Wigton taps former JPS exec as new CEO

Business executive Gary Barrow will become the next head of Wigton Windfarm Limited in the newly created post of chief executive officer, starting May 6.

Barrow, whose last job was with power utility Jamaica Public Service Company Limited, where he worked for nearly a dozen years, is filling the vacancy that the resignation of Earl Barrett, managing director, has created.

Wigton has also appointed Michelle Chin Lenn as deputy CEO, and will be eliminating the previous position she held, that of head of energy. Chin Lenn has been acting as managing director in the wake of Barrett’s March 31 departure.

Wigton is contracted to JPS as an independent power provider with the capacity to supply over 62.7MW of energy to the national electricity grid. However, nearly 21MW of that supply is under pressure due to aged equipment that Wigton is in the process of replacing.

JPS has granted Wigton a three-year reprieve to have the equipment replaced, and the renewable energy company is in the process of getting regulatory approval and tying down financing for the new wind turbines to be procured.

Wigton is yet to say how much it needs to invest to replace the turbines, or whether the upgrades will take Wigton I beyond its current capacity of 20.7MW.

On his entry, Barrow will take the lead on executing the upgrades. He will also be at the forefront of future negotiations on the restoration of the more standard IPP contract, that is, one lasting around 20 years, for the segment of the Rose Hill, Manchester-based wind farm, referred to as Wigton 1, which was developed two decades ago. The other elements of Wigton, II and III, were commissioned in 2010 and 2016, respectively.

In terms of Wigton’s dealings with JPS, it will have a leader that’s familiar with the inner workings of the power utility to lead its talks. Barrow held various positions during his 11-year run as a senior executive at JPS, and was chief operating officer when he retired last October. Years before joining JPS, he was also once the president of Cable & Wireless Jamaica, from 2001 to 2004, and has had other senior executive postings in Trinidad & Tobago and London.

In all, Barrow has more than three decades of experience as a business executive, mostly within the electricity and telecommunications sectors.

Wigton Windfarm said in a market filing that its Barrow’s recruitment would “further allow the company to fully realise its vision of being a profitable, regional conglomerate with successful clean energy and other investments”.

Wigton’s move towards diversification of its revenue stream has seen the company taking positions in the EV dealership market and energy installation projects through acquisitions and partnerships. It’s also among the bidders on a government project to provide up to 100MW of new renewable sources of energy for the national grid.

“Mr Barrow also takes the lead at an exciting time for Wigton, leading the charge for new investments to deliver a more diversified energy portfolio and growth agenda,” Wigton’s board said.

His past experiences in business, more so at JPS, will allow Barrow “to hit the ground running,” Wigton said.

business@gleanerjm.com