Good afternoon, friends:
It’s good to be here together, to mark new and important steps forward for The Bahamas.
When we came into office, just a few years ago, virtually everyone understood the magnitude of the fiscal and economic crisis the country was facing. Likewise, most people understood the gravity of the health emergency, and the depth of the learning losses suffered by our children, who had been out of school for so long.
Yet there was another crisis, less visible but just as critical nonetheless: the energy crisis.
That monthly electricity bills were too high, and blackouts too frequent – everyone agreed.
But the real dangers were fiscal and infrastructural – critical elements of our outdated energy grid were in danger of collapse, diesel generators were running nonstop in the Family Islands, and BPL was burdened with a half billion dollars in debt.
We have very big ambitions for our country – but it was clear to me that we weren’t going to be able to build a dynamic 21st century economy with a deteriorating 20th century electricity grid.
So, despite having multiple other urgent crises to manage, we decided to take it all on – so that for the first time, our country is modernizing and upgrading the way we generate, store, and distribute electricity all at once, and across our entire archipelago.
And for the first time ever, we are harnessing the power of the sun with utility-scale solar power.
We are building solar farms. We are deploying battery storage. We are constructing microgrids across our islands. And we are doing it with Bahamian companies, Bahamian workers, and Bahamian vision.
Today’s signing is another important step forward in our New Energy Era.
At CV Bethel, right next to the school, we are installing a solar photovoltaic and battery storage system that will supply energy to the national grid. Students will be able to watch the future take shape from their classroom window.
And our students in Nassau won’t be the only ones to see progress in motion – in Andros, in Cat Island, in San Salvador and Long Island — across our Family Islands, new hybrid microgrids are coming. We are going to make sure that cleaner, more reliable, and more affordable electricity reaches everyone.
You know – I grew up in a home without reliable electricity. I know what it feels like when the lights go out and you don’t know when they might come back on. I know what it’s like when light bills are so high it means families and small businesses have to make impossible choices.
So, we are determined for change to reach as many people as possible as quickly as possible.
In this New Energy Era, we are fuelling our ambitions with action.
We’re not just installing new technology – we’re investing in a more affordable way of life for Bahamians, in the ability of our businesses to compete, and in a more sustainable and resilient electricity grid to support our economy.
To the Bahamian companies like CVB Utility Co. Ltd., to the engineers, the planners, and the policymakers who made today possible — thank you.
You are proving that Bahamian innovation and Bahamian know-how can lead the way in our energy transition.
We are moving from dependence to diversification. From diesel and heavy fuels to solar and natural gas. From rental generation to permanent infrastructure. And from fragility to strength.
This is a journey of progress that every Bahamian will benefit from and can take pride in.
Let’s keep going. Let’s keep building together.
Thank you.