The Hon. Jobeth Coleby-Davis, Minister of Transport and Energy
Minister of Transport and Energy, the Hon. Jobeth Coleby-Davis appeared at a press briefing at the Office of the Prime Minister on Thursday where she fielded questions from members of the media on the future of Bahamas Power and Light (BPL) and energy sector reform.
Coleby-Davis said, “we’re in a crisis. We have to fix BPL and I am not here to play political games. The opposition had an opportunity when they served. I don’t think that they did enough and so now that we’re faced with having to fix this crisis, I have to get the work done.”
The government recently revealed that a complete overhaul of BPL would cost approximately $1 billion, half of which is needed for capital investment. Coleby-Davis said, “the reason I advise the Bahamian public that BPL has a $500 million debt is because I am now in a position, as the minister with responsibility, to find a solution of how we’re paying down the debt. So everything is on the table as we are coming to solutions and possible ways in which we can right size BPL. Rightsizing BPL is also putting them in a position to bring down their debt and make sure that they are able to facilitate continuous and on time payments to the pension fund.”
On Wednesday, the government passed a new Electricity Bill and the Natural Gas Bill in the House Of Assembly.
