A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) yesterday called on the government and the Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) to explain why available generating capacity fell short of the 280 megawatts the utility had projected would be reliably available by the end of August.
In a statement, the opposition coalition noted that GPL reported having 265.6 MW available on September 7, while peak demand had reached 257 MW. It said GPL should identify the unavailable generating units and explain the approximately 14.4 MW difference between its earlier projection and current capacity.
GPL officials recently acknowledged that the company was operating “neck and neck” with demand and lacked sufficient spinning reserve to respond to sudden fluctuations or the failure of a generating unit.
The utility company also said overloaded feeders and transformers were contributing to outages. According to GPL, the number of customers increased from 201,791 in 2020 to approximately 250,000, while consumption by existing customers also rose.
APNU argued that the government had long been aware that economic expansion, new housing developments and increased commercial activity would significantly increase electricity demand.
It cited a 2021 statement by President Irfaan Ali that demand between 2022 and 2027 was expected to nearly triple and that the transmission and distribution network required a “massive upgrade”.
“A collection of contracts is not a national plan,” APNU said, contending that additional generating units would not solve the problem unless the transmission and distribution network could reliably move electricity to consumers.
The coalition also criticised GPL’s appeal for consumers to conserve electricity, saying households should not be blamed for increased consumption during exceptionally hot weather and amid economic growth.
APNU called for an immediate outage-reduction plan, community-specific repair deadlines and weekly reports on available generation, reserve capacity and outages.
The statement also addressed the delayed Gas-to-Energy project at Wales, where the first turbine is expected to undergo testing around December 4. Public Utilities and Aviation Minister Deodat Indar has said the immediate objective is to deliver an initial 57 MW to the grid, although the first phase is ultimately intended to supply 300 MW.
Kiskadee Watch reported that four gas turbines and one steam turbine had been installed, while another steam turbine and the project’s substation were still being worked on. The project, conservatively estimated at around US$2 billion, is more than two years behind schedule and has not yet delivered the promised reduction in electricity rates.
APNU said the government should publish separate dates for turbine testing, the delivery of dependable electricity to the grid and the promised tariff reduction.
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