Energy efficientcy for tourism sector

No. 63 Monday, March 8, 2010
Representatives from the tourism sector flocked the HalfMoon Resort on March 2, 2010 to attend a workshop aimed at assisting and supporting Jamaican Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in reducing their energy costs.

    This workshop was put on by the Inter-American Investment Corporation (lIC), The Jamaica Hotel and Tourist Association and Bank of Nova Scotia Jamaica.
    Representatives. from many well-known hotels and hotel providers in Jamaica were present at the workshop. These are Sandals, Margaretville, Vaughn's Villa, Holiday Inn, Hedonism, Rainforest Seafood, Jamaica Broilers, CPJ, Hotel Mocking Bird, as well as others.
    The workshop, which began at 8:30 a.m., opened with Senior Financial Specialist of IIC, Carlo Serrano and Product and Portfolio Manager of Scotia Bank, Asquith Brown, who welcomed guest and introduced the event at hand. The floor was then taken by Klaus Reisinger, Managing Director of ALLPLAN, who sought 'to explain the background and driving force for energy efficiency. In his speech he outlined how climate change and peak in oil resources are the driving forces for energy efficiency. He later moved on to explain easy ways to save energy by designing an energy audit phase which targets economic measures of optimizing energy conservation, cost and C02 -reduction,
    The floor was then passed to Andreas Karner, Senior Consultant and Team Leader of the energy and Carbon Management at KWI, who enlighten the tourism sector how to save energy with attractive pay back periods. He first elaborated on the issue of how significant the amount of energy is used in a hotel daily for operation and recreational activities, with guest room areas consuming the most; how energy cost is the second highest operational cost after payroll and making up to 70% of utility cost.
    Karner then detailed the benefits of utilizing energy efficiency. This he address as monetary savings, less dependency on fossil fuel and the use of renewable energy that's environmentally friendly. Also not to be left out, he included the key element of financial and cost investment that will be needed to effectively manage and monitor energy control. To close, he gives numerous recommendations and measures on energy controls, some of which are emphasizing staff and guest awareness, take meter reading regularly to identify sources of waste, inefficient light replacement, and the installation of sensors and automatic control, diesel generators, solar water and retrofit air conditioners with hydrocarbon refrigerant just to name a few.
Karner was later joined by Managing Director of Econergy Engineer! Services Ltd (Caribbean Esco), Eaton Haughton, who together, briefly discussed an overall case study on Energy Efficiency in Jamaica and also the results from the energy audits.
    After a conclusion, Serrano introduced, Area Chairman of JHTA, Richard Burke who finally made an address to the hotel representatives on why it is important to start seriously thinking about energy efficiency. He stated that the tourism sector should periodically revaluate their studies and be kept abreast with new technologies that will to cut cost and help save and make significant investments in these technologies.