Legislator demands publication of June 12 power outage reports

Rep. Víctor Parés Otero

By The Star Staff

San Juan Rep. Víctor Parés Otero has asked Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) Executive Director Josué Colón Ortiz on Monday to make public the reports that LUMA Energy and Genera PR had to deliver on the widespread blackout on June 12, which left more than 350,000 consumers without power for hours.

“It has been nearly a month since the significant blackout that plunged over 350,000 customers into darkness,” Parés Otero said in a recent written statement. “Yet, we are still awaiting the crucial reports on its causes and the corrective measures that LUMA and Genera are expected to implement to prevent a recurrence of the June 12 incident. The current status of these reports and any associated actions remains unknown.”

The New Progressive Party lawmaker urged Colón Ortiz to confirm whether LUMA, which is responsible for energy transmission and distribution, and Genera, which is in charge of the power plants, have submitted comprehensive reports on the June 12 events. He further demanded that the reports be made public.

“The public has a right to know the details and the steps these two companies are taking to rectify the situation,” Parés Otero said. “This is our request to our colleague Josué Colón.”

“I don’t think preparing a report on something so important can take that long,” the legislator said. “It is as if there is no sense of urgency, of a desire to tell the people what happened and what they are doing to avoid another similar event. Well, I’m sorry, we want to see those reports now. It’s been almost a month and nothing.”

Colón Ortiz had previously noted that on June 14, he requested the information from LUMA Energy and Genera PR through the Public-Private Partnerships Authority.

“As of July 5, we have not received a response to the information request from LUMA Energy, while Genera PR responded on June 24,” the PREPA chief said. “Once we receive the response from the private operator LUMA Energy, we will be able to continue evaluating the events that occurred on June 12.”