The Dominica Electricity Company (DOMLEC) earned a total revenue of EC$92.05 million in the year ended 2021; and generated a total of EC$3.51 million profit within the same period. DOMLEC chairman, David McGregor, said the company also expended EC$85.03 million to run the organization last year.
McGregor said Dominica’s electricity capacity is still below the level it was in 2017 given that the PADU Hydro Electric Power Plant is still redundant. He said the plant is being revived and will become operational again by August 2022. He further noted that by 2030, the country would have achieved its lofty objective of generating 100% renewable energy and become the first climate-resilient country in the world to run on full renewable energy.
The DOMLEC chairman disclosed that the EC$92.05 million revenue generated in 2021 is 14.52% above the total revenue generated in 2020. He added that the EC$85.03 million operating figure expended in 2021 is 13.3% above the amount used to run the company in 2020. He stated that domestic and commercial electricity usage climbed in 2021, but use declined in the industrial sector.
Electricity sales increased by 4.4% over that of 2020. The commercial, domestic, and hotel sectors grew by 4.9%, 3.5%, and 17% respectively. However, the industrial sector declined by 0.6%. Net profit before tax for the year ended December 31, 2021, was EC$5.08 million as compared to EC$2.42 million in 2020. Taxes recoverable for the year amounted to EC$1.57 million resulting in a net profit after tax of EC$3.51 million as compared to a net profit after tax of $0.01 million in 2020.
David McGregor, DOMLEC Chairman
The electricity chief credited the financial successes recorded by the company in the outgoing year to the “application of sound governance strategies, effective management of operations, prudent financial management, and a committed and competent team of employees all contributed to the achievement of the Company’s goals.”
Meanwhile, political scientist, Dr. Dion George, has opined that the prices of electricity consumption in Dominica would nosedive if private companies were allowed to sell electricity directly to consumers. He said the government should privatize the energy sector so that healthy business rivalry could drive down the cost of electricity as is done in more developed countries.
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