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Aristotle once described “the energy of the mind” as “the essence of life.” In the Brit-

ish Territory of Bermuda, the essence of life has been greatly elevated by the team of

professionals who deploy a significant share of their mind to the safe, reliable and af-

fordable production of energy. As knowledge is said to equate to power, the expertise,

eco-sensitivity, and efficiency imparted by this power company has led to its acknowl-

edgement as one of the best in the industry.

The islands comprising the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda (located in the North Atlantic a

little more than 600 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina) is home to a population of 65,000 people, but it annually plays host to hundreds of thou-sands more due to its natural beauty which fosters a dynamic tourism industry. Over the years, Bermuda has also evolved to support a thriving financial services in-dustry. In contrast to many islands of its size, the vitality of Bermuda’s commer-

cial sector, telecommunications network, air and sea port operations and overall in-frastructural integrity combine to offer an exceptional quality of life. Such quality is complemented, if not compelled, by the steady and reliable supply of electrical energy as provided by Bermuda Electric Light Company (BELCO), Bermuda’s only electric utility company. BELCO has been serving Bermuda for more than a century, and began providing critical energy services long before the develop-ment of major hotels, healthcare systems,

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commercial centers and residential neigh-borhoods, in fact, BELCO has played such a significant role that it is quite pos-sible the Bermuda of today would simply not be had it not been for the fundamental services fulfilled by BELCO.

A LEGACY IN ENERGY LEADERSHIP

BELCO’s emergence dates back to 1904 when an entrepreneur from New Jersey (George Marshall Allen) joined force with several prominent Bermudians to incorporate what was then known as the Bermuda Electric Light, Power & Trac-tion Company. It would take another two years to organize the first meeting of shareholders which led to Dr. E.C. Wilkin-son’s appointment as Chairman of the Board, a position he held for the next 20 years. During this time, B.E.L.P.T. oper-ated from a converted saw mill located in the Capital City of Hamilton where it in-stalled its first generating unit, a 50-kilo-watt suction gas engine. Of course, there was so little demand for electricity during this era that most of the company’s elec-tricity was only used to light the adver-tising sign on its own premises. Over the

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next few years, as the company supplied goods such as electric fans, irons and ket-tles, demand for electrical wiring services quickly increased and necessitated the company’s moving into a larger operating space along Bermuda’s Serpentine Road where it began supplying power 24-hours a day. As gas generators became increas-ingly inefficient to supply the rising de-mand for energy, the company invested in oil-based engineering to better generate electricity; infrastructure that ultimately led to the development of new pipelines to ensure the efficient and expedient deliv-ery of requisite fuel. Those advancements ultimately led to Esso’s 1972 building

of a nine-mile long pipeline which runs from a terminal at St. George to a power plant storage facility in Pembroke, which is still used today. Over the decades that followed, BELCO remarkably weathered storms born not only from meteorological forces such as hurricanes, but other chal-lenges arising from the increasing escala-tion of fuel costs. Throughout the 1970s, after enduring several oil crises arising from issues in leading oil producing coun-tries, principals of the utility increasingly sought to implement strategies resulting in increased efficiency and conservation of fuel. Embracing an operational phi-losophy of continual improvement, the

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company’s has grown in pace with the de-mand for electricity throughout Bermuda, which is substantial for an island its size. Today, under the operational auspices of parent company known as the Ascendant Group, BELCO accommodates some 36,000 metered connections, facilitating a maximum capacity of 165 megawatts deployed via 135 miles of underground transmission cable, 120 miles of high voltage underground distribution cable, and more than 900 miles worth of high voltage and low voltage overhead service lines. In addition to its state-of-the-art C.

Eugene Cox Operations Centre, and East Power Station (developed over a 20 year period), BELCO fulfills services from 34 substations located throughout the island. The quality and reliability of these servic-es have not only bolstered the quality of life in Bermuda, but has also empowered BELCO’s recognition as a “Best” in the utility business.

