The Tribune

A Cabinet minister yesterday promoted The Bahamas’ energy reforms at the region’s 10th Annual Caribbean Infrastructure Forum (CARIF).

JoBeth Coleby- Davis, minister of energy, utilities and aviation, used her role as a featured speaker at the conference in Miami to highlight The Bahamas’ ongoing transformation of its energy, utilities and aviation sectors plus the investment opportunities being created.

“The Bahamas government has developed a comprehensive strategy to build infrastructure that is more reliable, diversified and resilient, while reducing The Bahamas’ exposure to imported fuel prices, climate-related events and external economic shocks,” said Mrs Coleby-Davis.

She focused on investments in solar energy, battery storage, natural gas, hybrid microgrids and grid modernisation. Across the Family Islands, hybrid energy systems are being developed to combine renewable energy with reliable generation and storage.

In Abaco, the EA Energy facility comprising around 13 MW (mega watts) of solar, 30 MW of LNG generation and 15 MWh (mega watt hours) of battery storage is under construction, with the solar component expected to begin supplying the grid in November 2026.

On New Providence, Mrs Coleby-Davis pointed to the development of 70 MW of solar, and 35 MW of battery storage, alongside grid modernisation initiatives. The Government says Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) consumers have enjoyed $40m in fuel savings in 2024, with projected annual savings of around $125.6m by the end of 2026.

Mrs Coleby-Davis also highlighted investments in water security and aviation connectivity, including the Family Island Airport Renaissance, which is targeting more than 19 airport projects across The Bahamas. Four airports have been completed since the Renaissance launch in 2022, with a further 15 active projects in the current airport infrastructure pipeline.

The minister added that the Government is using power purchase agreements (PPAs), independent power producer structures and public-private partnerships (PPPs) to attract capital, technology and expertise into renewable energy, storage, grid services, aviation and other critical infrastructure projects.

She also called for greater use of blended finance and multilateral support to prepare, aggregate and de-risk projects, enabling private capital to participate at scale.

“The Bahamas is not waiting for resilience to become an investment opportunity. We are building the investment opportunity around resilience now,” said Mrs Coleby-Davis.