By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Opposition’s chairman yesterday urged the Government to “come clean” over its energy transformation deal amid suggestions a key partner has paused work while it waits for all agreements to be formalised.

Dr Duane Sands told Tribune Business it was clear “something is awry”, although he himself has been unable to obtain details, over Pike Electrical’s role in overhauling and modernising New Providence’s energy grid. Several sources, all speaking on condition of anonymity because they are not authorised to talk publicly, suggested the US contractor is on a temporary hiatus until everything is signed-off and sealed.

One well-placed contact said Pike has “pulled some of their stuff off” until all necessary agreements with the Davis administration are completed, adding that the parties were behind schedule on moving the wide-ranging energy reforms unveiled last summer into a binding deal.

Jobeth Coleby-Davis, minister of energy and transport, did not respond to Tribune Business messages seeking comment before press time last night. However, the source said “they’re a bit behind on the deal” but suggested that all necessary documents governing the upgrades to New Providence’s electrical grid could be signed as early as next week.

“I think they pulled some of their stuff off until they complete the deal,” the source added. “It should have been done already. It’s been going on for a long time. They are not far apart and are pretty close. They’re pretty close. It’s just that they have got to get it done. They’ll get it done, I’m sure. They’ve got too far now.”

Pike Electrical is supplying the manpower, materials and expertise to upgrade Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) transmission and distribution network. It has been contracted by Bahamas Grid Company, the entity to which New Providence’s electrical grid has been transferred, and the latter’s management partner, Island Grid.

Eric Pike, Island Grid’s principal, also heads Pike Electrical. The arrival of Pike-branded bucket trucks last summer signalled their intention to make aggressive progress, but Dr Sands said their presence on New Providence’s streets has notably reduced in recent weeks.

“Something is awry,” the Opposition’s chairman argued, as he alleged that Bahamians are being “kept in the dark” over the energy reforms and their progress. “It seems as if all is not well in the camp. Certainly, and listening to the language that is coming out of different places, I am not sure if this is a salvageable situation or not.

“The specifics I do not know, but certainly their [Pike’s] footprint seems to be less, drastically less than it was a month or two ago. You used to see those Pike vehicles all over the place and now you don’t see them....

“We are in the dark and left to speculate, and I think any kind of speculation therefore is appropriate and reasonable because there is absolutely no information forthcoming at all despite the fact that whatever deal has been cut impacts not only national patrimony but taxpayer dollars. If we lived in a country where the will of the people was in any way considered there would be a level of outrage,” he added.

“They’ll be a day late and a dollar short. They ought to come clean and explain what has happened, how it has happened, when it happened and how much they spent and promised. We’re all crowding around, peering in the darkened window trying to see this deal which is certainly behind the shelf and has not been done in broad daylight.

“Where did Pike come from? Who invited them? Did they go out to tender? What is the dollar value of this deal? What is going to happen to the [BPL] workers?” 

Anthony Ferguson, a Bahamas Grid Company director, earlier this week refuted suggestions that Pike Electrical had initiated a temporary pause as it waits for all necessary agreements to be concluded and added that “everything is progressing well”

Asserting that he “doesn’t see any issues or challenges” for Pike’s relationship with Bahamas Grid Company or the Government, he confirmed that “one outstanding matter” is expected to be resolved before the week ends but declined to provide any details. 

Bahamas Grid Company, on its website, said that as of January 18, 2025, it has set 181 new electrical distribution poles on New Providence to ensure the delivery of reliable energy to homes and businesses, as well as replaced 58,000 wires with newer cables that “can efficiently carry more power”.

It added that it has already spent 1,500 hours on emergency work to help BPL respond to outages and restore power, and installed 47 IntelliRupters island-wide to help isolate problems and confine outages to specific areas. And some 49 street lights have also been replaced and upgraded.

“Bahamas Grid Company’s first-year goal is two-fold: To help reduce the frequency and duration of outages in New Providence when requested by BPL in a way that all Bahamians can see the difference,” it said. “And invest in New Providence’s grid system and strengthen it so that it is properly sized to support our nation’s economy and population.

“After the first year, Bahamas Grid Company will continue to manage the transmission system, distribution system and sub-stations on an ongoing basis to ensure system reliability, affordability, resiliency and authenticity.”

Bahamas Grid Company and its management firm, Island Grid, paired $100m in bond debt capital raised from Bahamian investors with $30m in equity also raised locally to complete the $130m in financing required to complete “foundational upgrades” to the transmission and distribution network it now controls.

The Government, via BPL, has a minority 40 percent ownership interest in Bahamas Grid Company in exchange for contributing New Providence electricity grid assets valued at $100m, whereas the private investors who put up the $30m equity have 60 percent majority control.

Bahamas Grid Company is forecasting that its grid improvements will generate between $10m-$30m in annual savings per year at the start of its initial 25-year term through “less line loss and reduced outages”. It will also install an additional 172 mega watts (MW) of grid carrying capacity between Clifton Pier and the rest of New Providence, and is promising grid operating costs and consumer bills will be reduced.

The joint venture is pledging a “reduction in frequency and duration of large-scale outages, enabled by the substation protection schemes”. It is also promising “fewer appliance issues stemming from the distribution upgrades, which will reduce voltage fluctuations on parts of the island that are most impacted by them”.

There will also be “less line/voltage loss, or more power delivered with the same fuel use, resulting from the transmission upgrades. The ongoing cost savings associated with this benefit will sustain the residential utility bill reductions beyond year one”.

The proposed Heads of Agreement with the Government will allow Bahamas Grid Company, in addition to the 5.5 cents per kilowatt hour (KWh) it is set to receive from all customer billings, to levy a “one-time interconnection fee or demand charge” for “new generation and/or large customer loads” added to the grid.