Barbados is equipped to handle the integration of renewable energy sources into the national power grid. This was the assessment of Minister of Energy and Business Kerrie Symmonds, who was speaking at the Barbados Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) Renewable Energy Expo at Hilton Barbados yesterday. Symmonds said that he was “baffled” by the spread of misinformation and the prevailing claims that the grid was either oversaturated – which …
As Government officials work behind the scenes to avert a hike in animal feed prices, farmers have declared that another increase in the cost of the product could drive them out of business.Saying that they simply cannot afford to pay more at this time, they warned of layoffs and even bankruptcy with a possible hike by Pinnacle Feeds looming.Minister of Business Kerrie Symmonds told Barbados TODAY that an analysis is being conducted to determine the extent of the challenges the company said had contributed to its decision to increase prices by as much as 11 per cent and inform recommendations on the way forward.The manufacturer of poultry and livestock feed informed the Barbados Agricultural Society (BAS) last week that it could no longer hold off increasing prices until January 2023, given increasing input costs. However, it subsequently announced that it would delay the planned increase.
Government’s fuel import bill nearly tripled in the first quarter of this year when compared to the same period last year, Minister of Energy and Business Kerrie Symmonds disclosed Wednesday as he cautioned that could rise further.According to him, the Mia Mottley-led administration spent a total of $455 million on imported petroleum products from January to April this year, while for the same period last year the bill was $162 million.“That statistic alone tells you the nature of the uphill battle this little island is in, in order to maintain the quality of life, the standard of living, all the things that we have become accustomed to, all of which are fuelled by the fuel which we import, the petroleum products that we import, and the cost of it has escalated alarmingly,” Symmonds said.
Barbados’ efforts to increase the ease of doing business have received a major boost in the form of an agreement between Government and the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) for the full implementation of the Electronic Single Window across key governmental agencies for trade. The project is expected to be completed within 13 months and will cut out a significant amount of red tape which import and …