The Tribune

By FAY SIMMONS

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

The Government and Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) yesterday conceded shortcomings in both communication and grid resilience following Sunday's New Providence-wide outage, promising a comprehensive review of events and a more detailed public explanation later this week.

The response came two days after a major power disruption plunged New Providence into darkness for hours, disrupting homes, businesses, healthcare facilities and public services.

In a statement yesterday, JoBeth Coleby-Davis, minister of energy, utilities and aviation, acknowledged the widespread frustration caused by the outage, saying Bahamians have "raised fair questions" about the reliability of the country's electricity system.

"They want to know why this incident had such a wide impact. They want to know why the system remains vulnerable. They want to know what work is being done to strengthen the grid. They want to know when they will feel greater reliability in their homes and businesses," she said. "These questions deserve answers."

Mrs Coleby-Davis said she has instructed BPL to improve its communication during major outages, acknowledging that restoration efforts must be accompanied by timely public updates. "I have made clear to BPL that updates during major service disruptions must be faster, clearer and more regular," she said.

While she noted the electricity system continues to face pressure from high demand, extreme heat, severe weather and aging infrastructure, the minister added that those challenges "do not excuse the hardship experienced by the public”.

Mrs Coleby-Davis also said customers have raised concerns about damage to appliances following repeated outages and power restoration, adding that she has asked BPL to provide clear guidance on the compensation claims process.

She added that she will provide a broader update on the Government's energy reforms at a media briefing scheduled for Thursday, where she intends to address efforts to improve generation, transmission, grid stability, renewable energy integration and long-term system resilience.

Meanwhile, BPL's board of directors provided its most detailed explanation yet of Sunday's outage, revealing that electricity generation remained available throughout much of the incident but could not be delivered to customers because a lightning strike damaged critical transmission infrastructure at the Blue Hills power station.

According to the Board, an "extraordinary lightning strike" caused extensive damage at a critical interface between electricity generation and the transmission network.

"Simply put, while the generation remained available, the damage prevented the safe transfer of power from the power station to the electrical grid," the BPL Board said.

The explanation suggests Sunday's outage stemmed from a failure within the transmission system rather than a lack of generating capacity, an issue that has frequently been at the centre of BPL's operational challenges.

The Board also acknowledged concerns over BPL’s communication with customers, saying it has instructed management to review how information is shared during major outages to ensure future updates are "more frequent, clearer and better reflect restoration progress”.

In addition, BPL directors have ordered a comprehensive post-incident review that will examine physical protection systems, operational procedures, restoration strategies, network sectionalising and measures to strengthen the grid against future disruptions.

Although describing Sunday's incident as "extremely rare", the Board said every significant outage presents an opportunity to improve BPL’s resilience and response.

The statements prompted a response from Free National Movement deputy leader, Shannendon Cartwright, who criticised Prime Minister Philip Davis KC for what he described as his "deafening silence" following the blackout.

Mr Cartwright argued that while the Government has repeatedly promoted its energy reforms, Bahamians deserve a direct explanation from the country's leader.

"The minister's statement has left more questions than answers," he said. "All the while, there has been complete silence from Prime Minister Davis on this issue.

“Every hour of silence costs a Bahamian business money. Every hour of silence costs a Bahamian family peace of mind. The Government works for the people. So speak to the people. Tell us the truth. Tell us the plan. Tell us when the lights will stay on."

The outage, which began on Sunday afternoon, left large sections of New Providence without electricity for several hours after severe weather passed through the island. BPL has said crews worked through the day and into the early hours of Monday to restore power and stabilise the system.