EVER SINCE the energy crisis of 1974, we have been subjected to periodic pronouncements by Government and Opposition officials about new energy initiatives in our drive to cut our oil import bill and improve the competitiveness of our manufacturing sector.

Unfortunately, I have yet to hear any far-reaching or innovative ideas on how to make this a reality, and it is only a matter of time before we find ourselves back on the treadmill of rising oil prices as the world economy recovers from the current recession.

The fact is that even with the reluctant removal of import duties on the critical components, alternative energy sources are still much too expensive for most potential purchasers, with the payback period for the average household being around five to seven years at current electricity prices.

One-time benefit

One way in which this period could be reduced is for the Government to allow a significant tax credit to anyone who installs a new alternative energy generation or energy-saving system. This could be made revenue-neutral by structuring the tax credit in such a way that it is offset by the equivalent amount of fuel which Petrojam would no longer have to provide. Of course, the tax credit would be a one-time benefit, while the savings to the country would extend over the life of the system. To minimise abuse of the credit, inspectors could make random checks on installations to ensure that they are permanent and functional - just to make sure that the system is not abused.

In the case of transport, why are we not encouraging the use of more fuel efficient modes of transport? Could we not consider removing duties (including GCT) on all bicycles, electric bicycles, scooters and small motor cycles with an engine size up to 100cc? The streets of Asian cities are filled with commuters using these to go about their daily business. Again, the revenue lost would be more than offset by the savings in our annual fuel import bill. We could even consider a return to the days of the licensing of bicycles as I understand was done many years ago - the funds from which could be used to create bicycle lanes on some of our city roadways. How many bicycles or scooters can we import for the cost of a single second-hand Japanese car or a coaster bus?

New approach

Large scale alternative energy projects are highly capital intensive and are attractive to policymakers because they require large foreign-direct investment and can provide significant employment during the life of the project, but can Jamaica afford such projects at this time? Might it not be better to take small, affordable interim steps to energy independence while plans for these large projects are germinating?

While these ideas may not all be practical or feasible for one reason or another, they do provide a starting point for a new approach to energy savings. It is all well and good to talk about net metering versus net billing, coal versus liquefied petroleum gas, and pay lip service to a national energy policy, but if the average person cannot take advantage of the technology because of the initial cost, then the take-up will not be great enough to make a significant impact on our annual fuel import bill.

I am, etc.,

TREVOR BLAIR

tblair_ja@yahoo.com

Irish Town

St Andrew