By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Abaco residents and businesses were yesterday said to have endured multiple power outages for several days, with several complaining bills have “doubled” amid worsening service and reliability.

Roscoe Thompson, head of the Marsh Harbour/Spring City Township, told Tribune Business that the problems have been especially “bad” in areas such as Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay with Bahamas Power & Light (BPL) confirming that 50 percent of the generation capacity at the island’s main Wilson City power plant is currently offline.

With just one of the two offline generation units likely to return to operational service within the next ten days, and the other out of action until mid-September, BPL said in a statement that a fault on one of its two remaining in-service engines sparked the weekend’s load shedding.

One business owner, speaking to Tribune Business on condition of anonymity, said their power had been off four times in the last 24 hours. “Everyone’s power bills have doubled,” they added. “We’re paying two times’ as much for half the service. It started in earnest two days ago [Friday].

“They said one of their generators was offline and needed emergency repairs. I think the problems are far bigger than what they’re telling us.” Another source, based in Treasure Cay, added: “Definitely load shedding.

“Up here in Treasure Cay we have been on/off generator at least three to five times daily over the last three days. June was horrendous, but definitely looks like strategic load shedding. Bills have doubled but our consumption is unchanged.”

Mr Thompson, who was in Cherokee Sound when contacted by this newspaper last night, said: “From what I hear, in Marsh Harbour and Treasure Cay it’s been pretty bad the last couple of days. My question is: What’s going on here? I know they have four 12 mega watt generators. How many are operational? It goes back to maintenance, the upkeep.

“It has been bad. It’s been bad for the residents. I guess it’s affected a lot of small businesses but we go through this every summer. This was like this last year. That’s the problem.” Mr Thompson also voiced scepticism that either of the two engines will be repaired by the dates given by BPL, adding: “If they have either one up by mid-September, I’ll come to Nassau and take you out to dinner.”

BPL, pledging that restoring service reliability in Abaco is its “highest priority”, said one of the offline engines is awaiting a replacement part from Brazil while the other is undergoing “a major overhaul” to leave just two of its four Wilson City units operational.

The plant normally has a 51.2 MW peak load generation capacity, but BPL said in a statement: “On Friday, August 8, inclement weather caused an interruption to parts of Central Abaco at 7.50am. Power was restored within 35 minutes.

“The following afternoon, on Saturday, August 9, a fault on one of our primary generating units at the Wilson City power station reduced available generation by 3–4 MW, resulting in a series of short load-shedding rotations.

“Crews immediately initiated repairs, a process that involves engine cooldown, inspection, disassembly, bearing replacement and gradual load testing. By 10am on Sunday, August 10, power had been restored to 80 percent of affected areas, with final restoration completed in Dundas Town at 1.15 pm.”

As for the two offline Wilson City engines, BPL added that one needs to replace “a failed lube oil heat exchanger, with the replacement part en route from Brazil. Once received, [it] is expected to return to service within ten days”. As for the other, “a major overhaul is in progress and is expected to be completed by mid-September 2025”.

Acknowledging that key repairs have been delayed, BPL blamed this on Hurricane Dorian, COVID-related supply chain challenges and “the age of the Wilson City plant”. It added: “Despite these obstacles, we are making every effort to complete repairs in the shortest possible time.”

To ease the burden on Wilson City, BPL said three Caterpillar generation units have been purchased to provide power to the Abaco cays. Installation on Man O’ War Cay began on August 9, and will restart once the weather allows, with Hope Town and Guana Cay to follow.

“We understand the frustration that comes with power interruptions, and we want our customers to know that restoring and enhancing reliability in Abaco is our highest priority,” said Marvin Green, BPL’s regional manager for the Northern Bahamas. “The steps we are taking now will place Abaco in a much stronger position for consistent, dependable power.”

BPL’s Abaco woes have hit amid its ongoing challenges in Eleuthera. The state-owned utility last week pledged it will not disconnect Eleuthera customers over past-due bills amid rising outrage over frequent and long-lasting electricity outages.

BPL acknowledged its customers’ frustration, adding: “We understand the deep frustration being expressed by our customers in Eleuthera. Many of our own employees, friends and family members live and work on the island, and they, too, are directly impacted by the ongoing challenges.

“We want to reassure the public that we hear them, we empathise with them and, most importantly, we are actively working on both immediate and long-term solutions to provide relief. In partnership with the Government of The Bahamas, we are hopeful that the upcoming Power Purchase Agreements for Eleuthera will help alleviate the strain on the island’s existing generation capacity.

“Eleuthera is a fast-growing economy, and our executive leadership and Board of Directors remain fully committed to implementing strategies that will address long-standing infrastructure issues and strengthen the reliability of supply. This is not just about power, it’s about people. And we are determined to set things right.”

Footnote

Generation Page XX

Headline

50% of Wilson City

units are now offline