GPL guide for estimating consumption under question

By Eileen Cox

We are not convinced. On Mon-day, April 14, the Chief Execu-tive Officer of Guyana Power and Light, (GPL) Mr Bharat Dindyal, met representatives of the Guyana Consumers Association (GCA) to discuss consumer concerns. The chief bone of contention was the guide used by the company to estimate consumer household consumption of electricity.

The fact that consumers are supplied with meters indicates that one must be precise in determining the consumption so that the consumer is satisfied that she/he is not being overcharged.

However, there are instances when due to faulty meters or tampering the meters do not correctly indicate the consumption and GPL resorts to estimation. The guide that is used has come under question, especially where it relates to refrigerators which, as we all know, consume more electricity than any other electrical appliance.

In its guide, the GPL estimates that the minimum monthly consumption of electricity for a refrigerator, any refrigerator, is 90 units. The GCA disagrees as there is no factual evidence for this. There are over 40,000 consumers, with refrigerators, who use less than 75 units of electricity each month. How then can you argue for 90 units? Are we living in some Alice in Wonderland country?