EDITOR’S NOTE: In this newsletter, #InfrastruCaribe continues its series on transport infrastructure in the Caribbean and, following from last week’s ground transport, we look specifically on electric vehicles: which is really in its infancy in the Caribbean. Three Caribbean countries are covered, namely: Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Barbados.
Our headline, taken from the Dominican Today, reads: “Vehicle Charger Inaugurated At Fuel Station”. Edesur Dominicana — Dominican Republic’s state-owned electricity distribution company — partnered with InterEnergy Systems to install the first in a series of Evergo charging stations that will be installed in Santo Domingo and the country’s southern region.
Similarly, the Jamaica Public Service — Jamaica’s electricity distribution Company — commissioned their first public electric vehicle charging station in Saint Ann, and plans to install five more in the cities of Kingston and Montego Bay by the end of the year. By the end of 2020, electric vehicle registrations in Jamaica increased by 41 percent.
Barbados has already imported electric buses into their island, and is planning an additional 10 for their Transport Board in the current financial year, with a further 20 planned over the next two years. Otherwise, Jamaica is developing an import policy for electric cars, and is considering granting fiscal incentives to encourage this.