PARAMARIBO, Suriname – Caribbean Community (CCARICOM) Secretary General, Dr. Carla Barnett, Tuesday said the increased involvement of the global energy community in the region underscores the fact that energy in the Caribbean is no longer viewed solely as a sector of economic activity.
CARICOM Secretary General, Dr. Carla Barnett, delivering feature address at Caribbean Energy Week on Tuesday.“It is increasingly recognised as a strategic driver of resilience, competitiveness, and long-term development,” Barnett said in the feature address to the Caribbean Energy Week, 2026, being held under the theme “Leveraging Energy Diversity Across the Caribbean”.
She said that the theme captures both the present reality and the promise of the region’s collective future given that the Caribbean region is endowed with a remarkable diversity of energy resources and capabilities, including hydrocarbons, natural gas, solar, wind, hydroelectric power, and geothermal energy.
She said that the combined estimated renewable energy potential in the region stands at10,750 megawatts, and emerging carbon markets indicate that the region’s energy landscape is both dynamic and evolving.
“This diversity is a distinct advantage. It presents opportunities for innovation, investment, and regional cooperation that can help drive sustainable development across our member states,” she said, noting that in recent years, the global energy community has increasingly turned its attention to the Caribbean.
She said major offshore discoveries in Guyana and Suriname have reshaped energy conversations with Trinidad and Tobago continuing to demonstrate the enduring value of technical expertise and industrial capacity built through decades of natural gas development. Barnett said Grenada is emerging as a promising frontier basin and Jamaica recently completed a surface geo-chemistry survey exploratory expedition.
She said at the same time, other countries throughout the region, such as Barbados, Belize, and Guyana, are accelerating the deployment of renewable energy, modernising electricity systems, and pursuing reforms that strengthen energy security and affordability.
“These developments signal the important truth, that energy in the Caribbean is no longer viewed solely as a sector of economic activity,” she said, adding that Caribbean Energy Week 2026 reflects this broader perspective.
“It brings together a diverse community of policymakers, investors, engineers, academics, and development partners to exchange insights, strengthen partnerships, and identify pathways for investment in the next generation of energy projects.
“This highlights the central message that collaboration is essential to our success. Whether the focus is cross-border gas development, regional supply chains, shared infrastructure corridors, renewable integration, or harmonised regulatory frameworks, the Caribbean’s competitive advantage will increasingly depend on our ability to work together.”
Barnett said in this regard, dialogue that extends beyond the region is equally important and that initiatives such as the Executive Leadership Dialogue and the Atlantic Basin Business Forum recognise that the Caribbean’s energy future is linked to broader partnerships with Africa, Latin America, and global capital markets.
She said such partnerships will be vital as we expand infrastructure, strengthen financing frameworks, and scale emerging energy technologies.
“These efforts align closely with CARICOM’s ongoing energy transition agenda, which supports Member States in advancing sustainable and resilient energy systems. CARICOM is also developing a regional financing strategy to mobilise public and private capital for scaling renewable energy and energy efficiency.
“This initiative will broaden access to affordable and concessionary financing, promote innovative financial instruments, and strengthen Member States’ capacity to develop bankable projects. It aims to enhance energy security, reduce emissions, and foster climate-resilient energy growth.”
But she acknowledged that infrastructure and financing alone will not determine the region’s success, adding that equally critical is the development of our human resources.
“If the Caribbean is to realise the full value of its energy resources, we must ensure that our engineers, geologists, economists, regulators, and entrepreneurs have access to and develop the skills and opportunities necessary to lead this transformation. In this way, long-term benefits of energy development remain within our economies.
“We must also remain mindful of the unique vulnerabilities faced by many of our small states, such as exposure to climate change, reliance on imported fuels, and the urgent need for modern, resilient infrastructure. These underscore the importance of innovation and forward-looking policy.”
Barnett said that discussions taking place during this week on decarbonising Caribbean power systems, and advancing geothermal development, offshore wind, hydrogen opportunities, and blue carbon markets reflect the Caribbean’s growing determination to actively participate in the global energy transition.
“And let us be clear, energy transition means mapping the way to diversify our energy platform, it does not necessarily mean exchanging one for the other,” she said, adding that “this week’s activities which emphasise practical engagement between project developers, governments, and financiers, underline a fundamental principle: energy unlocks development, but investment unlocks energy”.
The CARICOM Secretary General said the participation of development finance institutions, multilateral banks, regional lenders, and private investors, signals growing confidence in the Caribbean’s potential.
“Our collective responsibility is to continue strengthening the enabling environment through clear regulatory frameworks, transparent institutions, bankable project pipelines, and effective local content strategies that ensure development benefits are broadly shared.
“The conversations begun here should ripple far beyond this conference hall. Every exchange of ideas, every partnership formed, and every commitment made, brings us closer to a shared regional vision that supports sustainable growth, and strengthens energy security, economic diversification, and regional cooperation.”
She said looking ahead to the annual observance of CARICOM Energy Month in November, she is encouraging delegates to carry forward the momentum being created during this conference that ends on Wednesday.
“The insights, relationships, and opportunities emerging from this forum should reinforce collaboration among member states, broaden our partnerships, and collectively advance solutions that respond to both the challenges and the immense possibilities of our evolving energy landscape.
“Together, we can ensure that our region, all our member states and all in the Caribbean basin area, not only adapts to a changing global environment but leads with confidence, with vision, and with harmony,” Barnett added.
