By Nicole Acevedo and Gabe Gutiérrez -
NBC News
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico - This summer the Luma Energy company took over part of Puerto Rico's electrical grid.
And since then hundreds of thousands of island residents have suffered power outages - with long waits for the power to return -, have dealt with poor customer service and experienced dangerous voltage fluctuations for household electrical appliances and appliances.
Legislators in Congress and across the United States are now seeking answers from Luma Energy, the company responsible for the distribution and transmission of the island's electricity system, that may point to the reason why the electricity crisis is worsening amid rising prices. electricity prices and unreliability of service.
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In an interview with NBC News, the sister network of Noticias Telemundo, Luma Energy CEO Wayne Stensby explained that "by almost any measure, Puerto Rico has the worst performing electrical system in the United States."
“So we are out there every day, we are improving it step by step.
I think the biggest challenge is the speed with which we can bring real improvements to our customers, ”he said.
Despite the challenge, Stensby said he is confident that the electricity supply crisis "will improve month by month and year by year."
But that promise has been challenged after Puerto Rico began to experience a growing number of blackouts, which worsened between August and September.
It's getting harder and harder to work
Puerto Ricans like Brenda Otero, who owns a bakery near San Juan, have seen their electricity bills rise nearly 33% this year.
And just last week, his business lost $ 1,000 as a result of constant blackouts and a lack of power.
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"It is getting more and more difficult to work and pay the store's bills, and we want to keep working," he said.
In a letter sent to Stensby on Friday, the House Committee on Natural Resources requested access to key information, such as the number of workers Luma Energy employs to fix damaged power lines, as well as compensation packages and titles. of employees making more than $ 200,000 a year, among other data.
The committee, which oversees U.S. land affairs, said the information will help it better monitor Luma Energy's work since the private company took over electricity transmission and distribution in June as part of privatization. part of the electrical network.
The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, a public corporation, continues to be in charge of controlling the power generation units.
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After Hurricane María decimated the island's outdated power grid in 2017 - causing the second longest blackout in the world - the power authority has struggled to maintain power for Puerto Ricans.
Furthermore, corruption and mismanagement within the electricity authority contributed to the island's financial crisis for a decade by accumulating $ 9 billion in public debt, more than that of any other government agency in Puerto Rico.
Otero said that he remembers the constant interruptions in service after Maria, "but we knew it was a hurricane that turned off everything, but now we don't have any hurricanes and it's worse," he said.
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The Natural Resources Committee sent its letter to Stensby two days after he refused to respond or gave incomplete answers to some questions during a congressional oversight hearing organized by the committee last week.
Some of the financial information requested by Congress is usually available through the files of the Securities and Exchange Commission, which are documents that public companies are required to submit periodically.
These documents are not publicly available to Luma Energy.
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Luis Raúl Torres Cruz, a member of the island's House of Representatives who heads the energy commission, sued Luma Energy over the summer to try to acquire much of the same information that Congress requested.
"Luma has refused to provide us with any information and has instead embarked on an appeal process in court," Torres Cruz told NBC News.
As part of the appeal process, the Puerto Rico Supreme Court on Tuesday denied Luma Energy's second request not to disclose the information requested by Puerto Rican legislators.
Massive blackout in Puerto Rico after a collapse in the Monacillo power distribution located in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on June 10, 2021.NurPhoto / via Getty Images
In a lengthy statement, Luma Energy responded to the decision by claiming that “no company should be compelled to disclose the identity and salaries of its employees, trade secrets, operational information and sensitive infrastructure, without a demonstrated legitimate legislative purpose;
moreover, without complying with the applicable law and due process ”, adding that“ he will have the opportunity to present his defenses and objections when the case is resumed before the Court of First Instance ”.
On Friday, the electricity authority declared a state of emergency due to the "critical condition" of its power generating plants.
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William Ríos, director of power generation for the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, said the largest power plant in the San Juan area, known as Palo Seco, has been experiencing shutdowns almost every week for the past few months.
Steam leaks from the boilers have forced the electricity authority to shut down the plant.
Each time this happens, the unit is out of service for a few days.
This problem has occurred at least 10 times in recent weeks, according to Ríos.
Other problems that have caused power outages are algae clogging condenser water filters.
"In recent months, we are having practically weekly shutdowns of the unit, but when the unit is stable, we can have it in service for months," he added.
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Ríos said the blackouts have made it very clear that Puerto Rico's antiquated power grid, built in the 1960s, is hanging by a thread.
To modernize the grid and improve power generation, it is imperative to replace certain parts of the damaged boilers in Palo Seco, as well as in the power plants throughout the island. "
Stensby agrees.
"Will improve.
But until we make a substantial improvement in the quantity and / or quality of the generation, it will be difficult ”, he pointed out.
