The current status of the Brechin Castle Solar Farm project is being used as a cautionary tale in a regional report that is urging proactive policy and action regarding renewable energy in the Caribbean.
In the latest Caribbean Energy Price Index, the failure of Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago to fully harness power from solar projects was described as an “undesirable outcome” resulting from a lack of proper planning and alignment among major stakeholders, including utilities, governments and regulators.
The index, which is authored by SOL Ecolution and economist Marla Dukharan, is a measurement of electricity prices across the region. Dukharan explained that the Index, which saw its second edition published this week, demonstrated not just what consumers pay in each country, but how affordable electricity actually is, based on local purchasing power and the cost of living.
In the latest edition, the Trinidad-born, Barbados-based economist said the recent shocks experienced as a result of the US-Iran conflict and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz highlighted the importance of renewable energy for the region.
The Index pointed to the H2 2026 IMF report, which stated, “Energy efficiency and fuel diversification help cushion the oil shock…the damage will depend largely on how long the disruption lasts.”
In the Index, Dukharan stated, “How long the disruption lasts, and how long it takes us to better insulate ourselves from these inevitable shocks, I would add. The Caribbean’s vulnerability to external shocks stems mainly from our acute openness (dependence on international trade) in general, made worse by the nature of that dependence - on imported food and fuel, most importantly.
“All the stuff our very existence depends on. Establishing and maintaining food and fuel security have been strategic goals across Caribbean nations individually and collectively for half a century. At least. Yet here we are, with very little to show for it,” said Dukharan.
“This most recent petro-political crisis, like all of those before it, raises so many longstanding and yet unaddressed issues which continue to hold us back and worsen our quality of life here in the Caribbean. So like victims, we curse the war, and again we lament the disruption, the volatility, the inflation, the vulnerability.”
The economist expressed disappointment that most of the Caribbean remained fossil fuel dependen.t but also wasteful of both power and, as a result, finances.
“As discussed in the June 2026 edition of my monthly Caribbean Economic Report: we waste two-thirds of the energy we produce globally! Every $1.00 invested in energy efficiency returns $3 to $5 - where else can you get a 300-500 per cent return on investment?!”
Dukharan asked, “Most regional building codes haven’t been updated to reflect the energy efficiency benchmarks established by Caricom. Since 2019, homes retrofitted for energy efficiency consume up to 60 per cent less electricity.”
She lamented that two countries that had made progress in that regard were currently squandering the capacity generated from renewal energy sources.
“But, there is a BUT. Proper planning and alignment of ALL major stakeholders is absolutely crucial before we go running off and slapping solar on everything that doesn’t move.
“That kind of approach is likely to result in objectives not being met, potentially destabilising the grid, or worse yet, even more solar electricity capacity going unused as currently seen in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago, for example,” she outlined in the Index.
T&T’s example was examined in recent weeks in the Business Guardian as it was confirmed by Public Utlitles Minister Barry Padarath last month that the Brechin Castle Solar Farm was not contributing electricity to the country’s national grid despite producing its first electricity in 2025..
The project was expected to supply up to 8 per cent of the country’s electricity and as a result could potentially see natural gas used in T&T redirected for higher-value uses, including exports and the petrochemical sector.
Two weeks ago, NGC chairman Gerald Ramdeen slammed the lack of foresight by the previous administration, stating that the farm had no battery system to store power. That response drew push back from former energy minister Stuart Young and others who similarly expressed concern that the economic value of the project was not being considered by the current administration.
Dukharan, however, made the call for policy positions across both the state and public sector to get a positive return from such a project.
She said, “How to avoid these undesirable outcomes? The major stakeholders —the utilities, governments, regulators, academia and consumers—must all be aligned on:
1. The outcomes we are trying to achieve: lower prices, better reliability, lower exposure to petro-political shocks, less foreign exchange lost on imported fuel; and
2. The optimal way forward for the best possible outcomes to be realised, based on the data.”
Dukharan added, “Furthermore, beyond initial alignment, a solid RFP process and active collaboration throughout the project and across all players, even among competitors, will ensure that the desired outcomes are achieved in the specified timeframe.”
She pointed out that making the transition was not impossible, as there had been successful examples not too far away in Uruguay and Dominica.
“Simple, but not easy. Challenging, but not impossible. Uruguay did it. H2 2026 Uruguay went from ‘crippling reliance on fossil fuel imports to powering 98 per cent of its electricity with domestic renewables. This swift, state-led shift brought not only energy security, reduced costs, and a more predictable supply, but also supported the emergence of new jobs and industries,” she said.
“How did Uruguay achieve energy security in a little over a decade? 1. They built a national consensus—the catalyst for which was the Global Financial Crisis of 2008. 2. They had the data - and they used it. A team at the Universidad de la República used one hundred years of data to develop a sophisticated model that could predict the availability of wind, hydro and solar and would allow the system to be based on the cheapest of these (wind and solar), with hydro filling in when needed without any battery storage.”
She pointed out that the Uruguayan government did not have the finances to fund that process, so they conducted a competitive bidding process and engaged with private sector players under 20-year Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to develop the energy sources.
She said, “Closer to home, earlier this year Dominica became the second Caribbean country after Guadeloupe to generate power from domestic geothermal sources. This project had been at least 15 years in the making.”
According to Dominica News Online, Dukharan noted, “In June 2026, renewable energy accounted for 68 per cent of electricity supplied by DOMLEC, with geothermal energy contributing 43 per cent, while hydroelectricity provided another 25 per cent.”
The index report added that Dominica was also seeking to export surplus electricity to neighbouring islands in the future.
