A major strategic thrust by he NIC is to use more renewable energy systems in order to reduce the percentage of our operational expenditure that is based on energy consumption.  We are also aligning our operations with the provisions of the Government of Jamaica’s Energy Policy.  Already we have 130kW of solar photovoltaic (PV) capacity installed at three (3) facilities, including two (2) pump stations.  The 2019/20 financial year is scheduled to see the installation of an additional 150kW solar PV capacity at three sites to bring the total installed to 280kW – approximately 5% of current energy demand.

The NIC is always seeking to improve efficiency in water conveyance, technical equipment (including pumps and motors), general system improvement, preventative maintenance and general energy usage.  

We utilize five (5) initiatives to reduce energy demand through power factor improvement from:

• the installation of capacitor banks
• office energy reduction from retrofitting of inverter A/C units and building envelope improvement
• irrigation scheduling to optimise pumping hours
• retrofitting of premium efficiency motors 
• retrofitting of Variable Frequency Drives (VFD) to better match water production to farmer demand