TRANSMISSION INEFFICIENCY?

Monday’s power outage which affected several parts of North-West Trinidad, including Diego Martin, Westmoorings, Carenage, Chaguaramas and sections of Petit Valley, following a fire at the Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission’s (T&TEC) Westmoorings sub-station, was only the latest in a series of power outages bedevilling T&TEC customers. In different areas of Diamond Vale, for example, blown transformers within recent weeks have resulted in three or four houses in each of several streets being without electricity, while other homes in these streets have been unaffected. Residents have described these occurrences as weird as in many instances when transformers blow sections of streets which are far away from each other are without current, while other houses around have power. 

What has been happening, and clearly this is cause for both concern and comment, is that along some streets some houses would be with electricity, then a few houses would be without, and beyond them others would be enjoying an electricity supply. Is it the fault of the method employed in connecting houses to light poles of T&TEC? The fact that this could be happening, and not infrequently, in the North-West peninsula is disturbing, as the peninsula is the most heavily populated residential area in Trinidad. Several high rise gated communities and/or other apartment complexes as well as single unit homes have sprung up in Westmoorings, Cocorite, Diego Martin, Carenage and Petit Valley within recent years. Many of the housing units are fully air-conditioned and fitted with appliances and security lights all pulling much electricity. In addition there has been a great expansion of business activities.

Thousands of new housing units have gone up within the past ten years, planning approval has been granted for the construction of additional units and yet more are on the drawing board. Home Construction Limited has begun work on a giant apartment complex — Woodbrook One — which, because of the clientele it will attract, will generate additional demands for and expectations of guaranteed electricity supply. Given the history of the Commission, with its frequently blown transformers and blackouts in all too many areas, are we to expect that ordinary people in the West will have to install generators to avoid being inconvenienced by T&TEC?

But even against this backdrop of supply and demand, and troublesome transformers as well, T&TEC recently announced plans for increased street lighting. No reasonable person will criticise any attempt to make the country’s roadways safer. We are entitled, nonetheless, to ask how T&TEC plans to achieve the expanded street lighting, and whether, given current industrial growth as well, it has the generating capacity and safeguards in place to ensure that its plans for increased street lighting capacity are not frustrated by the Commission’s demonstrably inadequate, and indeed in many instances outdated transformers as well. What strategies has T&TEC put in place to deal, effectively, with the heavy upsurge in demand dictated by the housing accommodation explosion from Cascade to the fringe of Chaguaramas as well as additional requirements which will arise over the next decade or so?

Government has spoken ad nauseam about its 20/20 vision, but how is this to be achieved? The Commission must tell us what is going on, and it must be prepared to let the country know its plans for dealing with anticipated demand up to a quarter of a century from now. In addition, is the Commission plagued with electricity theft which places a strain on its resources, and how does it intend to deal with what clearly can be a disturbing problem? We should not have to point out that electricity theft by many squatter-householders and even some small squatter-business places and industries will add to the Commission’s and by extension, consumers’ problems.