Will the cost of road construction decrease under this administration?
According to Infrastructure Minister Stephenson King the Government of Venezuela has agreed to collaborate with Saint Lucia to see how best it can assist with road infrastructure. And if all goes as planned, Saint Lucia will possibly see some level of reduction in terms of cost.
King, who recently met with Venezuelan President Nicolàs Maduro on an official state visit, revealed that an appeal was made to the Venezuelan authorities “who received it positively.”
The Venezuelan authorities “agreed to collaborate with us… we made an appeal for consideration of Bitumen, an element used in the production of asphalt. They’ve gone even further not only to commit themselves to the provision of bitumen, but also to provide if necessary granular material for that purpose which would mean that if we’re able to receive this benefit from the Venezuelans … the cost of road construction will be decreased.”
The importance of housing and energy were also discussed at the meeting.
“For the past years we have been pursuing the initiative of energy and we are on the verge of Cabinet considering what we call the National Energy Policy… to renew that policy and update (it) in preparation for what is on the landscape,” King told journalists Monday.
What is most visible he added, “is the new Electricity Supply Act which will enhance the environment for participation not only by one power producing company, but several independent power producing companies, be it solar, wind, geothermal, ocean tech or any other form of energy… so we are at a point where we can work with the Venezuelans who will assist us in our road infrastructure.”
In 2010, government approved the National Energy Policy (NEP) which provided the appropriate policy and legislative environment to utilize greater renewable energy to the extent possible, in order to lower the cost and price volatility of electricity and to reduce Saint Lucia’s dependence on imported oil, The Energy and Climate Partnership of the Americas (EPCA) noted on its website.
To further assist in providing the appropriate policy and legislative environment, a National Utility Regulation Commission Bill was drafted. Government, in 2014, began a process of consolidating a national energy roadmap for the country, led by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Energy, Science and Technology, EPCA added.
In terms of housing, King said government is extremely concerned about the cost “be it rental or purchase and our initiative was really intended to see how best we can get from Venezuela assistance in identifying low cost housing particularly social housing. They (were) able to come up with a product that they believe will assist us.”
Years ago, “we were able to get assistance from Venezuela in greenheart housing. On this occasion they’ve got a product which emanates from oil and it is non-flammable, hurricane resistant; it is one that we believe will work and today as the PM indicated we are having our first meeting and that shows the interest that Venezuela is showing. We will have a technical meeting to try and streamline and tie in those initiatives for the good of Saint Lucia,” King added.