Vice President (VP) Bharrat Jagdeo has expressed frustration over the performance of the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL) management, stating that the Government must ensure it receives full value for the significant investments made in the utility company.
Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo
Speaking during his weekly press conference, Jagdeo emphasised that GPL’s current leadership must be strengthened to deliver on the administration’s ambitious energy transformation plans.
Jagdeo said that while the Government has pumped substantial resources into GPL in recent years, the results have been unsatisfactory, citing persistent technical failures and power disruptions.
“I’m tired of the excuses,” he declared, pointing to recent reports that a lightning strike had caused a system trip. “We have to get value for money from GPL management,” he insisted, stressing that the state cannot afford mismanagement at a time when the country is embarking on the most comprehensive overhaul of its power infrastructure in decades.
Investments
Since 2020, the Government has invested more than $28.1 billion into expanding the power company’s generation, transmission and distribution system, adding 127.7 megawatts of generating capacity to the GPL grid to keep pace with the 64 per cent increase in peak demand and a 19 per cent increase in customer base since 2019.
These investments in the electricity sector by the current People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration included the expansion and upgrade of the distribution network and substations, the installation and replacement of more than 100,000 meters, as well as close to 4000 transformers, the laying of almost 2800 kilometres of distribution network, and the expansion and upgrade of three substations.
Over the past four years, 27 communities were also powered for the first time, and there has been no increase in electricity tariff despite substantial hikes in fuel prices.
According to Jagdeo, the Government’s transformation agenda also includes the development of a stable and smart national grid by the next election cycle. This involves integrating the much-anticipated Gas-to-Energy project, which is expected to add 300 megawatts of electricity to the system, and completing additional projects to bring another 300 megawatts on stream.
Other planned projects include the resumption of tendering for a hydropower facility, the construction of a massive transmission network using steel towers to extend supply to Berbice, Linden, and Parika, and the installation of major systems along the Essequibo Coast. “We are putting in major systems in the feeders right across the country,” Jagdeo explained, outlining plans to replace old lines, upgrade transformers, and build circuit redundancies to prevent entire system shutdowns when a single feeder trips.
Competent management
However, Jagdeo stressed that such massive infrastructural works must be supported by competent oversight and efficient operations. He said independent firms will be hired to supervise projects to ensure quality control, proper execution, and value for public expenditure.
“We also have to get value for money from the management,” he reiterated. “Strengthening GPL’s management is another important task – without that, it would be stupid of us to proceed.”
The Vice President made it clear that the Government’s vision for a modern, stable, and reliable power system hinges not only on technology and investment but also on effective leadership at GPL.
“We cannot afford to have a management team that cannot lead this transformation,” Jagdeo said, underscoring that the stakes are too high given the scale of planned reforms.
Further, adequate and proper management will play a vital role in the Government’s 2030 plans – a time Guyana’s power demand is expected to triple.
