-PM’s press conference hears
The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) recorded a total loss of 25 percent of power generated for 2024, a press conference convened by Prime Minister Mark Phillips heard yesterday.
Twelve percent of the loss is commercial meaning persons who are illegally connected to the grid and do not pay for the supply of power, while the technical loss refers to dissipation while power is being transmitted from generation to distribution.
This has been the level of losses for years and despite massive investment particularly in the transmission and distribution system, GPL has been unable to restrain the debilitating haemorrhaging of power. It has raised questions of what might happen when the proposed gas to energy plant comes on stream
In 2023 the power company recorded a 24.1% loss of dispatched power, and over the past few years from 2021 to 2023 it recorded a reduction in system losses of 1.36%. The reduction was as a result of the replacement of 43,128 meters with the advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) meters and the continuous upgrade of its network.
Addressing the question of losses, Prime Minister Phillips who has oversight for the energy sector told the press conference that the Government continues to handle the losses with the “project of changing out meters”. He stated that though it is costly, “it will help in reducing the loss that we are talking about, and we already started spending some money in 2025, and you would have heard the President’s press conference, some 750 million U.S. dollars we started spending in 2025 towards building out and modernizing the old transmission and distribution system, which itself will contribute towards reducing the loss”.
Despite the continued changes in the systems the monopoly power company’s losses have remained in the 20’s over the years, and as far back of 2014 the loss was recorded at 29.09 percent of the total power generated.
Meanwhile highlighting other efforts made over the year under his portfolio Phillips stated that “In 2024 alone, we’ve increased the (power) capacity by 124 megawatts. The current peak demand is 205 megawatts. So we have in excess of what is required not only to supply electricity, but also to have a spinning reserve”.
Meanwhile the Public Utilities Commission (PUC) according to Phillips resolved 155 complaints out of 184 received for 2024, with 13.3 million going towards compensation. Additionally “they’ve reduced mobile and fixed termination rates by 58% and 54% respectively while they will continue monitoring performance, especially of GPL, and review GWI’s Strategic Development Plan and the ongoing work in terms of preparing for the implementation of the normal portability facility that was promised to the people of Guyana” he added.
And while admitting to a lower than expected target being achieved by the National Data Management Authority with only 215 communities of the targeted 253 benefitting from the Internet connectivity programme for the hinterland and riverain communities, Phillips added that “146 ICT hubs along with 129 solar systems were also installed, and 126 high-speed internet connections. We’ve trained over 1,155 individuals as ICT hub managers, as ICT technicians, and solar technicians in those communities to ensure that we could maintain the serviceability of the devices and the ICT hubs that were installed in those communities”.
Touching on the much anticipated gas to shore project (GTE) he stated the project is on track for the completion this year end and that much of the equipment for the plant is “already in country It’s just a matter of putting everything together”.