For several years previously, since the rapid decline of the bauxite industry in the 1980s, limited budgetary allocations have resulted in the neglect of capital replacement programmes which forced the generation facilities in the Linden community into a state of advanced disrepair and dilapidation. Then, in January 1998, the Linden Power Company became the first private producer to be granted a licence to generate electricity under the Electricity Sector Reform Act (ESRA).

The Linden Power Company, (LPC), a subsidiary of the U.S. based company Texas Ohio Energy (TOE) Incorporated, signed a 25-year lease-purchase agreement and a 25-year power-purchase contract which officially transferred the assets of the steam and diesel power generation station, until then the holdings of LINMINE, to the new company.

LPC paid the first tranche, of the US$110M agreement, to repair the ailing power system and was expected to provide a reliable supply of power for the Linden community and the mining operations of the bauxite company. It pursuance of this objective, LPC agreed to install two new 150,000 pound per hour boilers, overhaul the number two and three boilers, replace all outdated and defective switchgears and transformers, install new water treatment equipment and deaerators and repair, replace and recalibrate all necessary instrumentation.

The upgrading process was to be undertaken within the first 18 months of operation. While all repairs to the generating plant were to be completed within two years thus boosting the capacity of the LPC plant to 20 megawatts. The first boiler, with a generating capacity of 18 megawatts, was immediately installed supplying some 5 mw in excess of the community's immediate needs. The excess was to be consumed by the industrial growth planned and projected for the community. Indeed, LPC boasted of a capacity to deliver some 34 mw with a preparedness to feed the surplus into the national grid.

By May 2000, some two years later, the writing began to appear on the wall when the people of Linden staged a peaceful but resolute protest march against the poor service LPC was delivering. This was the result of LPC losing the services of its numbers two and three steam turbines and so was only able to provide a mere 5 mw to the community. For some time previously, there were complaints of poor maintenance schedules and frequent interruptions in the supply of power. Three months earlier, following an almost similar shutdown, the company had boasted that there was enough redundancy power to deal with any such situation but in spite of such a guarantee the community was forced to endure a major reduction in the company's capacity every time a unit had to be repaired.

Without ever admitting to its failure to live up to its contract obligations, LPC announced that because of the extensive repairs that were necessary to rehabilitate the steam plant and the inherent financial implications, it had decided to build a new diesel plant. Consequently, three 2.5 mw diesel sets were acquired and became operational in July 2000. The original rehabilitation plan to bring generating capacity to 20 mw of power was rescheduled to July 2000.

Since then faulty and neglectful maintenance have characterised the company's business style and this has encouraged ongoing dilapidation and frequent shutdowns. The eventual collapse of the system was therefore a lurking inevitability and this is exactly what occurred a few weeks ago when the diesel sets chose, one after the other, to retire, causing an almost complete shutdown within the community. Once again the absence of an alternative generating capacity to supply power on a load-shedding basis meant that there was no interim relief for the long suffering residents of the once robust mining community.

In the developing world, it is not unusual to be irritated by dysfunctional systems and arrangements. Here in Guyana we have had our fair share of such encounters and as a consequence we have resorted to the recruitment of expensive human resource personnel to ensure that the local management systems are functional. Current experience, both with GPL and LPC, is suggesting that we have not been getting value for our money.