(Scypre.com) – Puerto Rico faced a significant crisis as a large-scale power outage left millions without electricity, underscoring ongoing challenges in the island’s power infrastructure. The blackout began early Tuesday morning, New Year’s Eve, around 5:30 a.m., according to LUMA Energy, the Canadian-American company managing Puerto Rico’s power transmission and distribution. Nearly 90% of the island’s customers lost power initially, and by midday, over 1.2 million residents—representing more than 80% of total users—remained affected.
Governor Pedro Pierluisi took to social media, addressing the public about the critical outage. “Work is already underway to restore service with the San Juan and Palo Seco plants,” he said. The governor also emphasized the need for accountability and rapid solutions from both LUMA Energy and Genera PR, the private company responsible for energy generation. “They must expedite the restart of generating units outside the fault area and keep the people duly informed about the measures they are taking to restore service throughout the Island,” he added.
Restoration Efforts Underway
LUMA Energy’s Emergency Operations Center, in collaboration with Genera PR and other energy partners, began immediate restoration efforts. The company estimated that power could be fully restored within one to two days. Despite the swift response, frustration among residents was palpable as they grappled with yet another large-scale disruption to their daily lives.
“Complete frustration,” said Sonia Arroyo, a resident of Vega Alta, a town just outside San Juan. Speaking with CNN en Español, she expressed disillusionment with governmental and institutional failures. Another resident, Liz Rebeca Aponte from Dorado, voiced broader concerns about the island’s future. “Here we work in the pharmaceutical industry, and industries that want to invest in the country will not come here if we do not improve the structure,” she noted.
A History of Fragile Infrastructure
This blackout is the latest incident in Puerto Rico’s long struggle with its unstable power grid. Decades of poor maintenance and slow modernization efforts have left the system vulnerable to widespread outages. Historically, the grid was managed by the publicly-owned Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), but operational control transitioned to LUMA Energy in 2021, with Genera PR taking charge of energy production in 2023.
The island’s energy woes became especially apparent after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017. The storm caused the largest blackout in U.S. history, with hundreds of thousands of residents enduring months without power. In response, the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) allocated $9.9 billion for permanent recovery projects, but progress has been slow.
Hurricane Ernesto, which struck in August, further highlighted these vulnerabilities. At its peak, half of Puerto Rico’s electric customers experienced outages, further eroding public confidence in the grid’s reliability.
Moving Forward
As Puerto Rico struggles to recover from this latest blackout, the incident has reignited calls for robust investment and modernization of the island’s energy infrastructure. Residents and businesses alike are demanding long-term solutions to ensure reliable power delivery and to restore faith in the island’s ability to attract investment and foster economic growth.
For now, the focus remains on restoring power to the millions affected and addressing the immediate crisis. However, the broader issues surrounding Puerto Rico’s energy system persist, posing challenges that will require decisive action and sustained investment to overcome.