Latest news with #LumaEnergy
5 days ago
- Business
Puerto Rico governor pledges to improve island's crumbling power grid after repeated outages
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico -- Puerto Rico's governor pledged Thursday to improve the island's crumbling electric grid and boost the economy in her first address after being elected last year as anger intensifies over chronic power outages and an increase in cost-of-living expenses. Gov. Jenniffer González Colón, of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party, spoke for nearly two hours as she listed her accomplishments since taking office in January and announced multimillion-dollar investments to improve Puerto Rico's health, education and public safety. 'Without a doubt, the road has been difficult and full of lessons that we must ensure we don't repeat,' she said. González Colón said the upcoming budget includes funds to hire 800 new police officers, $12 million to hire new firefighters and $24 million to recruit resident doctors as health professionals continue to move to the U.S. mainland, leaving Puerto Rico with few or no specialists in certain areas. She noted that more than 60%, or roughly $8 billion, of the upcoming general fund budget is slated for health, education and public safety. The budget has not yet been approved. María de Lourdes Santiago, vice president of Puerto Rico's Independence Party, said after the governor's address that the numbers announced are not sufficient given that thousands of certain government employees, including police officers, are needed. González Colón, a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, decried federal bureaucracy during her address, noting her administration would keep pushing to free some $18 billion in federal funds set aside to improve Puerto Rico's power grid, which Hurricane Maria razed in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm. She also renewed her pledge to cancel the government's contract with Luma Energy, a private company that oversees the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. 'The termination of this contract will be a reality,' she said as supporters stood up and applauded. González Colón said reliable power is essential to attract investment as she promised to keep attracting more manufacturing to Puerto Rico. In upcoming months, she said she would announce the expansion of five industries on the island. The length of her address and the speed at which she sometimes delivered it surprised some. Political analyst and university professor Jorge Schmidt Nieto said it seemed like a ploy to distract those who have criticized her administration of inaction and the government of so far not approving many laws. 'She tried to bring an optimistic tone because she knows she has received a lot of criticism," Schmidt Nieto said. Another who criticized González was Pablo José Hernández, Puerto Rico's representative in Congress and president of the opposition Popular Democratic Party: 'If one word describes the start of this government, that word is disorder." He noted that in the past five months, González has presented three candidates for Puerto Rico's secretary of state, two candidates for its justice department and another two candidates for its labor department. None of those positions have been filled as González's party has failed so far to approve her nominees.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Puerto Rico governor under fire as federal funds for solar projects are stalled
SAN JUAN: Puerto Rico's governor pledged Thursday to improve the island's crumbling electric grid and boost the economy in her first address after being elected last year as anger intensifies over chronic power outages and an increase in cost-of-living expenses. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Gov. Jenniffer Gonzalez Colon, of the pro-statehood New Progressive Party, spoke for nearly two hours as she listed her accomplishments since taking office in January and announced multimillion-dollar investments to improve Puerto Rico's health, education and public safety. "Without a doubt, the road has been difficult and full of lessons that we must ensure we don't repeat," she said. Gonzalez Colon said the upcoming budget includes funds to hire 800 new police officers, $12 million to hire new firefighters and $24 million to recruit resident doctors as health professionals continue to move to the U.S. mainland, leaving Puerto Rico with few or no specialists in certain areas. She noted that more than 60%, or roughly $8 billion, of the upcoming general fund budget is slated for health, education and public safety. The budget has not yet been approved. Maria de Lourdes Santiago, vice president of Puerto Rico's Independence Party, said after the governor's address that the numbers announced are not sufficient given that thousands of certain government employees, including police officers, are needed. Gonzalez Colon, a supporter of U.S. President Donald Trump, decried federal bureaucracy during her address, noting her administration would keep pushing to free some $18 billion in federal funds set aside to improve Puerto Rico's power grid, which Hurricane Maria razed in September 2017 as a Category 4 storm. She also renewed her pledge to cancel the government's contract with Luma Energy, a private company that oversees the transmission and distribution of power in Puerto Rico. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now "The termination of this contract will be a reality," she said as supporters stood up and applauded. Gonzalez Colon said reliable power is essential to attract investment as she promised to keep attracting more manufacturing to Puerto Rico. In upcoming months, she said she would announce the expansion of five industries on the island. The length of her address and the speed at which she sometimes delivered it surprised some. Political analyst and university professor Jorge Schmidt Nieto said it seemed like a ploy to distract those who have criticized her administration of inaction and the government of so far not approving many laws. "She tried to bring an optimistic tone because she knows she has received a lot of criticism," Schmidt Nieto said. Another who criticized Gonzalez was Pablo Jose Hernandez, Puerto Rico's representative in Congress and president of the opposition Popular Democratic Party: "If one word describes the start of this government, that word is disorder." He noted that in the past five months, Gonzalez has presented three candidates for Puerto Rico's secretary of state, two candidates for its justice department and another two candidates for its labor department. None of those positions have been filled as Gonzalez's party has failed so far to approve her nominees.
