Thursday 22 June 2023
With Guernsey having an urgent need to decide how it will manage and meet increased electricity demand whilst balancing security of supply and affordability, the Committee for the Environment & Infrastructure has submitted an amendment to the future States' business.
This amendment to the schedule of future States' business would see the debate on the Electricity Strategy brought forward to the meeting on 5th July, as originally requested by the Committee. The policy letter is currently scheduled for debate in September, after the States of Deliberation's summer recess.
Without a strategic direction (which the policy letter facilitates), this work cannot be progressed for at least the next three months, delaying businesses from making commercial investment decisions and committees from progressing focused exploratory work.
Deputy Lindsay de Sausmarez, President of the Committee for the Environment & Infrastructure, said:
"Our local energy industry needs the States to make a decision on the way forward for our future electricity demand, supply and market framework. We're keen to maintain the momentum of the extensive work already undertaken and that will help to inform future decisions around specific proposals, but that work is difficult to progress without an agreed strategic direction. As far as we're concerned, there's no reason not to debate this now so that we can give the certainty and clarity that the local energy industry is asking us for."
