The Jamaica Public Service (JPS) Company Limited will invest US$41.9 million in its Grid Modernisation Plan, which is now in its final phase.

The programme, which had received the approval of the Office of Utilities Regulation, was slated for implementation from 2019 to 2023. According to a release from JPS, the company has invested over US$115 in the Grid Modernisation Plan which, it said, aims to empower customers, fuel the growth of businesses and support national development.

“Modernising the grid means ‘adding intelligence’. This translates as a ‘smarter grid’. That is two-way communication across the power grid between devices and systems,” JPS Director of Grid Modernisation and Telecommunications Hugh Hamilton stated.

“A smart grid improves safety and efficiency, makes better use of existing assets, enhances reliability and power quality, enhances reliability and power quality, helps to reduce dependence on improved energy, and minimises costly environmental impacts,” he continued.

With the smarter grid in place, the company can better respond to the needs of its clients and aso enable them.

As part of the programme the electricity provider has introduced a mobile app for customers to improve the monitoring and management of their energy use. Additionally, JPS has been installing smart meters that provide customers with real-time information on how much electricity they have used up to a certain point.

“Consumers with smart meters no longer have to wait for their monthly bill to see how much electricity they have used. They can track their usage daily and hourly using the JPS Mobile App,” the utility company said, adding that in cases of unusual jumps in energy uses over a 15-day period, it will send customers an alert to inform them of same.

In its bid to improve communication with its customers, JPS plans to send text messages to inform customers of broken and down lines, as well as an “appropriate” time frame for the completion of repairs and restoration of services. This, the company said, is due to a pre-emptive two-way communication system that prompts technicians to respond in a timely basis.

“Since the ‘smarter’ grid provides near real-time information on demand and power flow, JPS’ System Operations Team can visualise the status of the grid and forecast changes in electricity demand, plan for inclement weather and prepare contingency plans for prolonged outages. JPS aims to create a grid that contains outages and prevents them from turning into large-scale blackouts. That is a comforting thought considering Jamaica’s crime problem,” the utility company shared.

Thus far, JPS has installed smart meters, smart switched fault indicators, and has also automated several of its systems. By doing so, Hamilton said, “These devices support customer empowerment, reliability, security/safety.”

Other achievements under the programme include integrating renewable energy suppliers to the grid, net billing, and installing electric vehicle chargers.