ECCI_SIM_ISSC

Jamaica Sustainable Island Market Opportunities

Sameer SimmsEdinburgh Centre for Carbon InnovationSeptember 04, 2015

Outline of Presentation

● Purpose

● Background

● Energy

● Transport

● Water

● Waste

● Buildings

● Consultancy

● Low Carbon Innovation Support

● Conclusions

Purpose

● To highlight opportunities for development of mutually beneficial relationships between Jamaica and Scottish businesses

● Jamaica stands to benefit from access to expertise and new technologies that assist in sustainable development

● Scottish businesses stand to benefit from a larger target market and increased revenues

● To compare low carbon innovation support systems in Jamaica and Scotland and highlight how weak areas can be improved using solutions from the Scottish system

Background on Jamaica

● Small island developing state in the Caribbean● Populations is a little over 2.7 million● Land area is 10,991 km²● GDP per capita is £3,392● Major indutries are tourism, mining, agriculture, and services● Heavy dependence on imported oil● The island is rich in natural resources (bauxite, solar, wind, biomass, and

hydro)● An area less than 3km2 (0.03% of total) receives enough energy from

sunlight to satisfy electricity demand

Energy

● High electricity costs 16p/kWh (down from 25p/kWh in 2010)

● High dependence on oil imports causes low energy security

● High energy costs negatively affects all other sectors

● Opportunities in energy efficiency,

monitoring, audits, renewables, and consusltancy● Receive much attention causes fairly strong competition● Competitive advantage needed

(Image sourceshttp://www.jamaicaobserver.com/business/Petrojam-checking-accuracy-of-PSOJ-study_18139599http://www.petrojam.com/sites/default/files/styles/frontpage_slide/public/frontpage-slides/aerial_shot_of_the_refinery.jpg?itok=teUBAP1f)

Energy cont...● Community-based energy projects have

potential under the rural electrification program● Smart grid and energy storage equipment and

expertise providers are encouraged to explore opportunities

● Immense market opportuity is available for low-cost cooling or combined cooling and power solutions

● While the residential market is saturated, utility-scale PV systems should definitely explore opportunites in Jamaica

● Micro-hydro, micro-wind, utility-scale wind,and biomass (sugarcane) based power plants have good potential (Image source: http://xenogyre.com/2012/10/12/jamaica-

leads-with-41-7mw/)

Transport● High fuel prices● Need to tap into renewable sources

● While fiscal incentives are provided,

electric, hybrid, and hydrogen

vehicles are still uneconomical

● Best opportunities exist in fleet management, driver training, biodiesel, and bioethanol production

(Image source http://bitujamaica.org/perch/resources/highway-2000w544h362.jpg)

Water

● Recent drought spells

--> scheduled water supply

--> need to tap into more water sources

--> need to improve water-use efficiency

● Businesses with expertise in water

supply and treatment will find

opportunities with the government● Opportunities exits for services (like audits)

and products which reduce domestic

and industrial water consumption(Image source: http://old.jamaica-gleaner.com/gleaner/20150104/lead/lead91.html)

Waste● Need to upgrade disposal sites into state-

of-the-art landfills● Recent fires at the largest disposal site has

increased urgency● Solid and liquid wastes are renewable

sources of energy

● Opportunities for businesses with expertise in landfill development and management, biogas production from animal manure and domestic wastewater, waste minimisation, and reuse.

● Need for new comprehensive waste policy to improve investor confidence (Image source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Aerial-view-

of-fire-at-Riverton-City-dump)

Buildings● The building code enforceable by law is over

a century old● Lack of attention means large potential for

improvement● Energy management covered previously

● The current voluntary update code should model international best practices especially with energy efficiency anb be legislated

● Exporting materials from Scotland might not be economical

● These materials should be tested for suitability in Jamaica's hot and hurricane-vulnerable climate

(Image source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/newstest/UWI-s-new--3-5-billion-state-of-the-art-medical-school_13018666)

Consultancy

● Opportunities for consultancy in specific areas were mentioned earlier

● In general, there is good demand for expertise in project design,

planning, and environmental assessment as well as legal and policy

aspects of projects.

● Current practice utilises local firms and international ones

● Strong competition will be faced in many sectors

● Areas such as community-based projects, waste minimisation, and

waste reuse are unpopular and should be expored

Low Carbon Innovation Support

● Difference in development status mirrored in innovation support systems

● Fundamental stages identified are conceptualisation, feasibility

assessments, development and testing, and

commercialisation/implementation

● Fundamental barriers identified are need for behavioural change, access

to funding, policy environment, and technical barriers

● Low carbon innovation is needed to lower GHG emisisons and reduce

negative economic impacts caused by high dependence on expensive

fossil fuels.

Low Carbon Innovation Support cont...

● Need for a specific and thorough innovation policy

● Providing financial and fiscal incentives for low carbon loans

● Increase public-private sector and university-private sector

partnerships to address technical barriers and access to expertise

● Commercialisation and venture capital capacity should be

developed

● Creation of a one-stop low carbon innovation incubator

Conclusion

● Most sectors presents strong potential for successful relationships to be developed

● Some sectors have received more attention than others and presents strong competition

● Government actions are needed in some to increase investor confidence

● The government encourages and strongly supports private sector participation in all the sectors assessed

● Interested businesses should contact the respective ministries and agencies to get more detailed information

● The government should create a specific innovation support policy and an executive arm to address support issues and barriers.

Questions???

iRepMobay

(Image source: http://www.secretsresorts.com/modules/mod_image_show_gk4/cache/sewmb.00RL01gk-is-243.jpg)