Prime Minister Samuel Hinds has urged the Guyana Power and Light Company (GPL) to consider installation of pre-paid meters by way of lottery, in the pilot areas it had selected, even as it prepared to suspend installation to address concerns raised by residents.
According to a correspondence seen by this newspaper and which was addressed to Opposition Leader Robert Corbin, Prime Minister Hinds stated that holding a lottery in the installation process would allay all feelings of discrimination in the sequencing of areas to be converted to the use of the new devices.
The Prime Minister was responding to a press release issued by the PNCR on August 26, which among other issues surrounding the installation of pre-paid meters in Festival City, North Ruimveldt, highlighted a call by Corbin for the power company to temporarily suspend the installation of pre-paid meters in that area.
GPL’s CEO Bharrat Dindyal, in a letter addressed to the Prime Minister, stated that the power company had conceded that some residents in the Festival City area had expressed concerns about the manner and consequences of the pre-paid meters. He stated that the company was prepared to suspend the installation process, until the concerns of residents were addressed.
The Prime Minister stated that while he and the power company believe efforts were made to inform consumers in general of the benefits of the new metering system, especially those in the Festival City area, the results indicate that more public awareness campaigns, including additional approaches and publicity campaigns, could have been effected.
According to the PNCR release, the party informed the Prime Minister of its concerns, following a visit to the North Ruimveldt community by members of the party including executive member Africo Selman and others to discuss the issue with residents there.
The party stated that two Sundays ago, residents in the Festival City area said that GPL technicians began removing their meters and installing the new pre-paid meters without prior notice. The party said two residents had experienced the automatic disconnection of electricity under the new system at their homes late at night with no understanding of what could have been done to bring relief to the problem.
The PNCR stated that no written information or explanatory document had been provided to the affected consumers on how to use the new system nor was any information given on the status of the existing contracts between the consumers and GPL. The party said these contracts might have been breached and there was no alternative contractual arrangement with the consumers in question.
The party also stated that the rate at which credit for the electricity supply to the residents in question was diminishing suggested that the cost was likely to be double the average payment usually made.
Dindyal disputed assertions by the PNCR that GPL had not been interacting with the residents in question prior to the installation of the devices. Among actions undertaken by the company during this time, Dindyal said, were:
-distribution of letters to residents of areas identified for the pilot project implementation, with distribution to the Festival City area done on February 27 and 28 this year,
-meetings held with residents in the community within the period May 20 –August 16 ,during which consumers in the area interacted with the company’s Public Relations Officer and her assistant. Most consumers indicated a preference for Sunday, August 23 as being convenient for the installation of the meters;
-meters were only replaced at homes where crews spoke to householders living there. Following the installation of the new meters, customer representatives of the company demonstrated the use of the interface unit to consumer, explaining how power could be bought and entered, and the process involved in which the interface unit could be used to interrogate the meter for information including usage over a 24-hour and 30-day period.
Dindyal said the company clearly made a concerted effort to have a smooth introduction of the prepaid meter which he said was being derailed through “mistrust in the information provided by GPL personnel”.
He said GPL recognised the opposition leader’s concern for the affected residents and in the light of the benefits the residents are expected to accrue through the use of the pre-paid meter, GPL is prepared to undertake whatever is necessary to allay fears and/or concerns with the hope that the influence of the PNCR leader can be brought to bear in having the installation of the pre-paid devices continue.
In addition to Festival City, sections of Kitty, Black Bush Polder and Bourda Market had been identified for the pilot project. The areas mentioned were chosen as they were representative of the power company’s customer base of the residential and small business sectors.
Use of the pre-paid meter, according to GPL, allows consumers to correlate power consumption with appliances being used and it has, in some instances, resulted in a reduction in electricity consumption of up to 15% .