Premier of Nevis' Visit to Iceland a Huge Success! 
 

Prime Minister of Iceland, H.E Mr. Geir H. Haarde accepts a gift from Premier Parry

(CHARLESTOWN,NEVIS)The Premier of Nevis, the Hon. Joseph Parry led a delegation to Iceland from August 17th- 20th, 2008. 

The mission was aimed at acquiring first hand experience of geothermal plants at work, holding discussions with geothermal plant operators, while at the same time meeting officials, including the Prime Minister and members of the government and the Icelandic International Development Agency(ICEIDA).  Iceland has had experience with the natural resource for over half a century.
 
The delegation included the Junior Minister of Natural Resources and Environment, Hon. Carlisle Powell, Permanent Secretary, Mr. Ernie Stapleton and Protocol Officer, Ms Angelica Elliott.
 
At the invitation of the Prime Minister of Iceland, H.E Mr. Geir H. Haarde, Premier Parry and his team attended a luncheon meeting at the Culture House in Reykjavik, where discussions included a team of senior government officials, as well as a member of the ICEIDA, who all congratulated Premier Parry on his bold step of advancing geothermal explorations and development on Nevis.
 
During the two day mission, the Premier and his delegation met with a number of other agencies including: The National Energy

Premier of Nevis, Hon. Joseph Parry and his delegation attending luncheon with Icelandic Prime Minister and Senior Officials

Authority, the Icelandic International Development Agency and the Iceland GeoSurvey. 

The Nevis delegation also met with officials of educational institutions, such as the United Nations University which specializes in Geothermal Training, and the Reykjavik Energy Graduate School of Sustainable Systems. Premier Parry also held talks with private owned companies such as ENEX and Geysir Green Energy, both of which have a keen interest in geothermal.
 

Premier Parry and his delegation touring a power plant

The Nevis delegation gleaned a wealth of additional information when they toured a number of geothermal plants where senior officials made presentations on the history, development and operation of the said industries.
 
It is expected that over the next few months, the Icelandic Government, through the National Energy Agency and the ICEIDA will provide technical assistance, consultancy and advice to the Nevis Island Administration (NIA).
 
This will include a number of visits to Nevis, from experts in geothermal operations in

Geothermal power plant in Iceland, sending out clean steam

Iceland.
 
Furthermore, the NIA will continue to have discussions with the various educational institutions in Iceland in order to have higher learning and training in geothermal for residents of Nevis.
 
“We were able to meet the important players in the geothermal industry and outline our interest and obtain technical assistance to guide us with West Indies Power Ltd.(the company presently on Nevis drilling for geothermal energy). 

We were also informed that geothermal energy is inexpensive, costing about 10 cents per kilowatt in Iceland. All in all I must say the trip was a success and we look forward to a continued relationship with Iceland,” said Premier Parry.
                                                 
The Premier and his delegation returned to Nevis on Thursday, August 21st, 2008.
 
                                                         ##END##  ~~Adz:Left~~