AWARD WINNINGEXPERTISE

CARILEC, an industry leading associa-tion of Caribbean-based utility companies

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has distinguished BELCO by conferring its prestigious “Best Utility Award,” an honor based on a combination of perfor-mance standards assessed through CAR-ILEC’s 2012 “Human Resources Bench-mark Study” as well as its traditional “Caribbean Benchmarking Study.” The Caribbean Benchmarking Study evaluates all member utility companies in respect to four categories: Electricity Generation, Transmission & Distribution Services (in terms of efficiency, reliability, cost effec-tiveness, productivity); Commercializa-tion Services (relative to customer service, cost effectiveness and productivity); and

Safety. Though Bermuda isn’t offi-cially considered as part of the Caribbe-an, Ascendant Group President and CEO Walter Higgins explains that BELCO is a full-fledged Member of CARILEC and given the nature of its island operations and similar economic and environmental challenges which confront all utilities, the CARILEC benchmark study offers the most effective mechanism for comparing and contrasting performance standards. Almost modest to a fault, Higgins is quick to affirm that CARILEC is comprised by many fine companies who provide out-standing services for their customers. He

Denton Williams Walter M Higgins

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credits BELCO’s honors to a much ap-preciated duration of time in which there has been little to no impact to service op-erations. “The study looks at issues such as outages, speed of restoration, system losses and more ... there can be any num-ber of things that can impact the quality of service including storms, fires or other quirks ... we would not be faithful to the truth if we didn’t acknowledge that things have been going well for us... so well that when all the data was accumulated and the calculations were done, we were rec-ognized as the point leader.” Of course,

Higgins is also quick to recognize that the company’s ability to mitigate impacts is a byproduct of practices fulfilled by a team of people particularly focused on opera-tional integrity, and in this case, the fo-cus has been complemented with lessons uniquely learned from The School of Hard Knocks. As Higgins explains, Bermuda has endured a few particularly bad storm systems over the last few decades. “Out of a major event comes a massive out-age as many things get destroyed which then have to be rebuilt ... one of the smart-est things BELCO has done is invest in

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changes to our design system, from main-ly overhead wires to a completely under-ground transmission system and over half of the distribution underground. Placing

the wires underground is costly but where there is new construction and in support of strategic locations, BELCO has and continues to invest in such opportunities.

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While underground infrastructure is not totally immune from impacts, it is much less subject to storm-generated outages,” says Higgins.

Through the advancing of underground systems and consistent storm-hardening of overhead infrastructure, Bermuda has been able to better withstand nature’s fu-ries in wind and rain and generally han-dles tropical storm force winds very well. Should a time come when Bermuda con-fronts a more direct challenge, Higgins notes that having quality infrastructure as well as a qualified team of trained profes-sionals enables BELCO to respond faster to emergencies and more quickly assist in efforts to recover. As Higgins says, “We’re better prepared when a storm comes and better prepared to get over it.”

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So too is much of Bermuda for that matter. The building standards are very high here, with structures made solid by concrete and stone construction tech-niques, enabling homes and offices to bet-ter withstand hurricane winds. As Higgins notes, “It’s always better when buildings aren’t destroyed ... so often the problem isn’t getting the electrical system back, it is having a place to send power that can be served.” To that point, Higgins says BELCO strives to particularly ensure some opera-tions never undergo service disruptions.

From crucial centers of international com-merce and hospital infrastructure to major hotels and vital municipal offices, BEL-CO has prioritized its application of mul-tiple layers of protection to ensure Ber-muda’s pulse is maintained despite any undermining impact, aided by a system that has been designed to increase supply or divert power to priority infrastructure whenever the need calls for it. Ascendant Group Senior Vice Presi-dent and BELCO Chief Operating Offi-cer Denton Williams indicates a few other strategies that have helped Bermuda miti-

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gate potential for impact. For example, Williams says BELCO deploys an ex-tensive vegetation management system, cutting and grooming trees so that they grow away from overhead lines – an on-going process in a region famed for its re-sources in fauna. The company shares its knowledge and experience with other is-land communities when situational needs arise. As Williams affirms, BELCO takes pride in being a responsive partner to a larger network of utility providers en-gaged throughout the Caribbean, of which all can more effectively function through willingness to share resources and col-laborate on solutions to challenges which confront all.

ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE & EFFICIENT

While sustainability practices have be-come the all-essential focus of so many industries, BELCO has taken steps to formalize environmental management systems and improve its environmen-tal performance. BELCO has undergone third-party auditing to earn ISO:14001 Certification, demonstrating its adher-ence to best practices in controlling and

improving upon solutions to minimize impact to that beautiful environment for which Bermuda can boast. The achieving of ISO certification is a point of special pride to Williams, who says, “It shows that we’re reducing our impact on the en-vironment ... we’re not just paying lip ser-vice to environmental management, the certification demonstrates that we’re ac-tually dedicated to the environment, and it sets us apart.” BELCO’s environmental manage-ment objectives also align to a continuing improvement strategy, calling for con-sistently establishing and implementing

