GPL suffered 25 system shutdowns in 2017 – PUC hears

– introducing 80,000 smart meters

As the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) company continues to be plagued by power outages and other systemic shutdowns, the State body on Tuesday announced it will be introducing some 80,000 smart meters to improve voltage regulation. The disclosure was made at a GPL hearing before the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) at Cara Lodge, Georgetown. The announcement however came against the backdrop of Technical Deputy Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Elwyn Marshall announcing that there were 25 outages in 2017; a number that would be placed at odds to that of many GPL customers who continue to decry the service that is offered by the power company.
With the expanding housing sector, the demand for power across vast locations is increasing and with the nation’s power grid being strained, GPL disclosed a host of measures it said will reduce voltage irregularities which not only damage its feeder system but consumers’ appliances as well.
“Our performance in 2017 did not meet the target set; it was not as good as we did in 2016,” Marshall admitted.
He told the PUC that during last year, there were “premature defects” on three of the company’s 6.9 Megawatt generators at the Kingston plant. The Deputy CEO added that the generators are over 10 years old and noted that planned maintenance had to be done on the Wärtsillä generators.
GPL explained that over the next three years, it will roll out about 80,000 smart meters which will have radio transmitting capacity to send out data. Marshall told Commissioners that the meters fall under the Power Utility Upgrade Programme (PUUP) which is aimed at providing a higher quality of service to its consumers.
However, following sustained widespread complaints over the said service the power company provides, Commissioners queried how the voltage regulation system will be monitored. The power company’s CEO, Albert Gordon defended the plan, saying it seeks to combat issues with the network, noting that system is unstable.
“We are putting these smart meters [which] will be able to detect the low voltage before the customer realises it because some of these meters will be closer to the end of the line which is where the lowest voltage would be experienced as it drops from the sub-station,” Gordon explained.
The Chief Executive Officer added that the smart meters will allow GPL to better monitor its feeder system each of which is supposed to have only 4000 costumers. The contract for the execution of power upgrade programme was awarded to China National Machinery Import and Export Corporation/China Synergy Electric Engineering Company (CMC/CSEEC).
The local subcontractor is Ramoutar and Sons Contracting.
It was only weeks ago that the Government was strongly criticised for the frequent episodes of power outage across Guyana by Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo who noted that many Guyanese are forced to endure the constant power outages daily, despite Government saving more money from fuel than ever before. According to the Opposition Leader, there has been a manifest lack of short- and long-term solutions to address the Guyana Power and Light’s (GPL) inefficiencies.
He noted Government has been profiting from billions, since it has not adjusted the electricity rates downwards, considering the low oil price.
He stated that the coalition Government killed the Amaila Falls Hydro Power (AFHP) project while promising wind power. Expressing fears of a rapid deterioration in power supply, which will harm both individuals and businesses, Jagdeo questioned both the transparency and the effectiveness of the strategies the Government has so far pursued.
In a bid to revamp its operations, GPL in February appointed Albert Gordon, a Jamaican, as its new CEO, replacing the former GPL acting CEO, Renford Homer. Meanwhile, some sections of West Bank Demerara experienced some 12 hours of blackout between Tuesday and Wednesday.