Video: Minister On LED Light Bulb Initiative
[Updated] Deputy Premier and Minister of Home Affairs Walter Roban is holding a press conference this morning [Aug 14] to provide an update on the LED Light Bulb Initiative. We will have additional coverage later on and in the meantime the live video is below.
Update: The live broadcast has concluded and the replay is below
Update 3.05pm: Minister Roban’s remarks:
Good morning, Bermuda
Thank you for joining us today as we provide an update on the LED Light Bulb Initiative.
Since the beginning of May, and with the generous assistance and support from local charities and organisations such as Age Concern, the Eliza DoLittle Society, the Family Centre, Meals on Wheels, the Bermuda Housing Corporation and the Transformational Living Centre, over five thousand LEDs have been distributed to those among us who are most vulnerable and in need. We are now in the second phase of this initiative, and ready to open it up to the rest of Bermuda.
Next week, you should be receiving a flyer that looks like this in your mailbox.
This is your ticket to savings and all you need to do is fill it out with your name and address and take it to your nearest post office. If you work in the city, you can come to the Hamilton Post Office to collect your LEDs.
To be clear, the limit is one package per household. You must have your flyer with you and filled out, to receive your LEDs.
These LEDs are 60-Watt equivalents, so you can use these to replace any fixture that would otherwise use an incandescent light bulb. They are a ‘natural daylight’ colour, which is a good medium colour rendition, so they look as much like what you’re used to as possible.
For those who might think this is a gestural initiative, I would like to assure you that it is not. To quantify those savings, one of these LED bulbs will cost about $100 at an average all-in rate of forty-two cents per kilowatt-hour to operate before it needs to be replaced, which is after about 25,000 hours of use.
By contrast, incandescent bulbs only have a lifespan of about 1000 hours. Looking at how much an incandescent bulb would cost to operate for the same number of hours, LEDs cost about $530 less to operate- and an incandescent bulb would need replacement many times during that period, given their shorter lifespan.
These figures account for just for one bulb, this initiative will allow households to save, over time, about a thousand dollars for each four-pack of bulbs. It is conservatively projected that this initiative will save a cumulative thirty seven MILLION dollars, total, or more in some cases.
LED’s also save money in less direct ways, for example they give off only a fraction of the waste heat that halogen and incandescent lights emit. As a result, your space is actually cooler than it would be if you used those older, outmoded technologies. If your space is cooler, your air conditioner does not have to work as hard, saving you energy again.
You may be thinking that all of this sounds familiar if so, that is because the Department of Energy promoted a similar initiative in 2018 to mid-2019, in which retailers of LEDs assisted us in distributing twelve thousand, five hundred LED bulbs throughout the community.
We are hoping that this initiative not only puts money back into the pockets of Bermuda’s residents, but also accomplishes a broader goal of providing inspiration and incentive to residents to explore other energy savings initiatives that are low cost but high reward.
As a country and as a people, each and every one of us should be looking at more ways we can save energy and keep our hard-earned cash on island and circulating in the local economy.
Energy efficiency is not defined by deprivation and abstaining from using electricity, but rather using electricity more wisely and using the available technologies.
In closing remember, saving energy can be as easy as screwing in a light bulb. Please be on the look-out as these flyers are coming to your mailbox soon and they are important. The limit is one per household and you must present your completed flyer to the post office of your choice to receive your free four-pack of energy-saving LED’s.
Thank you.
Look Mate, we are in waaaay more trouble than a few lightbulbs will fix.
You are bailing out the Titanic with a shot glass.
Yes much worse since the obaUBP has another front man to try and trick the voters that the party is diverse. Lmfaoooo
Keep up the big lie. Never give up on the big lie!
The truth is that the UBP changed its name from a government that did wonders for a certain segment of Bermuda to the pathetic OBA to run away from its racist past mistakes. Since we all know black voters stop voting for the party.
That is not the truth, but keep up the big lie. Never give up on the big lie!
BINGO!
You have the nerve to say the OBA has to trick people into believing people that they are diverse? Have you looked at the PLP elected , the PLP leaders , the PLP delegates etc…. Ain’t nothing there that has EVER resembled diversification. Those who live in glass houses should not throw stones.
Please look up the definition of diverse before you comment. People are way to wise and know the PLPs tactics of divide an conquer. Sadly, while this has worked for the party and a few family and friends benefit, the truth as we see it is that it has cost this country dearly. Wake up .
The diversity in the OBA aka UBP is the candidates the rest of the party is white. So yes it’s a TRICK. Stop playing the voters for fools we all get tired of the surrogate of musical chairs. Why do you think it’s 30-6!!!! It’s not going to go well until someone forms a 3rd party with whites and black voters working equally.
“the OBA aka UBP ”
Thank you for that paid political announcement from the PLP
At least they’re diverse….and not the racist, homophobic, xenophobic boiz club of the plp. LOL, your ignorance is thick this morning. Your hypocrisy is putrid.
Yes the party is white and it’s also true they place black candidates at the front with the hope of appearing diverse to the voters. Everyone in Bermuda knows this but the OBA aka UBP continue to use this tactic.
“the OBA aka UBP”
Keep up the big lie. Never give up on the big lie!
How clueless is this minister???
Why the hell would I spend money on expensive LED bulbs for my home just to be on a few hours a day?? This only saves belco energy but the minimal savings on my bill will never add up to the expense of LEDs. This initiative only works for big businesses like grocery stores, Street lights and office space etc. Not for house holds
You don’t have to spend money. The PLP Government will be giving away packages of LED light bulbs. One package per household.
Giving away merchandise is always worth free publicity.
$37 saving a year if you leave your lights on all night perhaps.
What did it cost you to get these lightbulbs $15 million / 60,000 (approximate whole population including babies) = $ 250 per individual for $37 per year = 7 years before you breakeven.
BUT WAIT, babies and people not working can’t pay for these… so use the working population number of 35,438 ($15M / 35,438 = $423 per worker) = 11 years before you start to see any benefit.
Each worker just paid $423 to get a benefit of $37 that they won’t start to see the upside of until 11 years in the future. This assumes the lightbulb doesn’t die.
What you have infact paid for is a propaganda photo op for the PLP, because you realistically aren’t going to see any benefit from. remember your tax dollars paid to the govt paid for this.
erm, they are not free, someone had to pay for them and that would be using taxpayers money, so all working Bermudians paid for this. The Green Machine did not dip into their own pockets for this at all, they dipped into your pockets to pay for it.
I did not suggest that the LEDs are free. I referred only to “free publicity”.
my apologies.
then the dip in your/our pockets was to pay for a publicity stunt.
“the Department of Energy promoted a similar initiative in 2018 to mid-2019″
Can anyone guess where the DOE got that idea from?
Thank you, thank you very much!
Now, how about implementing the timers on hot water heaters program? HUGE money saver for consumers.
With the cost of timers that isn’t going to ever happen but people should know that the savings accrued by running your water heater on demand way , way surpass the meager savings these light bulbs will provide.
If every house in Bermuda had timers on the heaters BELCO would be squealing.