The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) yesterday commenced its name and shame campaign which saw the disconnecting of an Annandale businessman and a charge is to be filed.
The businessman of Courbane Park, Annandale, ECD is to be charged with theft of electricity and was arrested when GPL officials along with ranks of the Guyana Police Force visited his business premises. The man operates an ice manufacturing business, an operation that utilizes a significant amount of electricity. He was under surveillance as are many other businessmen who are expected to face the same fate shortly, as GPL continues its campaign to reduce losses due to theft.
On the scene yesterday were Operations Manager, Dominic Sundar and Field Service Manager Looknauth Singh along with two police ranks and a representative from the Ministry of Public Works’ Electrical Inspectorate. GPL would have embarked on similar campaigns over the years but has taken a new approach this time around to ensure successful prosecution.
Several businesses have been monitored for an undisclosed amount of time as GPL gathered evidence to perform the disconnections, arrests and subsequent prosecutions. This has been supplemented by the input of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (Smart meters) implemented last November. This new metering provides for real time accurate reporting of electricity consumption whether it passes through a legal connection or not. This is now one of the key tools GPL will be using to ensure successful prosecution without having to rely on staff who would have moved on from the company by the time they would’ve been required to testify.
Commercial power losses have dogged GPL and its predecessor for several decades.
