TTEC plan takes shape

On Thursday, at an event to honour the field teams who worked to restore electricity after the recent floods, Public Utilities Minister Marvin Gonzales announced that 257 temporary workers of the TT Electricity Commission (TTEC) would be made permanent.

Among this cohort of workers are some who were temporary for up to 30 years.

While the minister might not have been able to address salary increases, permanent status is a significant balm for workers. It also should be the time for TTEC to deal with the hiring practices which created such a pool of temporary workers and adopt a more efficient, cost-effective HR policy.

The minister also alluded to the commission's upcoming rate review with the Regulated Industries Commission, when the utility is likely to push for a new mandate.

TTEC has been preparing for this since 2018 and will seek to raise its rates to cut debt and improve service.

That mission is complicated by TT's dynamic energy generation landscape.

TTEC delivers electricity by burning natural gas to drive its steam turbines.

Most of TTEC's electricity comes from three power plants – two Powergen plants in Penal (236MW) and Point Lisas (818MW) and the Union Estate Power Station, owned by the government (720MW).

TTEC has a majority holding in Powergen.

Trinity Power, the fourth plant, is privately owned and generates up to 225MW. The plant is contracted to provide electricity until 2028.

As of 2018, the collective capacity of these plants is 1,758 megawatts, which exceeded peak national demand by more than 400MW.

The Union Estate plant was built to supply the cancelled Alutrint smelter. The departure of Arcelor Mittal also left excess, but contracted electricity remained available to the grid.

Two weeks ago, the Ministry of Energy entered an agreement with bp Alternative Energy TT, Shell Renewables and Lightsource bp to create a massive solar farm across 148 acres in Orange Grove.

Construction of a solar plant is expected to begin in 2023, adding 138 megawatt hours per day to the grid on completion.

Beyond the environmental advantages of clean solar power, the project will also not incur running input costs for gas from NGC.

TTEC has explained that it costs the company 25 cents to generate a unit of electricity, which it sells for 36 cents, the lowest cost in the region.

The difference doesn't cover TTEC's costs and the resulting debt burden is amplified by unpaid bills to state agencies that run to the hundreds of millions.

Mr Gonzales is correct to note that the blanket subsidy on pricing for all users isn't sustainable.

Part of the new plan is a targeted subsidy through a card system that would, presumably in conjunction with the Social Development Ministry, address the needs of those who truly need help while establishing a fair price for electricity for all users.

But the chaos of interlocking government debt is unsustainable. The RIC should insist on clarity about how that will be untangled.