–PUC says will not impose a penalty after reviewing company’s operations

AFTER careful consideration, the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) has decided not to impose a penalty on the Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL), stating that, despite failing to meet its 2022 industry standards, the utility company continues to implement innovative measures to counteract challenges.

This decision was taken after the Commission conducted a review of GPL’s operating standards and performance for 2022. Among several concerns, the report, which was released by the PUC on Saturday, underscored the high volume of customer interruptions in 2022, which was a total of 94 outages.

Apart from the fallen branches that make contact with power lines and cause electrical short circuits, GPL also told the PUC that the frequency of motor vehicles striking utility poles are an issue, and as such, the company is exploring the possibility of the use of concrete poles in the future to curb this frequent occurrence.

The report stated: “The Commission implores the Company to make better efforts to reduce these levels as this will continue to negatively impact the economic development of the county.”

On the other hand, while GPL has maintained its inability to measure the voltage supplied to each consumer, the PUC has not only planned to engage the utility company on the matter but also advised them to devise quantitative measures on customer voltage levels as opposed to qualitative analyses such as responses to voltage complaints.

“The Commission believes that this critical parameter should be measured by GPL and whilst the Company may be unable to report on every customer’s voltage, it is of the view that feeders voltage profiles may be measured and if required, capacitors and voltage regulators can be installed to improve the voltage levels,” the report stated.

In the area of system losses, while the company did meet the standard, the report maintains that there is still a high percentage of technical and non-technical losses.

The Commission stated that: “GPL needs to make a greater effort to reduce these losses as it will continue to hamper efforts to reduce the price of electricity to consumers.”

Moreover, the Commission noted that despite the relatively small population of maximum demand consumers, GPL continues to report its failure as it relates to the attainment of the meter reading standards.

The review read: “Defective handheld devices which are used to remotely read meters have been the constant reason for failure of achieving this standard.”
However, the PUC did commend GPL for its efforts in procuring new handheld devices which, according to its review, “will no doubt bode well in the future attainment of this standard.”

Owing to the prospect of improvements, the PUC stated that it is hopeful that the utility company will be able to meet the target, this year.

In concluding its report, it was said: “the Commission however wishes to emphasise in this decision that it will continue to vigorously monitor the electricity sector so that GPL would be properly positioned to reach its contractual obligations and legal mandate to the consumers of Guyana.”