Q&A - Sol Ecolution

POWERING JOURNEYS.

LOOKING TO THE FUTURE

INTRODUCING SOL ECOLUTION! THE NEW LOW CARBON AND RENEWABLE ENERGY DIVISION OF THE SOL GROUP.

Sol Ecolution sounds like a very exciting project that can make a big difference to the individuals, families and businesses in the territories in which you operate. Tell us a bit about The Sol Group, and your mission to facilitate renewable and low-carbon energy solutions across the Caribbean.

The Sol Group is the premier energy solutions provider across the 22 territories in which we operate in the Caribbean and Central and South America. Our mission is to be the partner of choice for our customers and communities through the supply of reliable products and services, in line with our corporate values of Safety, Integrity, Community and Respect. We supply fuels, lubricants, and LPG to retail customers at our service stations and large commercial customers such as airlines, mining, shipping, marine and power companies. We value our customers and the communities we serve and are passionate about supporting them through various community outreach initiatives, especially those that focus on education, environmental preservation, sports and community development. Our service to the region dates to 2005. As we look to the future, we have listened to our customers and business partners and clearly recognize the shift towards sustainable energy occurring in the region. With great interest and excitement, we have observed the objectives of governments and utilities to significantly increase low carbon and renewable energy production. It is clear that these initiatives will lead to a significant energy shift in the Caribbean within the next 20 years. To address this, we created Sol Ecolution, the renewable energy division within Sol. We created the entity to support our customers and partners in their energy transition while also reducing the carbon footprint of our operations.

Could you tell us about the launch of the Sol Ecolution brand, and how you’re responding to the need for a cleaner, greener energy future in the Caribbean?

We launched Sol Ecolution at the recent Caribbean Electric Utility Services Corporation (CARILEC) Conference in 2021. Its purpose is to deliver on The Sol Group’s commitment to energize the communities in which we live, work and play by facilitating the development of diverse renewable and low carbon energy solutions. With our long history and deep understanding of the Caribbean energy ecosystem, we are uniquely positioned to support our customers, stakeholders, and communities through this transition. We fully understand and support the need to move towards a greener energy future to address the adverse effects of global warming. We want to address this by reducing our own carbon footprint and producing renewable energy for our needs while also assisting our customers, including utility companies, by investing and partnering in renewable energy projects.

Please give us an overview of Sol Ecolution’s project scope and services, including any significant upcoming projects that we should know about.

Sol Ecolution operates across the spectrum of low carbon and renewable energy technologies, including solar, battery storage, wind, hydrogen, waste-to-energy and other exciting solutions. We provide end-to-end services to facilitate the development of low carbon and renewable energy power generation in the region. Our services include project financing, site selection and assessment, project scoping and design, pre-feasibility and feasibility studies, contract negotiation, engineering, procurement and construction services. Sol Ecolution has started deploying solar photovoltaic (PV) technology in our retail stations in Barbados and is currently assessing an additional 29 retail stations spanning Barbados, St. Maarten, Grenada, Martinique, Guadeloupe, the Bahamas, Bermuda, the Cayman Islands, and Puerto Rico. Over the next few years, our deployments will expand further to include our company-owned retail and terminals networks. Our offices in St. Maarten and our Bermuda terminal will also be producing PV energy in the short term, and we expect to install at least 5 more megawatts (MW) of PV energy generation on commercial-scale systems across our offices, as well as on unused land from our terminals. Beyond deploying solar technology on our assets, Sol is actively engaged in discussions with our utility and commercial customers to identify opportunities to facilitate the development of renewable energy for third-party use across the region.

What is the long-term vision for Sol Ecolution, as you look to realize the Caribbean’s sustainable energy future?

The long-term vision of Sol Ecolution is to be the leading renewable energy company in the Caribbean; supporting the region, our customers and government partners in shifting towards a fully sustainable energy future. c