Jamaica’s Energy Minister Daryl Vaz has explicitly stated that the government holds no financial responsibility for a substantial US$110 million loan acquired by the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) to address extensive damage to the national electricity grid caused by Hurricane Melissa. The declaration was made during a parliamentary session of the Standing Finance Committee on Friday, in response to pointed inquiries from Opposition Spokesman on Energy, Phillip Paulwell.
Minister Vaz clarified the government’s previous involvement, highlighting that it had provided a separate US$150 million loan to JPS. This intervention, he emphasized, was instrumental in enabling the utility company to achieve 99% power restoration for its customers by February 28—a timeline dramatically ahead of initial projections that estimated recovery could extend into late 2026 or early 2027 without state assistance.
The opposition’s scrutiny centered on the source of the additional funding. Paulwell recalled his party’s initial objection to the government’s US$150 million loan, citing the impending renewal of JPS’s operating licence next year and its previously reported difficulties in securing financing from traditional institutions. He pressed the minister for details on what had changed to suddenly make JPS creditworthy for a further US$110 million.
In his detailed rebuttal, Vaz broke down the total funding structure: a US$150 million government loan, a US$40 million allocation from the ‘Electricity Disaster Fund’—a quasi-insurance mechanism for uninsurable transmission lines—and the independent US$110 million secured by JPS itself. The minister firmly reiterated that the government has no formal or informal arrangements to guarantee this private loan, stating, ‘I can state categorically that the Government of Jamaica has no involvement whatsoever.’ Despite the political friction, Paulwell acknowledged the commendable speed and efficiency of JPS’s restoration efforts.