Get on board!

Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Wilfred Abrahams is encouraging persons to jump on the bandwagon of creating 100 per cent renewable energy for Barbados as he is of the firm belief that the next big breakthrough in the area of renewable resources could be from Barbados.

He expressed this as he delivered remarks during the opening ceremony of the inaugural Energy Expo, which was held at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre yesterday afternoon.

Abrahams revealed that he met with an interesting young scientist, Nikolai Holder, who was pursuing a PhD, and who had successfully converted grass into fuel.

“He has done it on a small scale and as I listen to him and hear his dream and what he believes can be accomplished – he also highlighted the lack of resources put into research and development – and I began to see the frustration that held us back,” the Minister said.

“It is not enough for us to build on what other people have developed. It is not enough to look to other people to innovate and then try to jump on the train after the train has left the station. We need to push in Barbados the ‘I believe’ attitude. We need to buy into the dream of 100 per cent renewable energy for Barbados.”

The Minister stated that after speaking to Holder and others in the industry, it was clear that something needed to be done.

He encouraged all persons – scientists, innovators, creators, and the like – to express their needs and wants to the ministry.

“I want to let all the entrepreneurs, innovators and scientists here understand that the ministry will do what it can to facilitate you. Do not hesitate to ask for what you need. We may not be able to give you everything that you want, but unless you ask for it, we will not know how to start to help you,” he said.

“And our commitment in the ministry is to lend you whatever commitment we can to help you develop your products and innovations.”