NRP PRESS RELEASE
Charlestown, Nevis (Monday, October 6th, 2014) -NRP Senator in the Nevis Island Assembly, the Hon. Carlisle Powell told Good Morning St. Kitts Nevis Radio host, Maurice ‘EK’ Flanders on Thursday that it is, “a shame that through the poor negotiating skills of the Concerned Citizens Movement (CCM) led Administration Nevis, will be paying an American waste-to-energy company to import garbage from the region to Nevis!”
Deputy Premier, Hon. Mark Brantley, who is not the Minister of renewable energy has signed off on a deal with OMNI ALPHA knowing that Nevis does not generate the required amount of waste to make the project feasible.
“I wonder if Nevis might have to send a barge to St. Kitts and elsewhere with a request for some garbage. I hope we don’t have to pay VAT on the garbage,” quipped Powell.
According to a Nevis Reformation Party agreement with a similar waste-to-energy Company during the Nevis Reformation Party (NRP) Administration, the company was going to set up a small plant, which would do its own mining set up, its own financing and other amenities.
“It is funny that the people of Nevis are not being told the full story on this waste project, as when Mark Brantley was in Opposition he wanted to see the NRP agreements for the geothermal project, he wanted to see the agreement for the Wind Farm and the agreement with BEAD who supply water”.
Under the CCM signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Powell said Nevis will have to pay a $15 a ton fee for the company to take garbage to be used by the plant. This same garbage would be used to generate electricity. The CCM government has also guaranteed a 2% increase in the price of electricity annually; “but it gets worse”, Powell noted as currently residents of Nevis pay 56 cents per kilowatt hour for the present fossil fuel arrangement.
“This CCM government with Mark Brantley with no experience in this field, no understanding of the affairs of Nevis Electricity and costs, has signed off on the waste-to-energy agreement with this American company who will get 71 cents per kilowatt hour,” stated Powell.
Apparently, the arrangement is a lot more than the former NRP-led Administration agreed to with the geothermal deal which was less than 30 cents per kilowatt hour, and the Wind Farm deal which was less than 50 cents per kilowatt hour.
During the program, Host EK, said he was speaking to Labour candidate for Constituency #8 Dr. Terrance Drew and Drew said he looked at a similar waste-to-energy arrangement and it could not work because St. Kitts does not generate enough garbage. “So as St. Kitts has a much larger population than Nevis, and St. Kitts found it not viable, how could that waste-to-energy project be workable for Nevis,” posed EK.
According to Powell, “CCM will be best known as the government for increasing the cost of electricity and for signing an agreement for importing other people’s garbage from regional islands into Nevis but this is what CCM is all about, very little experience, listen to nobody and a complete waste of time,” stated Powell.