Durrant Pate/Contributor

SunTerra Energy Jamaica and Wigton Windfarm Limited have won the Government of Jamaica’s (GOJ) pre-awarded bid for the provision of 100 megawatts (MW) of renewable energy.

Both bids came in for the provision of solar projects in the parishes of Trelawny and Clarendon, respectively according to information from the Generation Procurement Entity (GPE), which is handling the energy procurement process. SunTerra offered a net capacity of 50MW and Wigton 49.83MW.

In case the pre-awarded bids fall through, runners-up are Blue Mahoe Energy, Jamaica Energy Partners and InterEnergy Renewables, which also presented solar projects, each of 50MW. GPE received a total of 12 proposals, all solar for 400MW. 

The next stage is the opening of technical proposals of the pre-awarded bids, followed by the announcement of successful bidders, after which the period to obtain the generation license and negotiate and execute the power purchase agreement (PPA) would begin.

The request for proposals (RFP) for 100MW renewable energy was issued in May 2023 and the government plans to launch a second process for 168MW later this year. Jamaica’s renewable energy target is 50 per cent by 2030. 

The current installed capacity reaches 1,041MW, of which 83 per cent is thermal, primarily natural gas, and the remainder renewables (wind, hydro and solar). The successful bidders will get a 20-year power purchase agreement, which may be renewed for up to six more, subject to approval from the Office of Utilities Regulation (OUR).

The energy produced by the successful bidders will be sold to the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS).