was not immediately available for additional comment. There is yet no indication of how Wigton will finance the build-out of the new facility or what the projected is expected to cost.
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