The Bahamas Electricity Corporation (BEC) cannot afford to allow its commercial customers to take advantage of proposed renewable energy provisions in the Electricity Amendment Bill 2014, according to BEC Chairman Leslie Miller.

While BEC could potentially allow local businesses to meet a "modest amount" of their electricity needs through renewable energy generation, Miller said BEC would focus on reducing its cost of electricity to lessen the need for businesses to rely on renewable energy sources. He told Guardian Business that BEC frankly could not afford to allow its commercial customers to take advantage of the grid tie connection outlined in the bill, given the current state of BEC. However, Miller said that allowing residential clients to cut their power bills by 20 to 30 percent of their current levels could appease the business community's wider frustration with the high cost of electricity.

"[BEC] could allow a modest amount, but nothing that would harm the financial viability of BEC. It wouldn't make any sense," said Miller.

"If we can supply them with electricity about 20 to 30 percent of what they're paying now there will be no need for them to switch. That's really what you need to do put them in a position where they can rely on you for reliable power and an affordable price and they will stay with you, and that's where your bread and butter comes from," he said.

The government tabled The Electricity Amendment Bill 2014 and Electricity (Renewable Energy) Regulations 2014 in December. The bills are aimed at introducing grid tie connection and net billing in the country. Although Miller said that the Senate could approve the legislation as early as this week, he said that the necessary adjustments to BEC's grid present a problem.

The legislation would lead to the creation of a residential energy self generation (RESG) program that would allow for residential and select commercial customers with capacity for renewable energy generation, such as approved manufacturers under the Industries Encouragement Act (IEA), to connect to BEC's grid.

"That's something we need to deal with to enable you to sell us energy in the day, and then at night we sell you energy, and hopefully your bill will be about 20 percent of what it is now. That's really the way to go, but one thing about solar energy is that you cannot have your commercial customers using solar, because where's BEC to get its funding from if the hotels use their own solar panels?

"These things are expensive. It costs millions upon millions to do the sort of [renewable initiatives] that we'd like to do in The Bahamas," he said.

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