| Overview | Business Continuity | Energy | Financial Services | Maritime Security | Telecom/IT | Transportation & Logistics |
| Overview | Business Continuity | Energy | Financial Services | Maritime Security | Telecom/IT | Transportation & Logistics |
Energy CCAA has over a decade advocated for liberalized energy operations and for the diversification of energy resources for the Caribbean and Central America. On June 10th, 1996 C-LAA (as it was formally named) assembled its first Energy Business Team. The initial discussion centered on the Summit of the Americas, which supported increased investment in Latin America’s petroleum, natural gas, and renewable energy reserves. By October 2nd, 1996, the energy business team set as its “core value”: liberalized, private energy operations throughout the Caribbean and Latin America. Besides this, the team encouraged expanding the overall energy focus of its annual Miami conference in December. Since then, CCAA has consistently encouraged dialogue between the public and private sector over stable hemispheric energy trade regulations. By 2002, the CCAA energy business team was focused on encouraging “best practice” policies concerning downstream petroleum refining, cross-border energy flow, and renewable energy exploration. C-LAA initiated its Centam Fuels Study (Guatemala, El Salvador, Costa Rica, and Panama), which explored regional harmonization of fuel product specifications, duties and customs, hauling, and environmental safety legislation. C-CAA as it was now renamed followed up this successful venture with successive presentations in June (in Washington) and August (in Nicaragua) of 2003. Also during that year, the C-CAA energy business team broadened the discussion to include alternative energy. This at the regional Competitiveness of the Caribbean: CCAA Regional Trade & Investment Conference in Barbados. In 2006 and 2007, C-CAA continued promoting “best practice” energy-related discussions and forums throughout the Caribbean and Central America. Notable events hosted by C-CAA were the Energy and the Competitiveness of the Caribbean in Trinidad (September 2006), and the Energy and Competitiveness Conference in Honduras (May 2007). The Trinidadian conference, co-hosted by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, attracted over three hundred regional public and private sector leaders including all Caribbean energy Ministers. The primary discussions centered on how record oil prices were crippling the island economies and the need for public-private sector partnerships that address new energy management techniques, investment and financing opportunities. CCAA also proposed at that forum an Alliance for Energy Security & Diversification (which would advance regional policies addressing market harmonization and renewable energy exploration and conservation), encouraged that conservation talks involve both the tourism and manufacturing industries, and promoted Caribbean partnerships with private U.S. and Brazilian energy entities (who could facilitate technology transfer and I.T. awareness to the Caribbean). The conference in Honduras addressed many of these same issues as well as the need for reliable power generating capacity in CAFTA-DR countries. In both of these cases and others, C-CAA has anticipated that future regional case study reports will expose further “best practice” solutions. CCAA’s annual Miami Conference in December has also continued to serve as a platform for discussion on energy matters. In 2006, C-CAA discussed how the Alliance for CAFTAction successfully networked various members of the private sector in Central America and stabilized energy investment regulations. In 2007, one of the conference’s major foci was on Energy Security: Biofuels- Advancements and Regional Cooperation. C-CAA promoted the development of local biofuels industries in the Caribbean Basin, knowing that this would reduce the region’s dependency on petroleum imports while at the same time creating jobs. As always, C-CAA encouraged collaboration between all regional stakeholders, fuel companies, and government regulators on the matter, and followed up its own commitment for involvement by holding the Central American Energy Supply Security Forum in Panama this past May 2008. Deemed a well timed success by many of its participants, the forum gathered over one hundred senior level executives, industry and government leaders in the energy sector as it pushed for discussions on better alternative energy resources for the short, medium and long term needed to combat the shortage crisis currently affecting the region. CCAA will continue to focus on four main areas in energy: 1) the development of a regional energy policy for the Caribbean and an integrated regional energy infrastructure for Central America; 2) the harmonization and standardization of regional energy policies and practices including in supply, logistics, distribution, fuel standards and electrification; 3) energy security and diversification, expanding the current energy portfolio from primarily petroleum driven to include renewable energy sources; 4) and creating efficiencies in current systems by promoting energy conservation policies, practices and technologies. Key partners and contributors for C-CAA energy programs have included:
For further information on CCAA’s energy programming, please contact: |