LUMA to Congress: ‘Impact of past failures … remain an enduring challenge to progress’
The Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce called for the creation of a federal task force to cut through bureaucratic barriers, enforce deadlines and ensure collaboration among stakeholders.
During a public hearing held by the U.S. House of Representatives’ Natural Resources Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs, Juan Saca, CEO of Puerto Rico power utility LUMA Energy, told lawmakers that failures that pre-date LUMA have hindered progress despite significant efforts.
The committee, chaired by Rep. Bruce Westerman, held the hearing titled “Examination of Puerto Rico’s Electrical Grid and the Need for Reliable and Resilient Energy,” for which it summoned representatives from LUMA Energy, which oversees Puerto Rico’s power transmission and distribution; Genera PR, which oversees electricity generation; the Puerto Rico Chamber of Commerce (CofC); the island’s Central Office of Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency (COR3); and officials from the commonwealth’s executive branch.
In his testimony, Saca detailed the specific actions LUMA has taken since assuming the reins of the grid in June 2021 to improve reliability and resiliency. He also addressed the company’s record on responding to powerful storms and hurricanes, as well as the steps the company has taken to tackle the long-standing challenges that continue to impact the energy system due to decades of neglect under the grid’s former operator.
“Even before Hurricane Maria, Puerto Rico’s electric grid was well below utility reliability standards … was also allowed to deteriorate due to financial mismanagement, eventually resulting in a $10 billion bankruptcy in 2017, which today remains unresolved in arbitration,” Saca said.
“While the [more than] 4,000 LUMA team members continue to make progress across multiple areas to build a better energy future for our 1.5 million customers, the impact of past failures, which pre-date LUMA, remains an enduring challenge to progress, which we are working incredibly hard to overcome,” he added.
CofC President Luis E. Pizarro-Otero also testified, underscoring thay Puerto Rico’s ongoing energy crisis stems not only from technical failures or external challenges but also from a failure of management and accountability across both local and federal agencies.
“Despite billions of dollars allocated by Congress and efforts spanning multiple administrations, the island continues to grapple with prolonged outages, unreliable service and soaring electricity costs, all of which have severely impacted Puerto Rico’s economy and the daily lives of its 3.2 million U.S. citizens,” Pizarro-Otero said.
“The people of Puerto Rico have waited far too long for a reliable and affordable power supply. Businesses, schools, hospitals and homes have all suffered because of the continuous failures to rebuild and modernize our electrical grid.
“It’s unacceptable that after seven years, with substantial federal funding in place, we remain in the same precarious position,” Pizarro-Otero added about the grid’s fragility and the slow disbursement of the $21 billion in federal funds for energy reconstruction.
Pizarro-Otero also stressed that the energy crisis is not solely due to technical failures but also a result of execution shortcomings. He criticized the ongoing “buck-passing” among key players responsible for the grid’s reconstruction, as part of the failed efforts to date.
He called for the creation of a cabinet-level federal task force, with an executive director and staff to enforce deadlines and coordinate actions across federal agencies, while integrating local constituents. He proposed modeling the task force on the federal response to Hurricane Sandy, which brought accountability and cohesion to the recovery efforts.
During the hearing, concerns were raised about the impact of the federal agencies’ focus on renewable energy projects. Critics argued that the prioritization of solar and wind power over reliable base-load energy sources may put the island’s energy security at risk, especially given Puerto Rico’s vulnerability to natural disasters like hurricanes and earthquakes.
They also highlighted that major federal agencies like the Department of Energy, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development declined to testify at the hearing.
Renewable energy IS the ultimate answer to the energy crisis in Puerto Rico. LUMA, GENERA PR and the government of Puerto Rico are the cause of continued suffering of the people of Puerto Rico. At a time of record heat, the people are NEVER advised beforehand that their electric will be cut for hours at a time to “preserve energy”; these politically powerful entities take NO responsibility for their lack of progress and are unapologetic and disrespectful to the people of Puerto Rico! Hold them accountable even if the answer is the creation of an oversight board. And finally, why was there no testimony from the people directly affected by this ongoing crisis? The Puerto Rican people should have representation if a federal oversight board is created–and by “the people”, I mean just that, local residents who will represent the will of the people of Puerto Rico.