Joining the fray of responses to the question as to when, and whether Government intends to entertain renewable energy discussions with ANGLEC, the Honorable Minister of Innovation Sustainability and the Environment, Mrs. Quincia Gumbs-Marie voiced her views during the Government’s Press Conference on Monday 6th March, 2023.
Minister Gumbs-Marie’s contribution came on the heels of responses by Minister Haydn Hughes and Minister Dee-Ann Kentish-Rogers.
Minister Hughes had made a comment in reflection, saying that ANGLEC’s Board had wasted about eighteen months not conceding to Government’s proposal for a PPA to provide 100% renewable energy.
“Let me further conceptualize what Minister Hughes said,” Minister Gumbs-Marie said. “He spoke to the heart of what caused the breakdown between the Government of Anguilla and ANGLEC. The reality is, that ANGLEC’s Board has a vision and Government, as a responsible shareholder, had questions about that vision.”
“It is not that they cannot pursue their vision, but given the context of the energy crisis that we face, globally, and the geo-politics that surrounds energy and oil, the question is how do we advance the ultimate decision to provide low-cost energy for the people of Anguilla. That is the question that is at the heart of all of this,” the Innovation Minister noted.
“Government, as a responsible shareholder, has the right to ask questions,” she insisted. “So, if ANGLEC comes to Government and say, ‘We would like to get a loan’, Government has a right to inquire ‘how will this loan be serviced?’ and ‘What will you do if it is not properly serviced?’ And, it is unfortunate that such ordinary responsible questions led us to where we are at today.”
“When we look at any company with any ambition, we must understand the cost of that ambition. And the question must be asked: ‘Can you afford that ambition on your own? And sometimes the answer is ‘no’. But that ‘no’ does not mean failure. ‘No’ may mean you must look at other alternatives,” the Minister questioned. “And, Government simply said to ANGLEC, ‘If you can’t afford this loan, a PPA arrangement will get us there in the same fashion at a lower risk to you.’”
“It was therefore up to ANGLEC’s Board, as a responsible Board, to say ‘considering this is the direction our major shareholder would like us to go, let’s review what we would want to do and compare it with what our shareholder’s advice is and come up with a responsible informed position on how we would move forward Mrs. Gumbs-Marie pointed out.
“Screaming into the void and saying ‘we will just do what we want to do’ makes no sense,” Mrs. Gumbs-Marie said. “And it really bothers me when I hear things like: going the route of a PPA will reduce Anguillian ownership. No! What we will be doing is advancing to a position that will result in the consumer getting lower electricity bills…And ANGLEC has the responsibility to advance us there.”
“ANGLEC cannot do it alone, neither can Government do it alone, and the whole perception of an adversarial relationship will get us nowhere,” the Minister stressed.
