SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — In response to a severe power supply crisis, the newly appointed governor of Puerto Rico has designated an energy czar to address the ongoing challenges faced by the territory’s electrical system.
The selection of Josué Colón comes shortly after a significant blackout left nearly 3.2 million residents without power as they prepared for New Year’s Eve celebrations.
“At this moment, we’re dealing with an emergency,” stated Governor Jenniffer González Colón. “Our electrical system is in such a vulnerable state that any small issue could result in another outage.”
Currently serving as the executive director of Puerto Rico’s Electric Power Authority, Colón is anticipated to resign from this position pending legislative approval of his new role.
Once confirmed, he will oversee Genera PR, which is responsible for power generation across the island, as well as Luma Energy, which manages the transmission and distribution of electricity.
Amid continued outages and investigations into the cause of the significant blackout on December 31, many critics have urged the local government to reconsider its partnerships with the two private energy companies responsible for the electrical infrastructure.
According to Puerto Rico’s Energy Bureau, the average customer’s power interruptions rose nearly 20% last year, totaling 1,432 minutes annually—well above the recommended limit of 102 minutes.
Additionally, the frequency of power interruptions has also escalated over the past year.
In a report on Wednesday, Luma Energy noted that over 2,500 customers were still without power following the New Year’s Eve blackout and emphasized its commitment to collaborate with government officials to address the underlying issues facing the power grid.
“I want to send a strong message that we will not tolerate any laxity regarding contracts with Puerto Rico’s government, and we will work to ensure that the island has reliable power,” González emphasized during a press briefing.
She highlighted the urgency of securing $18 billion from the federal government that has yet to be allocated for improving Puerto Rico’s ailing electrical infrastructure.
Although the federal government has already disbursed millions to aid in stabilizing and reconstructing the grid following Hurricane Maria in September 2017, the situation remained precarious due to insufficient maintenance and investment prior to the storm’s impact.