KRALENDIJK – On April 12th, Deputy Secretary-General of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate, Gerdine Keijzer-Baldé, visited Bonaire to discuss developments in energy supply. During her visit, she met with Governor Edison Rijna and commissioners Hennyson Thielman and Jolinda Craane to discuss the need for safe fuel storage and the expansion of sustainable energy.

An important topic of discussion was the construction of new storage tanks to ensure safe fuel storage. The existing storage tanks no longer meet the legal requirements. The new fuel terminal will be located south of the airport and supplied via the existing pier.

In parallel with constructing the necessary fuel storage tanks, work is being done on expanding sustainable energy. Keijzer-Baldé visited the site of Contour Global in the north, where a new solar park is being built. In addition to panels for generating energy, a battery will be installed to store this energy. The new solar park is expected to be operational in September of this year. In addition, plans for expanding and renewing the current wind park were discussed.

The investment for the new storage tanks is made by Bonaire Brandstof Terminals (BBT), founded by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate. BBT also invests in the new solar park and the future larger wind park.

Governor Rijna is pleased with the attention to developments in the energy supply for Bonaire. All parties see the importance of rapid expansion and energy sustainability for Bonaire, especially given population growth and increasing demand for energy.