BEL held its annual general meeting earlier this week - and today the Chairman Andrew Marshalleck held a post AGM press briefing.
He discussed the company's profits of 15 million dollars in 2022 - but lamented that all the money in the world cannot buy them enough megawatts of power to ensure a stable energy supply for their customers - as the company struggles to meet power demands:
Andrew Marshalleck, Chairman, Belize Electricity Ltd.
"The company did just fine. Profits are not the issue. In the covid year profits were more than double that, 40 million and the year before it came down to 35 [million], this year it came down to 15 [million]. What accounts for those variations are really differences in the cost of power that we were able to secure lower prices from Mexico. That situation as I've just pointed out is now changing. Mexico facing their own supply constraints, which has resulted in corresponding high prices. But separate on a path from the price issue and the profit issue is the issue of the availability of energy altogether for us to use."
"The simple fact of the matter is that we've been placed on notice by CFE owing to increase the demands in southern Mexico, they will have difficulty continuing to supply us at certain times. That's it's not available cash resources. The issue is available power. Even with all the money in the world right now and BEL is not short of money - we can't buy the power, because the power is not there to be sold to us."
Jules Vasquez
"Are we to expect that profits will continue to decline towards that closer to that 5 million mark, which you said was the norm?"
Andrew Marshalleck, Chairman, Belize Electricity Ltd.
"If this heat wave continues and we keep paying 40 and 50 cents for kilowatt hour to CFE for power while we charge you only 40 cents, of course it's going to result in losses. You don't get to buy power at 50 cents from Mexico, charge Belizeans consumers 40 cents for the 50 cents power and make money."
Jules Vasquez
"The outlook then with this year's drought, being what it is, the outlook for 2023 end of year is that you all could expect to make a loss."
Andrew Marshalleck, Chairman, Belize Electricity Ltd.
"Well, I don't know that we'll make a loss, but we certainly not make as much of a profit."
Reporter
"Does that mean that BEL will be asking the public utilities commission to consider another rate increase in the near future?"
Andrew Marshalleck, Chairman, Belize Electricity Ltd.
"We haven't even gotten there. But our policy has been to seek to maintain rates right where they are and we are sounding an alarm, we're giving notice that if that isn't set right within the next 12-15 months, I think you can expect more than just higher prices."
Jules Vasquez
"You mean by more than higher prices; you mean you can expect outages?"
Andrew Marshalleck, Chairman, Belize Electricity Ltd.
"There will have certain instances, certain times when we struggle to meet demand."
