Energy Minister inspects solar panel installation at CH Reeves Junior High School

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – The government is continuing to deliver on its commitment to reduce reliance on fossil fuels by 2030.

On Thursday, August 22, 2024, the Honourable JoBeth Coleby-Davis, Minister of Energy and Transportation, led a tour of the solar panels installed on the roof of CH Reeves Junior High School on Robinson Road — part of an ongoing renewable energy project for several public schools.

She was accompanied by school principal Dr. Sterling McPhee, project coordinator Oral Lafleur, engineering expert Loneska Hepburn, ministry officials and representatives of AnO Tech, the company that offered solar energy as a viable option.

The device was installed to reduce the school’s carbon footprint, reduce reliance on fossil fuels and cut electricity costs, the latter of which was welcomed by the school’s principal.

The school will install about 144 solar panels at an estimated cost of $130,000. The work is expected to be completed by the end of August, in time for the start of school on September 2.

The minister confirmed that the Departments of Energy and Transport will work with the Department of Education to analyse the electricity bills of individual schools that have installed solar panels to understand the overall energy savings.

Principal McPhee also sees this as an opportunity to educate students about renewable energy and its benefits to the environment.

The minister noted that the solar panel programme also involves other schools across the country and is another step in the energy reforms promised by the government in its Blueprint for Change.