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Prominent city businesses to be prosecuted for electricity theft

Sep 02, 2014 News

A number of prominent businesses in the capital city will soon be hauled before the courts over massive electricity theft, an issue that remains a significant bugbear for the Guyana Power and Light Company Inc.

This was confirmed yesterday by Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Bharrat Dindyal, who in apprising this publication, said that a report with a number of recommendations is currently being prepared to be submitted to the Board of Directors.

According to Dindyal, the move stems from a pilot programme which was implemented in Georgetown, where smart meters were installed in the business district.

He noted there were instances where, using the technology, the power company was able to detect meters at businesses showing a power outage, whilst neighbours were electrified.

According to Dindyal, there is a difficulty in presenting the evidence to the court given the way in which the current laws are written.

Dindyal told this publication that the power company must first present the technical data proving the theft to the Government Electrical Inspectorate which is an independent body.

He said the Inspectorate must first be convinced of the data proving the theft, after which the police must be convinced.

The power company is hoping to have all of the necessary arrangements finalized by month end before moving to the courts to effect successful prosecution.

He stressed the importance of having the technically competent people effectively presenting the data to the court.

Some of the businesses in the commercial sector that are guilty of electricity theft include establishments that manufacture furniture, wood processing companies, ice companies, hotels, and fish processing companies.

The power company has been experiencing significant loss as a result of the theft of electricity both by residential and commercial consumers.

In an effort to reduce the growing number of electricity theft, GPL introduced the Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) system.

The Project is financed under a loan agreement with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and facilitated by the Government of Guyana.

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds earlier this year appeared before a Parliamentary committee and signaled that the state-owned power company may require a massive injection of US$100M to do additional upgrades to its distribution system.

The company is currently building a US$26M power plant at Vreed-en-Hoop and is also involved in a US$45M project to upgrade its transmission lines on the coasts, also aimed at reducing theft and line losses.

Hinds used the opportunity to lament GPL’s battle to bring down electricity theft. About 16 per cent of what GPL produces is lost because of this.

GPL is now being urged to install 175,000 sophisticated smart meters throughout the system, which continually “speak” to others in the vicinity, and to a control centre. ”These meters could be disconnected, and re-connected, from the centre. This new system will allow the utility company to know at all times locations from where power is being taken, that is not being reflected in the local grouping of meters. This project could cost the power company another US$75M.

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