By Jenique Belgrave
The High Court has granted the Barbados Light and Power Company (BLPC) a stay against the Fair Trading Commission’s rejection of its request for an 11.9 per cent rate hike, potentially delaying the announcement of new electricity rates.
Senior Counsel Ramon Alleyne, representing BLPC, secured a stay that preserves the current state of affairs until the High Court reaches a final decision.
This move follows the utility’s assertion of “significant legal, jurisdictional, and procedural errors” in the FTC’s decision and an unprecedented legal challenge that was heard on Monday before Justice William Chandler who also moved the matter to the High Court’s commercial court for future hearings.
The stay granted encompasses various aspects of the FTC’s ruling and maintains the current situation until the High Court reaches a final decision.
Attorneys for the FTC, Senior Counsels Alrick Scott and Roger Forde consented to the stay of proceedings.
“The status quo remains the same, so the orders of the commission are not being instituted at the moment…so the interim rate increase continues until the court makes the final decision,” Scott told reporters after the brief hearing in the Court of Appeal.
The application was also amended to include the intervenor team of Trisha Watson and David Simpson, represented by Senior Counsel Ralph Thorne, and Ricky Went, represented by Senior Counsel Hal Gollop. The Barbados Association of Retired Persons was represented by attorney Douglas Frederick.
Thorne said this move would grant the intervenors the right to make submissions, which in turn would ensure the interests of the general public were represented.
In a statement issued on Monday night, Watson declared this a victory for the intervenors as she claimed that BLPC “was intent on minimising the participation of intervenors in the appeal, and even excluding us”.
“Intervenors were recognised by the court and the consent order was amended. That means that we have won our first battle; that is, to be heard. We now have the opportunity to represent the interests of electricity rate payers and consumers,” she said.
Watson explained that recognition of intervenors by the court was a critical and necessary part of the process. Without it, she said, the FTC would be the only party allowed to respond to the BLPC’s claims.
“In fairness, the FTC’s November 20 decision that dismissed the Light & Power’s initial appeal is based largely on my legal arguments. This appeal, in the High Court, is against my arguments. It would not do if I was prevented from defending my position to the court,” she said.
“Of course, this is an extremely important outcome for us, as it is my team and other pro-consumer intervenors that have fought for and defended the consumers’ and rate payers’ interests throughout this rate case,” Watson added, noting that when the matter continues, her team will “actively participate in this very important appeal”.
Following the FTC’s February ruling in which BLPC was ordered to return to the drawing board to recalculate its rate data and resubmit its findings to the FTC, the utility company filed a motion for the commission to review that decision and change its orders. The company was given a stay of execution on those orders.
However, chair of the regulator’s rate hearing panel, Dr Donley Carrington said last month the company had to comply with those February orders and respond accordingly. He announced that Barbadians would learn about the revised electricity rate before Christmas but noted that it would not be the 11.9 per cent increase sought by the utility company.
This led to BLPC earlier this month issuing a statement accusing the FTC of making “significant legal, jurisdictional, and procedural errors” in its decision and saying that a legal appeal was necessary to defend “fair and reasonable legal standards” governing the industry.
“We feel that we are left with no other option than to continue efforts to resolve serious errors of law related to the rate application,” BLPC had said. “Such mistakes have major consequences on our ability to adequately serve our customers.”
jeniquebelgrave@barbadostoday.bb
