News
Ryan Hamilton-Davis
IN her opening address at the 2026 TT Energy Conference, at the Hyatt Regency on January 26, Energy Chamber chairperson Mala Baliraj promised to review the Safe To Work (STOW) programme and the governance of the chamber.
“We have committed to reflect, review and make changes as needed,” she said.
“Our intention is always to work towards a collaborative approach with all of our stakeholders as such, we hope to be able to reposition and create a space for open and structured engagement with the government that supports the best outcomes for the sector.”
She admitted that STOW served as a barrier to some companies and noted feedback from the membership that the programme did not always meet its goal of improving safety standards.
She said the same was noted in the chamber’s opening speech in 2025.
“Given the clear position of the honourable Prime Minister and Minister of Energy, this configuration of contractor safety management certification and contractor pre-qualification will not be maintained in its current construct.”
With regard to the governance, Baliraj said the chamber will also make changes to its framework.
“The energy chamber is varied and includes ownership of every structure among the roughly 400 members. The range is from huge global corporations to micro enterprises and everything in between, in order to guard against the dominance of one set of interests over another, there is a robust, transparent governance framework that reflects the breadth of membership.”
The statements came after heavy criticism of the operations of the chamber from the government.
Last week, the Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar, announced plans to boycott the conference and Minister of Energy Roodal Moonilal announced plans to attend the India Energy Conference instead which will be held from January 27.
Moonilal at the post-Cabinet media conference, on January 22, reiterated concerns by the Prime Minister on the STOW entry requirements.
“STOW through the Energy Chamber is holding businesses to ransom by having a monopoly on who can conduct business in the energy sector using health and safety as a strangling tool,” he said.
The TT Energy Conference runs till January 28.