A massive power outage blanketed most of Puerto Rico early Tuesday, leaving more than 1.2 million people without electricity. Here’s what to know about the blackout and Luma Energy, which handles distribution and transmission of electricity on the island.
What caused the blackout?
Luma Energy said in a statement that it is investigating the cause of the outage, but noted that preliminary findings point to problems with an underground line.
How soon will power be restored in Puerto Rico?
Luma said in a statement early Tuesday that it would likely take 24-28 hours to restore electricity across Puerto Rico.
Later the company said service had resumed in some areas, including the Municipal Hospital of San Juan, but it didn’t disclose how many people still lacked power.
Puerto Rico’s main airport, the Aeropuerto Internacional Luis Muñoz Marín, said Tuesday on social media that it had activated backup power generators and was operating normally.
What is Luma?
Luma is a private Canadian-American company, based in San Juan, Puerto Rico, that operates and manages the electric power infrastructure in Puerto Rico.
In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, which devastated the U.S. territory in September of 2017, the Puerto Rico government in 2021 hired Luma to handle the transmission and distribution of electricity on the island. Power was previously overseen by the state-owned Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), which went bankrupt in 2017 as the government faced billions of dollars in public debt payments.
Luma CEO Juan Saca, a veteran telecom industry executive who was appointed to lead the company in 2023, said in a Sept. 26 hearing before a House panel that Luma has made significant investments to improve Puerto Rico’s grid. That includes installing more than 17,850 hurricane-proof utility poles, adding thousands of automation devices aimed at softening the impact of power outages, and clearing vegetation around the island that can impede maintenance.
“The impact of this has been real. Over the last year, more than 95% of customers had concurrent service more than 98% of the time when generation was available,” he told lawmakers.
But Saca also sought to deflect criticism that Puerto Rico’s electricity system remains unreliable, pointing to previous “financial mismanagement.” PREPA’s bankruptcy seven years ago has also hindered progress in strengthening and modernizing the island’s grid, he said.
Have Puerto Ricans faced previous power outages?
Puerto Rico’s electric grid was troubled even before Maria, a consequence of inadequate maintenance and years of underinvestment. But the Category 4 storm crippled the system: Seven years after Maria chronic power outages and high electricity costs are common in Puerto Rico.
In June, to cite one recent example, a power outage plunged more than 340,000 Puerto Ricans into darkness after two power plants on the island shut down.
“They’re part of my everyday life,” Enid Núñez, 49, who said she ate breakfast before work thanks to a small gas stove she bought for such events, told the Associated Press. Raúl Pacheco, a 63-year-old diabetic struggling with an injured foot, said he planned to sleep on his balcony during the outage.
Antonio Torres Miranda, associate commissioner of Puerto Rico’s energy agency, said in the House hearing this fall that the island’s power distribution and transmission systems have made progress but remain subpar.
“The recent outage events of June 2024, which affected over 300,000 customers, serve as a stark reminder of the fragility of our infrastructure and the urgent need for comprehensive improvements,” he said. “These incidents highlight the complex interplay of aging assets, deferred maintenance and the increasing impacts of climate change on our island’s power grid.”
Some critics are blunter in their assessment of Luma’s record in Puerto Rico.
“Almost 25 years into the 21st century, it is ridiculous that Puerto Rico’s power grid has failed its people again. Puerto Ricans deserve answers and accountability from Luma for this latest fiasco,” Camille Rivera, founder of La Brega Y Fuerza, a grassroots advocacy group, said in a statement. “Luma has Puerto Rico in an energy stranglehold, and Puerto Ricans shouldn’t have to put up with continued subpar service.”
contributed to this report.
