– residents praise gov’t for addressing age-old power supply problem

By Gabriella Chapman

AFTER enduring decades of power outages, residents of Bartica are in high praise of the government now that their town is being powered by a 3.3 megawatt power station. The $700M facility located at Dogg Point, Bartica, was commissioned by President David Granger on Saturday.

On Sunday, one day after the commissioning ceremony, residents commended the efforts of the A Partnership for National Unity + Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) Government to enhance and develop their hometown.

A prominent school teacher told the Guyana Chronicle that the power station signals the end of constant blackouts in Bartica – a capital town located in the Cuyuni-Mazaruni District (Region Seven).

“As Barticians [sic], we might disagree on a lot, but for sure, we can all agree that for too long we suffered with GPL. It was always one old generator to the next, always coming from somewhere to here, and working a ‘lil’ while. But I’m glad I’m alive to see us get what we deserve, no more 72 hours blackout or load-shedding daily. I’m thankful for the development,” she said.

A budding environmentalist, Tamya Healis, recalled the many years of inconvenience.
“For many years growing up in the little town of Bartica it was such a norm to have power outages. There was even a period where I could recall that that was all we knew, which then saw many persons purchasing generators for household and business use; but we all knew that could have never been a permanent solution due to the price of fuel,” Healis told this newspaper.

The budding environmentalist said there were times when she had no other choice but to study with a candle or torchlight. Healis is thankful that after years of lobbying, the town now has a reliable source of electricity. “As we head towards Vision 2040 with the Green State Development Strategy as our guide, as locals we should continually make efforts to not just rely on fossil fuel, but diversify into renewable sources such as water, wind, waste and solar,” Healis posited.

Youth Leader Estiva Lake said the damage done as a result of years of power outages are well established. Lake said today, after years of suffering, the people of Bartica are enjoying a reliable flow of electricity. “Being a witness to this Christmas with no power shortage is a blessing to me. It signifies growth or development as a town. Now I can bask in the fact that constant power shortage is a thing of the past in Bartica. I am most grateful for the 3.3 megawatt power plant created for Barticians [sic] by the David Granger Administration,” Lake told the Guyana Chronicle.

Two school friends – Oureanna Lake and Renee Amjad also shared their sentiments.
“I think that GPL’s 3.3 MW Bartica power plant is a wonderful initiative, because for years Barticians [sic] have suffered from a vast number of power outages, leaving us to go to school and work with our clothes rugged and causing a lot of damages [sic] to our electrical appliances. Not forgetting the struggle that we students had to face to get to study during the power outages. Apart from that, the choice of location of the power plant was well planned because the old power plant was located in central Bartica, and that caused high levels of noise and air pollution within the area,” Oureanna said.

Weighing in on the topic, Amjad told this newspaper that the operationalisation of the power station is a strong indication that Bartica is on the path to development.
“I see this major development of the new GPL plant boosting a more effective standard of living. There will be no setbacks for whoever may be doing something important as in if it is work-related or school-related,” Amjad said.

President David Granger on Saturday told the people that it was inconceivable that Guyana can be on a path of development and ignore the evolution of its hinterland communities. He noted that hinterland development must be accelerated to ensure greater equality and his government is on a mission to reduce and remove hinterland underdevelopment.

In this regard, he noted that energy security was essential to hinterland evolution as the enlargement of the economy, the expansion of employment opportunities and the improvement in the quality of life, required investments in energy generation. This was so, particularly in regions where investment and income levels were below the national average, he said.

Regional Chairman Gordon Bradford, in his remarks, said that the regional administration as well as every Bartican can now breathe a sigh of relief, since their power woes will now come to an end after many years of waiting.