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Contact: Adhara King
Monday, September 22, 2008 – The Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA) is helping its members manage their operational costs while simultaneously streamlining their energy consumption.
SLHTA President, Colin Hunte said reducing operational costs is particularly important to hoteliers during the current off season. As a result, he said, the association is working on behalf of its members, especially smaller properties, who are being affected by rising energy costs.
“The SLHTA has been working very closely with LUCELEC to see ways that we can actually address this situation. One of the ways that we've been able to work out with the electricity company is to create a credit system particularly for the smaller properties that are facing that challenge right now, so that they have a little breathing space until the high season starts again in December. And so we have negotiated and LUCELEC has been very helpful in allowing us to do this,” said Hunte.
Hunte said in recognition of the fact that LUCELEC is unable to reduce charges for consumers—either domestic or commercial—the SLHTA is facilitating improved energy efficiency.
“So right now at the hotel association we are working with a number of local companies that provide energy audits as well as energy saving devices and technology which can be utilized within the hotel industry,” the SLHTA president explained. “The idea obviously is for hotels to do an audit of their existing energy consumption, for the companies to then put in those various technologies and devices and then to measure the difference.”
Hunte said the idea is to move in a more environmentally friendly direction, extending to managing water consumption and waste disposal. The SLHTA is also advocating the utilization of solar energy in producing hot water, and promotes Green Globe Certification for sustainable tourism. |
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