The Jamaica Renewable Energy Association (JREA) is lambasting the government for what it describes as an ineffective and non-consultative approach in the way it engages with solar energy users.

The current system requires everyone – including homeowners who generate electricity solely for their personal use – to apply for a license from the Department of Energy, a process the JREA considers complicated.

“The process is cumbersome, slow and expensive. Many people simply don’t apply because they don’t get any benefit from it. I estimate that around 50 percent of renewable energy systems in Jamaica do not bother to apply for a license. If complying made sense and if it was easy, people would comply,” JREA President Alex Hill said in response to questions from the committee. Jamaica Observer.

Since 2022, the JREA has expressed concerns about the net metering approach related to licensing. According to information published on the website of the Ministry of Science, Energy, Telecommunications and Transport (MSETT), licensing is a five-step process – each with several parts – which carries an application fee non-refundable payment of $19,000 plus other fees and costs. This begins with the submission of an application which must go through a “preliminary technical and legal review” by the MSETT before being accepted for processing.

Hill, who is also chief executive of Iree Solar, was scathing in his assessment of the initiative.

“The net metering process/program in Jamaica continues to operate inefficiently and in complete disregard of stakeholder feedback. There have been changes in the process, which materially affect how the program is administered and how data is presented to policy makers without any consultation with industry stakeholders,” he said .

He cited, for example, recent unexpected changes to some metrics, changes he believes will have a ripple effect on the sector.

“This… will affect how our policyholders evaluate the effectiveness and capacity limit given to the net metering program as a percentage of total net energy production in the country. We have also had many seasons where only one person was able to process MSETT applications. Therefore, it extends application processing time and frustrates applicants,” Hill told the Sunday Observer.

Net metering was introduced in 2022 and, according to the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPS), it has so far commissioned almost 800 systems to 1,200 customers approved by the Ministry of Energy.

“These people are now net metering customers and receive compensation for the electricity they send to JPS,” said Winsome Callum, communications director for the utility provider.

It is unclear why people who do not intend to sell electricity to JPS must apply, but MSETT has made it clear in its written responses that they must also follow the procedure. Asked what steps individuals should take who do not intend to sell electricity, MSETT said information on net metering was available on its website.

The ministry also told the Sunday Observer that “Rate 10” residential JPS customers who install a solar photovoltaic system for personal use “will need to apply for an auxiliary connections license” from MSETT. At press time, there was no response to a request to clarify whether this license was in addition to that related to net metering, but it was stated that “the regulation on auxiliary connections is in progress finalization and will be published in the Official Journal once completed.

According to JREA’s Hill, its members have had an equally trying time trying to comply with these rules.

“There is no auxiliary permit to apply for. A few years ago, there was an auxiliary license category, but this category was arbitrarily removed by the MSETT without any consultation or notification to the industry,” he said.

He said this ancillary license was to ensure that applicants with solar systems above a certain size install a separate blocking device to ensure that no excess energy is exported to the grid.

“I have only heard of a handful of licenses being issued in this category. The process was ambiguous and arduous. Today, large commercial customers are complying with these regulations and thus blocking the sale of thousands of kWh of energy to the public electricity grid, particularly on weekends. This clean energy must be used and not blocked,” he argued.

He said nothing had changed since the association wrote to Energy Minister Daryl Vaz in 2022 to raise concerns about the net metering program.

“There are too many requirements, the assessment of each application takes too long, the application is expensive (as a percentage of the total cost of the installed system) and the compensation is questionable. This does not align with (the government’s) stated goals of increasing the total amount of renewable energy installed on the island. The program must be urgently optimized and revamped after sincere and thorough consultation with stakeholders,” Hill insisted.