By: Precious Mills
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (Thursday 20th January 2022) — The Federation of St. Kitts and Nevis currently has two solar energy lump sum project funding options through the Government of India: a proposal offer of a US$10 million line of credit for solar energy projects, and also a US$50,000 grant. Such details were shared by High Commissioner of India to St. Kitts-Nevis Dr. K.J. Srinivasa during his recent visit, when he did a sit-down interview with local media on Thursday 13th January 2022 at the Tiranga restaurant at Frigate Bay.
Dr. Srinivasa informed that St. Kitts-Nevis has joined the International Solar Alliance (ISA), and that the ratification “now means that St. Kitts and Nevis is now eligible for technology granting and funding through that International Solar Alliance.” The ISA was started by India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the former French President, and India now has a 40% mix of renewable energy in its production — one of the largest solar farms in the world is in India.
The US$50,000 grant under the ISA can be used for solar projects in various sectors including solar health facilities, solar cold storages for agricultural produce and fisheries, and solar agricultural pumps. The larger US$10 million line of credit — part of a $150 million commitment by India’s Prime Minister to CARICOM countries in 2019 at the sidelines of the UNGA — can fund major renewable energy projects. In Guyana, $7.5 million of a similar credit is being used to electrify 30,000 rural houses with solar energy using Indian companies, and the project will also train locals to maintain the installations. “We are not going to depend upon technicians coming from outside so this would generate local employment,” Dr. Srinivasa noted.