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GPL should have Christmas capacity but expects problems
GUYANA Power & Light (GPL) Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr. Bharat Dindyal said, on Thursday, that there is a “healthy generation” of electricity for the Christmas season.
He said, of the 95 megawatts (mw) that should be available in Demerara, to date, the utility has experienced a peak of just 78 mw. Traditionally, as usual, after December 15, industrial demand will drop and, of course, the domestic requirement would increase.
Dindyal said, typically, around Christmas the highest requirement is between 3 to 5 mw below what was the previous year’s experience.
“We are not looking for too much beyond 75 mw, so our available capacity of 95 mw in Georgetown would be more than adequate and we are expecting, in Berbice, to have adequate capacity of 20 mw and we are working feverishly on another 5mw from Canefield, Canje, but there have been some delays in delivering the spares.
“It is possible that we would not be able to complete that engine on time for this year end,” he admitted, in an interview with the Guyana Chronicle.
Other than that, GPL is expecting 3 ½ mw from Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) in Berbice. In Bartica, there are three Caterpillar sets, rated at 1.5 mw each and the peak there is just below 1.4 mw, which is deemed adequate.
Dindyal said, at Anna Regina, Leguan and Wakenaam, GPL also has enough current but there is an issue at Leguan in which GPL’s main generator is due for major overhaul and that activity has commenced, relying on the large back-up 1.6 mw engine.
He lamented, however, that, unfortunately, when GPL was two days into the overhaul, the alternator for the 1.5 mw actually failed and that motor had to return for servicing.
Dindyal said GPL is working to restore the 1.5 mw generator before the other one is taken down for the overhaul.
He said, generally, there is a very healthy generation in Demerara but there have been outages, largely because of network related problems. Some of the faults were due to an excavator, doing works in Durey Lane, Campbellville, a few weeks ago, pulling down transmission lines and causing a 50 hertz shutdown.
Dindyal said GPL has been advising consumers that, upon noticing any network problems, to call in to its Sophia Call Centre to report, because, as it gets closer the festive season, even more crews will be deployed so that emergency calls could be attended to faster.
Emergencies
“We are going through a period of adverse weather now and, of course, during this period, we have an elevated level of emergencies and we are dealing with those. We continue to have a problem with vegetation, vines and bamboo, all sorts of things happening and, basically, trees and vines getting into our transmission lines and we have to be constantly vigilant and have people tending to these problems,” he explained.
Dindyal’s advice to consumers is that, in the absence of a generation problem, the only scheduled outages are localised for maintenance but a defective transmission line would restrict them.
He encouraged customers who notice anything abnormal about the network and supply to report as quickly as possible, so that power generation is not lost and outages are kept at a minimum.
About Christmas fairy and other decorative lights, persons should install proper power strips and not connect all sorts of things to them without monitoring, as that in itself, is a danger and potential fire hazard as they can overload.
Dindyal urged persons to look at the outlet ratings for power strips and ensure they are capable of taking off the required load intended.
“There could be a fire following a short circuit, if you don’t have adequate protection in your home, as it pertains to fuse and circuit breakers. The entire circuit will start to burn, with the cables on fire and it will reflect on GPL’s network because we have large transformers powering these lines to allow huge amounts of power to flow. As such, no domestic wiring can take off that load of power and there will be overheating and there is the making of a fire,” he pointed out.
Dindyal cautioned consumers to review their fuse arrangement and, if there is an old wiring, have an electrician inspect it because the fuses are designed for protection.
If a fuse is blowing constantly and you keep upgrading it, then you are headed for trouble. Let a certified person go through the fuse panel to ensure fuses are adequately sized and check the breaker panel to see if they are also functioning.
He appealed to persons to desist from adding too many fairy lights and other lighted decorations to their homes because it can overload the system and a fire can start, as some people leave on these lights all night and the heat from them can set fire to a curtain.
Dindyal said the rainy season coupled with electricity theft in some areas are dangerous for children as well as adults traversing around the exposed live wires used for the stealing.
He said the most prevalent areas for that illegal practice are Angoy’s Avenue, New Amsterdam, Berbice; Sophia, Greater Georgetown; sections of Diamond, East Bank Demerara and Soesdyke/Linden Highway where people are stealing the power and selling it.
Dindyal said GPL is addressing that situation by conducting repeated raids accompanied by the Police but, after they leave, people resume the unlawful activity that is costing the power company.