Calgary Herald
08-05-2025
- Business
- Calgary Herald
Independent panel now in place to review Calgary's water system, including troubled feeder main
Panellists for an independent review of the rupturing of the Bearspaw south feeder main in June of last year — which triggered Stage 4 water restrictions and boil water advisories for some communities while forcing all Calgarians to reduce a quarter of their daily consumption — have been selected, according to the city. Article content Article content The group comprises five industry experts who will join panel chair Siegfried Kiefer in examining all aspects of the city's water utility systems, including water, wastewater and stormwater. Article content Article content 'I am pleased that these remarkable and talented people have agreed to join me in the undertaking this very important review,' Kiefer, a retired ATCO executive, said in a statement. Article content 'The panel represents in total, over 200 years of industry leadership experience with the breadth and depth to conduct a truly comprehensive objective and meaningful review of our water utility system to ensure that Calgarians have reliable, affordable, and sustainable water services into the future.' Article content Article content The members were selected by Kiefer, who worked closely with an advisory group composed of TransAlta CEO Dawn Farrell, Luma Energy CEO Wayne Stensby and Dr. Edward McCauley, president and Vice Chancellor of the University of Calgary. Article content Article content The panel is slated to complete their review by the end of 2025. Article content The review into the incident is separate from the city's own investigation into the feeder main's failure, the findings of which were detailed in a 600-page report and a presentation to Calgary councillors in December. Article content
New York Times
18-04-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Most Power Is Restored in Puerto Rico After Islandwide Blackout
Almost all power has been restored in Puerto Rico, two days after a blackout left the entire island without electricity. As of 10 a.m. on Friday, 99 percent of the 1.4 million customers had electricity, according to Luma Energy, the private contractor that operates the island's power transmission system. The blackout began Wednesday afternoon, and on Thursday afternoon 40 percent of customers were still without power. This week's power failure, which caused hundreds of businesses to close and forced the airport in San Juan, the capital, to run on generators, was only the latest blackout for residents, who have endured years of unreliable electricity service. Puerto Rico's power grid has been plagued by extensive problems since Hurricane Maria hit the island in 2017, leaving many without power for months. Luma Energy said the blackout was caused by a series of failures in the power transmission system, but the cause remained under investigation. Puerto Rico's power system has suffered from years of mismanagement and poor maintenance. The island experienced a major blackout on New Year's Eve, when most of Puerto Rico was darkened by a power outage, leading to calls for the government to cancel contracts with the companies that oversee the transmission, distribution and generation of power on the island. 'When are we going to do something?' Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican reggaeton superstar, wrote on X on Wednesday. Officials warned in March that the system was not likely to have enough supply to meet peak demand over the summer.
CBS News
18-04-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Power restored to nearly all customers in Puerto Rico after island-wide blackout, officials say
Power was restored early Friday to nearly all customers in Puerto Rico after an island-wide blackout hit earlier this week , authorities said. More than 1.45 million customers – or about 98.8% – had electricity less than 48 hours after the outage hit, according to Luma Energy, which oversees the transmission and distribution of power on the island. "Although restoration is nearing completion, some customers may continue to experience temporary outages due to limited generation," Luma said. The blackout hit Wednesday afternoon as the largely Catholic residents of the U.S. territory prepared to celebrate the Easter weekend. A transmission line failed, which then caused generators across the island to protectively shut down, officials said. It also left more than 400,000 customers without water at the time. It was the latest in a string of major outages on the island in recent years – the last major blackout happened fewer than five months ago on New Year's Eve. It wasn't immediately clear what caused the failure this time, although authorities are investigating whether a series of breakers failed or if overgrown vegetation is to blame. "Preliminary analysis points to a failure in the protection system as the initial trigger, followed by the presence of vegetation on a transmission line between Cambalache and Manatí," Luma said Wednesday. "This sequence of failures triggered a chain of events that resulted in an island-wide outage." Gov. Jenniffer González said she expected to receive a preliminary report in the upcoming days. Thousands of Puerto Ricans fumed over the latest blackout, with artist Bad Bunny saying in Spanish on X, "when are we going to do something?" apparently referring to the outage. Outages have been a chronic problem for Puerto Rico since Hurricane Maria destroyed a power grid when it struck the island as a Category 4 storm in September 2017. Just after crews said they were starting to rebuild the grid in 2022, the island was hit hard by Hurricane Fiona . The grid had already been deteriorating due to decades of a lack of maintenance and investment.
