The Bahamas has become the latest recruit to Richard Branson's green energy drive for Caribbean islands.
Branson's Carbon War Room NGO is aiming to help islands in the region transition from expensive fossil fuel imports to using their own renewable energy resources as part of its Ten Island Challenge programme.
This week the Bahamas joined the push, committing to developing 20MW of solar PV generation in the outer Family Islands, bringing energy efficiency and solar solutions to a local high school, and replacing streetlights across the nation with energy efficient LED lights.
Carbon War Room plans to support these goals by providing the country's government with a range of technical, project management, communications, and business advisory services.
The Bahamas joins the islands of Aruba, Grenada, San Andres and Providencia in Colombia, Saint Lucia, and Turks & Caicos in the challenge, which aims to generate how small states can decarbonise in a cost-effective manner.
"The Bahamas' entry into the Ten Island Challenge signals another step forward for the Caribbean region in the effort towards a clean energy future," Branson said in a statement. "The progress made in The Bahamas will help inspire other islands to work towards accomplishing their renewable energy objectives."
While the focus to date has been on Caribbean islands, earlier this year Peter Boyd, Carbon War Room's chief operating officer, told BusinessGreen the programme could expand into the Pacific and to isolated communities, military bases, or mines. "There are island energy economies even if the 'island' isn't surrounded by water," he said at the time.
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