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goals and constant monitoring of perfor-mance. Environmental awareness is pro-moted throughout the company, as well as through its communications with the community at large through programs that prompt greater understanding of energy efficiency. The company also focuses on measures to help prevent pollution of air, water and soil. Denton Williams points to BELCO’s waste oil management system. In this case, the company has invested in re-sources to filter and extract used-oil from generators which can be recycled, repur-posed and sold for reuse (to the point of being virtually pure oil). The selling of this oil helps offset costs of management, so in this case, it is not only environmen-tally sound, but fiscally prudent. In terms of fiscal prudence, cost con-tainment is a non-ceasing priority of BEL-CO, which speaks not only to the compa-ny’s future viability, but its commitment to customers. The resolve to control costs is evidenced through a number of protocols and strategic partnerships. For example, BELCO and its customers have benefit-ted from the firm’s reliance on a Florida-based company known as Bulk Solutions. Bulk Solutions specializes in 3PL domes-

tic and international door-to-door logis-tical services encompassing equipment, documentation and transportation needs. In addition to designing equipment and terminal systems that support the efficient distribution of products by truck, rail or ship, the company also helps develop or oversee general office procedures neces-sary for regulatory compliance. Through its consulting services, Bulk Solutions additionally helps analyze specific ship-ping needs, offering programs that guide customers through leased vs. equipment ownership options, State and Federal regulations, import/export brokering and overall cost control. Services provided to BELCO not only ultimately contribute to the utility’s operational efficiency, but also cost effectiveness. President Breck Reed says Bulk Solutions operates differently from other conventional logistics compa-nies, serving more as professional partner than mere link in the supply chain, which further compels the drive to find the best, cost-effective methodologies for trans-portation, efficiencies and cost-savings. What’s more, through Bulk Solution’s efforts and alliance partners, BELCO is able to recover an approximate net gain of 10% of what it pays for services. To

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add further value to the relationship and augment BELCO’s commitment to envi-ronmental management and cost contain-ment, Bulk Solutions tenders and trans-ports the utility used-oil to DEP-approved recyclers in the United States.

ADVANCING AFFORDABLE ENERGY

There can be no overstating of BELCO’s determination to implement strategies de-signed to further curb the costs of electric-ity, which over the years, has escalated in proportion to the increasing costs of oil. In fact, more than half of the costs associ-ated with energy prices is directly tied to the prices associated with acquiring oil. Higgins says BELCO is looking to add alternative energy solutions to stablize the cost of power. He anticipates that in the not so distant future, BELCO will transi-tion from the reliance on fuel oil to more affordable natural gas. This will require investment in terms of new systems and upgraded infrastructure, but Higgins says the transition would enable BELCO and its customers to avoid impacts from the unpredictable fluctuations in oil costs. At the same time, Higgins says BEL-

CO will move toward increased utiliza-tion of solar energy solutions. “Bermuda is sunny most of the time ... and we have substantial roof systems which could house solar power installations. With the decreasing costs of solar panels and the advances that have been made in solar technology, there are advantages of in-creasing solar capabilities to our opera-tions,” says Higgins. BELCO continues to explore all op-tions, but as Higgins observes, “there is no magic bullet to the problem of the high cost of electricity ... but through the tran-sition to natural gas and solar energy, we

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believe we can achieve greater stability in pricing and generally lower costs for con-sumers.” Lowering costs for consumers is a priority for BELCO. “One thing we nev-er forget,” says Higgins, “the only reason we’re able to stay in business is the extent to which we satisfy our customers... right now, customers are unhappy about high prices. Our focus is continuing to provide high quality, reliable service while find-ing ways to get the cost of the overall electricity bill, down ... that’s what we’re all about.” The fact remains that BELCO is about much more than supplying electrical

power, but empowering the community to achieve the greatest quality of life pos-sible. Higgins says the company and its employees take pride in serving the com-munity. That has resulted in more than the delivery of kilowatt hours, but also sup-port for a variety of philanthropic initia-tives, job opportunities and scholarships for area students. In fact, long before Den-ton William became COO of BELCO, he was a local student who secured a scholar-ship from BELCO which ultimately pro-vided the means to advance his education and receive the training which led to his current position. As Higgins says, “We do what we can do to help make Bermuda a better place... whether that’s sponsoring a community event, awarding scholar-ships to area students, or helping people during a time when the Island is going through economic challenge ... that help is very important to us and is part of what makes this company what it is ... we’re recognized and appreciated for that, with the asterisk, we’d sure like your prices to be lower,” says Higgins. “In Bermuda, people appreciate that the power stays on, but they want the prices to be lower too ... that’s the direction we’re moving.”

http://www.belco.bm