Tom Arthur, who is coordinating the workshop for the Interior Department, said the April 27-30 workshop will bring together top elected leaders, and utility board and management officials from the Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia and Palau to develop action plans to solve the growing financial crisis facing power companies in the region.
“The Department of the Interior is concerned about the long-term viability of the island utilities,” Arthur told a meeting of the Marshall Islands Chamber of Commerce in Majuro. Arthur said the workshop theme is “keeping the lights on.”
With costs continuing to rise, power companies in the region are falling further behind and will soon be on the verge of collapse, he said. “The same is true for all the islands: costs are going up and revenues have not kept pace. Utilities are falling farther behind.”
For the Marshalls Energy Company, the government’s power utility in Majuro, it means it has to cut back on maintenance and not buy essential equipment for lack of funds, he said. “It will get worse over time,” he said. “Interior wants to improve the situation.”
The aim of the workshop is to develop a long-term strategy for each utility company to improve their operations. He called this meeting of government leaders and power plant management the first of its kind, and said the meeting will also include donors.
“If there is no power, there is no business,” he told the chamber of commerce members.
