GPL to recover costs for repairs to damaged power lines  

The Guyana Power and Light (GPL) Inc. is looking to recover repair costs following two separate incidents over the past few days that have results in significant damages to key power transmission infrastructure.

On Monday, the Guyana Power and Light Inc. said electricity supply in Demerara was disrupted after an excavator destroyed its transmission infrastructure along the East Bank Demerara corridor.

According to GPL, at approximately 10: 11h., the excavator operated by Raju Singh of Avinash Contracting and Scrapmetal Inc. came into contact with GPL’s L4 Transmission Line, which interconnects the Golden Grove and Sophia Substations.

The incident resulted in damage to critical transmission infrastructure and caused a service interruption affecting a number of customers across sections of Demerara. GPL’s technical teams responded and immediately commenced efforts to assess the damage and restore electricity supply to affected customers.

The power company said: “GPL has since commenced an investigation into the incident and wishes to make it clear that the company will be pursuing legal action against both the contractor and the operator to recover the costs associated with the damage caused to its infrastructure.”

This comes just two days after its distribution network lines and a utility pole were damaged by a truck reversing out of a yard at Third Avenue in Diamond, East Bank Demerara.

It was reported that the impact resulted in damage to the pole and the dislodgement of associated hardware, causing electrical arcing and damage to a nearby customer’s vehicle.

GPL has been working with the Guyana Police Force to locate the truck driver who drove away from the scene.

Nevertheless, the power company is reminding contractors, heavy-duty equipment operators, and members of the public that any excavation, construction, or operations near the company’s transmission and distribution infrastructure must be coordinated with GPL to ensure safety and prevent damage to critical national assets.

It further warned that unauthorized or unsafe activities near GPL’s network can result in widespread service disruptions and pose serious public safety risks.

Only earlier this month, GPL sought to recover some $8 million from a contractor following transmission line damage during works at Grove New Housing Scheme (Backlands) on the East Bank.