The complaints coming from various sections of the population, both from private citizens and the business community, about the constant power outages and voltage surges have increased over the past few years. In fact, recently, there have been several letters to the editor where persons expressed frustration over prolonged periods of blackouts in their communities with the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) doing very little to convince the populace that blackouts will be a thing of the past.
Despite promises from both the previous and present Governments that the nation will benefit from improved electricity supply, consumers are yet to see any measurable progress in relation to an affordable and reliable service. In fact, very little has changed under this Administration who used every opportunity while in Opposition to criticise the previous government in relation to the manner in which the electricity sector was being managed.
With the opening up of new housing schemes around the country, there is an increased demand for electricity, which means that more energy has to be generated to satisfy the demand. If serious efforts are not made to produce more electricity to meet this increasing demand, there would always be pressure on the existing systems resulting in power surges and extended periods of blackouts.
Citizens have been complaining that the unstable electricity supply has resulted in their electrical appliances being damaged; a cost which they themselves have to bear as the power company seems to have no clear policy on compensation. Even if it does, consumers are not fully aware of such.
Likewise, businesses have also been very vocal about the huge negative impact the prolonged periods of blackouts have had on their operations. While it would be difficult to place a monetary figure on the extent of the economic loss resulting from unstable power, it would be correct to say that the losses in terms of down time and lost business have been quite significant. In addition to the disruption to manufacturing and trading, etc, there is also the disruption to the night-time entertainment industry.
An unstable electricity supply in any country serves as a deterrent to investors. While some large businesses in the manufacturing sector have opted for their own independent power supply, small businesses cannot afford to do so since the use of alternative power supply adds significantly to operating costs.
Of note too is that consumers, including manufacturers and service providers everywhere, are all of the opinion that the electricity charges at present are too high and have made numerous calls for the rates to be lowered. In addition to several complaints being made by residential consumers about the burden the electricity bill places on their household, manufacturers and services providers have expressed the view that they are sometimes unable to compete due to the high cost of electricity rates here.
That said, we are not oblivious to the many problems being experienced by GPL. These problems which include line losses, particularly owing to electricity theft, have been known for decades and have certainly had a tremendous impact on the company’s ability to provide better services to consumers.
The extent of electricity theft in Guyana is shocking and GPL must continue to tackle the issue frontally. The costs for stolen electricity are passed down to ordinary consumers, who are made to feel the brunt of such illegal actions. All efforts must, therefore, be made to ensure that persons who are involved in such practices are placed before the courts. No doubt, once such issues are addressed, the company would be in a better position to perform better.
It is unacceptable that citizens are still faced with unexplained blackouts and voltage surges. In fairness to GPL, it is clear they understand the depth of the problem and how consumers and businesses are affected. However, the company and, by extension, the Government must take the necessary steps to fix the problem of blackouts, once and for all. Anything less is unacceptable.
