KINGSTON, Jamaica – In the wake of power outages across the island over the weekend, Minister of Science, Energy and Technology Dr Andrew Wheatley has called on the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) to provide him with a full report on the events that led to a failure in the electricity supply to thousands of customers.

The minister has also called for a meeting with the management of the utility company.

“Widespread failure in the electricity supply to consumers is unacceptable and inconsistent with Jamaica’s move towards attaining developed country status. As a country we must endeavour to ensure reliable and consistent supply of this crucial resource,” Wheatley said.

“It is therefore important for the JPS to outline to the country the cause of the outages and the steps that are being implemented to prevent any future recurrence of widespread outages across the island,” the minister added.

While indicating that he intends to meet with the JPS by mid-week, Minister Wheatley said he hopes the company will be able to implement its upgrades and expansions smoothly and will be able to avert any unnecessary disruptions to the electricity supply.

Further to their earlier statements on the matter, the ministry said it understands that the JPS will be providing additional details on the cause of the outages.