The Barbados Light and Power Company (BL&P) says Fair Trading Commission’s (FTC) approval ruling last week, will result in a “modest’ $1.25 increase in the average monthly electricity bill.
It is not likely to take effect before September, the company stated, while adding that it understood the concern felt by many of its customers following recent reports about electricity costs and temporary generation.
“We recognise that households and businesses are already managing rising living expenses, and we want to provide clear information about what the Fair Trading Commission’s decision means for customers. The temporary generation referenced in recent coverage is not new to the system,” it stated in a press release yesterday.
On Friday, the FTC approved an application by BL&P to recover the costs of temporary rental generators through the Fuel Clause Adjustment associated with six megawatts (MW) of additional temporary generation and also extended approval for the company’s existing 11 megawatts of temporary rental generation.
Yesterday, the utility said that approximately 11 MW of generation had been in place since 2024 to support a stable electricity supply.
“The recent approval allows these same units to continue operating through 2027 with no additional costs to consumers. This means there is no new or sudden cost being introduced for these units.
“The decision also includes an additional six MW of temporary capacity to further strengthen reliability especially as we prepare for the upcoming hurricane season. This represents a limited and targeted addition aimed at reducing the risk of outages and minimising reliance on existing generation units that utilise higher cost fuel sources.
“The estimated impact of this additional capacity is modest, at approximately 0.4 cents per kWh, resulting in an approximate increase of $1.25 to the average monthly electricity bill. However, this increase is not expected to take effect before September 2026,” BL&P stated. ( AC)
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