THE Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) has invested more than $50 million in specialised training as it prepares its workforce to operate the new Guyana National Control Centre, which will provide real-time monitoring and control of the national electricity grid.
This was disclosed by head of the power company’s Engineering and Projects Department, Ryan Ross, during a site visit to the new control centre, during which he said that the investment is part of a broader effort to ensure employees are adequately prepared to operate and maintain the sophisticated systems and equipment being installed at the new facility.
The new control centre is being equipped with a state-of-the-art Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) system and fibre-optic communications infrastructure, allowing GPL to monitor power plants, substations, and transmission infrastructure in real time.
Ross said the training programme is focused largely on upgrading existing employees who already understand GPL’s electricity network but will now have more advanced tools to manage it.
“It’s not a new body of staff we are hiring; it’s upskilling and upgrading our existing staff who understand the system. It’s just that we are giving them much more efficient tools to work with to better monitor and manage it.”
According to Ross, GPL has so far spent in excess of $50 million on specialised training for the SCADA equipment, with further investments expected over the coming years.
The training includes both local and overseas programmes, with members of GPL’s SCADA team, operators and training officers being sent to specialised programmes in Minnesota.
In addition to this, they have also adopted a “train the trainers” approach, through which employees receiving specialised overseas instruction return and share their knowledge with colleagues locally.
“The last programme we had is one that we call train the trainers, so when they get the training they come back, you help to train those here, because you cannot send everyone at the same time,” Ross said.
GPL has also engaged consultants, including SCADA and building specialists, to provide additional training to employees.
Ross said the need for preparation extends beyond operating the electricity grid, noting that the GNCC itself contains sophisticated building management systems that require specialised knowledge.
“Just operating in this environment, nothing to do with the grid as yet, just this building requires a lot of training to get people up to speed,” he said.
During the site visit it was disclosed that the new control centre is being developed as the central point for monitoring and managing GPL’s transmission network. Signals from power plants and substations will be transmitted to the centre through fibre-optic connections, giving operators greater visibility of power flows, equipment status and disturbances.
The facility is expected to support GPL’s longer-term transition towards a smart grid, with officials saying the system will eventually allow faults and outages to be detected almost immediately and, in certain circumstances, enable automated switching to alternative lines or equipment.
The facility is expected to be operationalised later this year, with GPL preparing to transition from its existing temporary control centre.
