MARIGOT–Two Electricité de France (EDF) Guadeloupe representatives were in St. Martin on Thursday and Friday, November 22 and 23, to hold information sessions on various subjects, one in particular offering tips on how to reduce the cost of utility bills.
The visits were a follow-up to the signing of the partnership agreement between the Collectivité and EDF on October 20, 2017, during which EDF donated 30,000 euros to help persons in difficulty pay their bills.
Last month 26 persons, among them 16 senior citizens, benefited from the financial support to pay outstanding bills.
The two information sessions were organised by the Collectivité, in particular the Department of Elderly and Disabled Care headed by Director Evelyne Ratchel-Jacob. The first session on Thursday was held in French Quarter and the one on Friday in the Department of Solidarity and Families.
The meetings were an opportunity for the population to have exchanges with EDF and learn about the current financial aid schemes. EDF agents also gave tips on good practices to reduce electricity cost from cooking and lighting, types of meters and their correct installation, and what to look for when purchasing energy-saving appliances.
Some examples of tips were: use dishwashers and clothes washing machines of off-peak times, leaving TV on stand-by mode consumes as much as four hours’ worth of electricity, use energy-saving light bulbs, and regularly defrost refrigerator and freezer.
“The information that we have been receiving is very helpful,” said one of the attendees. “I think the elderly will benefit more from it. It’s helpful to know how to buy appliances and how to use them sparingly. We have a tendency in the Caribbean to leave the airco on all the time. And to know the peak hours and off-peak hours is very useful to know. Also, there are different types of meters you can choose.”
Ratchel-Jacob explained that attendees had been chosen by invitation based on their difficulties, as it would not have been feasible to invite everyone. But the sessions will be repeated in three months.
“We didn’t want to have too many people at one time,” she said. “But the people attending will spread the word in the community. It’s a gradual process of information sharing.”
The Department of Elderly and Disabled Care is advising the elderly to make an appointment with Mme. Tobal in the Department of Solidarity and Families if they are having difficulty paying their electricity bills.
At the end of the sessions, the EDF agents distributed low-energy light bulbs (six to a box) to attendees.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/83017-edf-guadeloupe-holds-information-sessions-on-reducing-cost-of-energy
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