‘Doomsday’ scenario looms at Canefield Power Station

Jul 09, 2009 Letters

Dear Editor,
All does not seem to be well at the Canefield Power Station, which is under the management and control of Guyana’s electricity utility provider Guyana Power & Light Incorporated (GPL Inc).
A few days ago I sat down with a current employee of the Canefield Station, who wishes to be anonymous, for what happened to be a very revealing and shocking interview.
According to the individual, 27 of oil (fuel) were allegedly wasted at the station with no investigation conducted about the incident. The employee alluded to the frequent blackouts Berbicians have been facing during the past couple of days and purports that it is as a result of poor management at the Canefield Power Station. He is calling on the government to conduct an urgent investigation into the operations at the Power Station.

The individual reported to me that GPL had acquired a generating set from Suriname but alleges that the set “is not good”. He claims that millions of dollars were spent to purchase the set from Parimaribo, but is of the opinion that the liner, piston, crankshaft, and head of the engine are all defective and flawed.
Responding to a question from yours truly about the all-day weekend blackouts of the 13th and 14th June, 2009, which the entire of Berbice faced, the GPL employee argued that no maintenance works were done like the newscasts and media were reporting. He alleges that a canal, where high voltage wires run underwater, was being cleaned over the two days. He doubted that any repairs went on with the Number Four Engine. The interviewee purports that two inexperienced young engineers were recently employed by the company at Canefield. He is of the opinion that the engineers are not knowledgeable about their job.
Speaking on the issue of Skeldon, he claims that the company receives power from Skeldon Factory “only when Bunker C Fuel is available.” He also argued that many workers at Canefield are not equipped with enough safety gears.

Another shocking assumption during the interview is that a number of Caterpillar Generating Sets at Canfield is allegedly not working. The employer claims that #7, #21 and #11 Caterpillar Sets have “broken down” and are not working. He claims that only the #9 and #13 Caterpillar Sets are working. He purported that recently a car was damaged severely after a part from the #7 Caterpillar Set “was flung out” of the engine onto the car, creating destruction in the process.
The purported information really presents a “doomsday” scenario at this generating facility. Though I am not saying all that the person revealed was true, I join his call for an independent investigation into the operations at the Canefield Power Station, especially into the events surrounding the weekend of June 13 and 14, 2009. According to GPL, through the media, more weekends like the 13th and 14th would take place very shortly.

Just maybe the GPL top brass and the government are not aware of some 108 blackouts to date in the Berbice area. Just what is going on? Has GPL not been telling the public the entire truth as to the problems being experienced at Canefield? Are they lying to the media and to the people of Berbice?
Canefield recently published an advertisement in the newspapers apologising for the blackouts of the final weekend in June. This situation is getting more mysterious.
What is the Chambers of Commerce in Berbice doing? I would like to suggest that they get off their behinds and openly ask for the answers us Berbicians seek! Not one word of complaint and dissatisfaction has been heard from the New Amsterdam, Central Corentyne or Upper Corentyne Chambers of Commerce about the recent spate of blackouts Berbicians have been facing.

Finally, I had to laugh the other day when I read about another fantasy GPL wants to fulfill to better the power problems in Guyana: merging the transmission and distribution systems in Demerara and Berbice. The stupidity and idiocy at this company never ceases to amaze me! This is another “promise of a better day in electricity delivery to Guyanese” which has raised its head in the form of this latest “genius idea” by someone at GPL. Amalia Falls, just like Skeldon Modernization Power Plant (which was supposed to have been powering the entire Berbice and exporting power to the rest of the grid) is another poppycock show in the making for Guyanese.
Leon Jameson Suseran

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‘Doomsday’ scenario looms at Canefield Power Station

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