LUMA: Funding shortfalls undermine electrical service reliability

According to LUMA Energy, the shift away from preventive work contributed to a 16.2% increase in the System Average Interruption Duration Index, and a 3.3% increase in the System Average Interruption Frequency Index. (Facebook via LUMA Energy)

By THE STAR STAFF

LUMA Energy, the private operator of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s transmission and distribution system, told the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau that ongoing financial constraints are limiting its ability to maintain the island’s transmission and distribution system, contributing to worsening reliability metrics during the second quarter of the fiscal year.

In a quarterly metrics report filed this week, LUMA said restricted access to operating funds has reduced its capacity to perform scheduled maintenance and preventive work needed to address the deterioration of aging equipment. The company said those limitations have forced crews to redirect resources to respond to equipment failures and other critical conditions tied to outdated infrastructure.

According to LUMA, the shift away from preventive work contributed to a 16.2% increase in the System Average Interruption Duration Index, or SAIDI, and a 3.3% increase in the System Average Interruption Frequency Index, or SAIFI.

Officials said stabilization efforts remain focused on substation upgrades and transmission line repairs, including work on assets that have been out of service since Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico in September 2017.

The company said that despite financial challenges, it has completed several major projects aimed at improving grid stability. They include maintenance on a 50-year-old transformer at the Manatí substation that serves more than 100,000 customers and the installation of a new transformer at the Sabana Llana substation, which benefits more than 700,000 customers.

LUMA also rebuilt and reenergized three transmission lines that had remained offline since Hurricane Maria, restoring redundancy for more than 60,000 customers in several regions. The company said it has also replaced 8,600 distribution poles and components on 872 transmission structures.

“These numbers represent the real experiences of thousands of customers across the island,” Alejandro Figueroa, LUMA’s chief regulatory officer, said in a statement.

He said the company has prioritized critical work during the first half of the fiscal year while continuing to seek the resources needed to improve reliability.

Figueroa warned that the emergency fund shortfall, which he said now exceeds $400 million, continues to grow.

Doriel Pagán, LUMA’s vice president of federal funds, said the lack of adequate investment could result in higher long-term costs because of the accelerated deterioration of the grid.

Pagán said federal funding has helped the company move forward with key projects despite its financial constraints. LUMA has obtained approval for 45 projects over the past six months, she said, and currently has 233 obligated projects and 204 under construction. Many involve transmission work aimed at improving service reliability across the island.

The former executive president of the Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority stressed that stable, predictable funding from all sources is necessary for effective operational planning and for carrying out preventive work that can help avoid large-scale outages.