Montserrat hopeful that geothermal project could boost spin-offs
Little Bay, Montserrat (source: flckr/ David Stanley, creative commons)
Alexander Richter
30 May 2016
Montserrat hopes to see a better investment environment through more affordable electricity, but also some possible spin-off businesses from the geothermal operations.
The Premier of Montserrat hopes that the geothermal power project might help to create spin-offs. With more affordable electricity and possible direct spin-offs from the geothermal resource, it could help improve the business environment an create incentives for investments on the island.
Premier Donaldson Romeo, the head of government business of Montserrat made this statement at an investment forum in the U.S. last week.
“In the very area are where the production would be located, there is a possibility for companies who use the scheme to exist side by side, take advantage of that extra scheme that is going to be wasted. But in addition to that I think what excites me most is that at present we are shipping out tons and tons of aggregate, the base for cement based products and I look forward to the day when we will be shipping out products where we add value to this massive tonnage of materials that come out of the volcano. For instance if we were to do cement boards—the boards we use in the bathrooms and wooden structure and wherever, sheet rock type material—imagine sending a badge out loaded with that material how much more value would have been added and how much employment would be created,” the honourable Premier Donaldson Rome concluded.
As we reported before the island is currently preparing the drilling of a third well, funded by the UK government. It is aimed at increasing the available steam output from the two previously drilled well for a 2-5 MW geothermal plant on the island.
Source: The Montserrat Reporter
