Smart grid rollout will not yield immediate reduction in power losses – GPL Development Plan

Aug 13, 2026 News

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(Kaieteur News) – The Development and Expansion Plan 2026-2030 for the Guyana Power and Light Incorporated (GPL) has revealed that the smart grid the company is pursuing will not immediately reduce power losses, as many may believe.

The document explains that the transition towards a smart grid comprises a qualitative shift in how losses are detected, managed, and interpreted across the electricity system.

“Unlike conventional network reinforcements, which primarily influence losses through physical efficiency gains, smart grid investments alter loss behaviour by increasing system observability, tightening operational control, and strengthening the linkage between energy flows and commercial outcomes. As such, their impact on losses is neither immediate nor linear, but accumulates as capabilities are deployed, integrated, and operationalized,” the plan stated.

The document further states that the programme envisages a phased transition surrounding advanced metering infrastructure (AMI), supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) upgrades, distribution management systems, and supporting communications and data platforms.

Together, these systems will allow near-real-time visibility of energy flows from the point of generation all the way through to end-use, thus replacing reliance on periodic manual readings and aggregate reconciliation with granular, time-stamped data. This shift fundamentally changes the nature of non-technical losses by reducing informational asymmetries between consumption, billing, and revenue collection.

“In the early stages of deployment, smart grid investments may have limited observable impact on aggregate loss levels. During this phase, benefits are primarily diagnostic rather than corrective: anomalous consumption patterns become visible, technical constraints are more clearly distinguished from commercial discrepancies, and historical loss estimates are reinterpreted in light of improved data quality. This can create the appearance of persistent or even elevated losses, not because performance has deteriorated, but because previously latent losses are more accurately revealed,” the document added.

It should be noted that understanding loss behaviour during this time requires care, as improvements in measurement precede improvements in outcomes. In addition, as AMI coverage expands and is integrated into billing, customer information, and other enforcement processes, smart grid capabilities begin to exert downward pressure on non-technical losses. Automated meter reading reduces billing delays and estimation errors, remote disconnection and reconnection strengthen payment discipline, and tamper detection functionality increases the effectiveness of compliance and enforcement efforts.

“Importantly, these gains are conditional on institutional readiness: without aligned procedures, trained personnel, and sustained follow-through, the technical capabilities alone do not translate into durable loss reduction. Smart grid systems also influence technical losses indirectly through improved operational control. Enhanced feeder monitoring, voltage regulation, and load balancing enable more efficient utilisation of network assets and reduce losses associated with overloads, voltage excursions, and suboptimal dispatch. Over time, the accumulation of high-resolution operational data supports more informed network planning, allowing capital investments to be better targeted toward loss-intensive feeders and substations,” the programme document said.

These effects will gradually materialise and will depend on the maturity of analytical and decision-support functions within the utility. In the current planning horizon, the smart grid transition’s role is therefore best understood as a foundation rather than a transformation in loss terms.

“The projections presented in this section do not assume immediate step-changes in loss performance attributable solely to smart grid deployment. Instead, they reflect a phased evolution in which improved visibility, control, and coordination progressively constrain both technical and nontechnical losses, while establishing the operational conditions required for more decisive and sustained improvements beyond the 2030 horizon,” the document said.

On August 11, Kaieteur News reported that GPL will, over the next five years, spend approximately US$4.8 billion to expand and upgrade its transmission and distribution network, also known as the national grid.

According to its Development and Expansion Programme 2026–2030, the company has outlined a strategic blueprint to transform the electricity sector within the Demerara-Berbice Interconnected System (DBIS) and Linden, while meeting surging electricity demand and advancing reliability, affordability, and sustainability.

“Over the next five years, the Guyana Power and Light Inc. (GPL), together with government’s assistance, plans to undertake an ambitious capital programme, amounting to US$4.869 billion to further expand power generation capacity, modernise and reinforce the transmission & distribution (T&D) system, implement smart grid technologies, reduce total system losses, and strengthen institutional capabilities. This executive summary highlights the Programme’s key technical and financial plans, aligned with the national goals under the Low Carbon Development Strategy 2030 (LCDS 2030) and SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy),” the document stated.

The plan is organised around the major sections of the programme, which include its technical mandates and planning criteria, demand forecasts, and generation expansion.

It also includes the smart grid transition, transmission and distribution expansion, system losses, sales and revenue, capital investments and financing, corporate enabling initiatives, cost-benefit analysis, environmental and social frameworks, risk management, and divisional implementation plans.

The five-year programme is grounded in the national energy policy and GPL’s mandate to deliver reliable, sustainable, and affordable electricity.

“The Engineering Services Division leads capacity expansion and network development using an Integrated Resource and Resilience Planning (IRRP) framework to meet projected demand while strengthening system resilience,” the document added.

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• Development Plan, GPL, power losses, smart grid

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