U.S. VIRGIN ISLANDS– Virgin Islands Energy Office (VIEO) Director Kyle Fleming detailed how the agency plans to transform the territory’s renewable energy landscape by tapping into over $155 million in federal grants awarded to the Virgin Islands, while defending VIEO’s Fiscal Year 2025 General Fund appropriation request this Friday before the Legislature’s Committee on Budget and Appropriations at the Frits E. Lawaetz Legislative Conference Room on St. Croix.
Delivering relief today is the mantra that VIEO has adopted this year Fleming told the members of the committee, saying that as the primary driver of public investment in renewable generation, and engineer of climate friendly policies and programs, the agency stood uniquely placed to help Virgin Islanders find solutions to the energy crisis gripping our community. In recent months residents in both island districts have been subjected to rolling blackouts as the Water and Power Authority struggled to keep the lights on while battling severe financial challenges. Fleming said that VIEO has crafted a number of innovative programs that have gone live this year that are aimed at helping residents invest in technologies that will help mitigate the effects that unreliable power may have on their lives.
Bringing solar to 2,000 Virgin Islanders, with a focus on investing in individuals of low and moderate income, Fleming said, was the main goal of the Solar for All (SFA) program. VIEO was awarded $62.5 million in grant funding from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for the grant this year Fleming said. VIEO is in the process of hiring staff to administer the new programs it will offer under SFA, and has already begun advertising for the position of Energy Project Manager to plan, develop, implement, and coordinate the effort to help thousands of Virgin Islanders invest in solar technologies.
“And we expect to grow that as well because our Solar for All program that I mentioned, the $62 million program that we received, that is exactly the type of programs that we are looking too, or funding that we are going to use, to expand existing programs to even drive the reach of those renewable energy and energy storage access even further throughout the community,” Fleming said.
During questioning from senators Fleming outlined the issues that have hampered the launch of the Solar + Financing (SPF) pilot program. SPF is a financing program that gives loans of up to $30,000 for homeowners to invest in installing solar and battery storage systems at their homes. The loan program began accepting applicants in 2022, Fleming said, but has been subject to a protracted administrative process as VIEO worked to hammer out shared responsibilities between the Virgin Islands Economic Development Authority (VIEDA), and WAPA. But headway has been made recently, with a memorandum of understanding being signed between the parties, clearing the way for VIEO staff to begin outreach to the 80 or so applicants who responded during the application period.
The Virgin Islands Battery Energy Storage (VIBES) program was launched this May, and aims to ease the financial hurdles that are barring Virgin Islanders from installing an automatic battery backup system at their home or business. The first come first serve initiative has been funded with an initial $80,000 grant through the State Energy Program Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (SEPBIL), enough funding that the Energy Office anticipates installing at least 200 new systems, and adding over 2 MWH of battery capacity territory-wide. The program gives residents the opportunity to receive up to $4,000 in cash back on qualifying automatic battery backup systems that have a capacity between 3 kWh to 14 kWh. The systems must also be purchased from, and installed by, a local vendor registered with VIEO.
Looking to the transportation sector, Fleming said that the Equitable E-Mobility (EEM) program, launched in January, was helping to defray the entry cost of owning an electric vehicle (EV). Once an emerging technology, electric vehicles have become a significant force on the road, offering on average lower maintenance and operational costs, as well as operating on simpler electric motors that typically require less servicing than their combustion engine counterparts. EEM has been dedicated $305,000 in federal funding, money that Virgin Islanders can use to help defray up to $5,000 off of the cost of purchasing an EV, or $500 off the price of a new E-bike. Any Virgin Islands resident, small business owner, or non-profit organization can apply for this first come, first serve, rebate on an electric vehicle purchased on or after April 1st, 2023. Only battery electric, zero emission vehicles are eligible for the rebate. New electric vehicles purchased outside of the territory and shipped into the USVI are eligible for the rebate, so long as they cost no more than $65,000, and have a minimum battery capacity of 20 KWh. Used electric vehicles with a clean title are eligible for the rebate so long as they cost no more than $40,000, have 20,000 miles or less, and are not older than four model years. The program still has ample funding available, and applications are encouraged.
In Fiscal Year 2025 the Office of Management and Budget has recommended that the Energy Office receive a General Fund appropriation of $1,556,269.00, which represents a slight decrease from the $1,576,804 appropriated for the office in FY 2024, or a variance of -$3,186.
