Inadequate generating capacity, poor configuration blamed

Power woes

…GPL needs more financing – CEO

Inadequate generating capacity is just one aspect that needs fixing in order to ensure reliable electricity supply across the country but in order to address these issues, the Guyana Power and Light needs major financing. This is according to Chief Executive Officer of the utility company, Albert Gordon.
Speaking at the University of Guyana (UG) Tain Talks on Energy for Guyana, Gordon said that the company also has a transmission and distribution system that is poorly configured.
“It has evolved over the years to what it is but it was not developed in a structured manner and we are trying to fix that and we have inherent weaknesses. When I came here last year I said we need about US$150 million just to get the basics done, we have gotten US$26 million and we are targeting the heart of the problem,” the power company’s CEO said.
According to Gordon, there is only one transmission line that connects Demerara and Berbice and when that line goes down, many places would suffer extended hours of power outages until it could be fixed.
Recently, over the past five weeks, that line was under maintenance and that resulted in hours of prolonged power loss.
“Every time that line goes down the system goes down. In 2017 that line took down the system five times so if you don’t take good care of it that is what it does. That is why we had to do that. So until we fix those things we won’t get over that.”

More funding
According to the CEO, the company has secured some funding to build a backup for this line but much more needs to be done.
“We need to install about 120 megawatts and we have been searching for financing for that and we have identified some sources and we are in discussions. We have identified financing and we are in discussion for a first 20 megawatts which would ease the burden on this side. In fact, we want it somewhere in the Berbice area because there is a line between Sophia and Good Hope that if that line goes down, the system goes down as well because we are always pushing power to the East Coast.”
He added that currently, the system has no redundancy but instead GPL has a radial transmission system. Gordon noted that usually, a transmission system is a network with a backup line but unfortunately, GPL does not enjoy this.
“That is not what we have. We have a hub at Sophia and lines goes to Kingston, Vreed-en-Hoop, Good Hope and all the way to Skeldon and Garden of Eden and Golden Grove. It is a radial system, something goes down in one place, everything downstream is affected by it so we need to reconfigure that.”
For several years GPL consumers have been experiencing constant power outages and the company’s poor services have come under criticism many times, primarily by the general populace. Businesses have also been very vocal about the negative impacts that the prolonged periods of blackout have had on their operations.

Part of GPL’s interconnected system