Christina Alston, a former BPL COO with 30 years of experience in the electric utility sector, emphasized during her appearance on Beyond the Headlines with Shenique Miller that “we cannot bring on new generation and renewables until we fix transmission and distribution.”
Referring to the North Carolina-based Pike Corporation, Alston stated: “Here is a corporation with 70 years of experience in this industry. When considering capacity and bandwidth in terms of experience, particularly in safety, engineering, and construction, there are very few companies along the eastern seaboard that possess this kind of expertise.
“Moreover, there are very few companies that boast the supply chain necessary to procure equipment efficiently when and where the nation needs it. By bringing Pike in with their purchasing power, they can secure the equipment we need. We don’t have the leverage to move up the list alone, but with Pike’s involvement, given their extensive portfolio, they have the capability to elevate our position. We have chosen a partner who can fulfill the nation’s needs.”
She noted that the goal is to ultimately provide a resilient system where the lights stay on and costs are reduced.
Pike, the North Carolina-based energy transmission and distribution company, has been contracted by the government via its Bahamian management firm Island Grid Solutions for a 25-year upgrade and management of Bahamas Power and Light’s (BPL) transmission and distribution network.
