Belco has spoken out against changes to the Electricity Act, warning that they raise the risk of ministerial interference in the decision-making process for the island’s future energy mix.

Legislation passed in the House of Assembly on Friday that would give the Minister of Home Affairs the power to suspend the integrated resource planning process in instances favouring public interest.

The Electricity Amendment Act 2026 aims to ensure consumer affordability protections are “integral” to the Integrated Resource Plan, a blueprint for the island’s future energy mix, Alexa Lightbourne told the House.

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Wayne Caines, the president of Belco, said in a statement: “Interrupting the very process designed to protect customers puts the affordability and reliability that Bermuda requires at risk.

“The surest path to lower bills is a complete, evidence-based plan, not one cut short before the analysis is done.”

He added: “For that reason, Belco does not agree with the changes introduced by the Electricity Amendment Act. The suggested changes are not necessary and they introduce the potential for ministerial interference into a process that is meant to stay independent.

“Within the IRP there is already a clearly defined process and giving a minister the power to direct the IRP removes the independence of the RA that protects customers.”

Mr Caines highlighted that the Regulatory Authority is an independent body tasked with the IRP and assisted by the expertise of Belco.

He added: “As part of our transmission, distribution and retail licence, Belco is tasked with planning, constructing, operating and maintaining Bermuda's electricity system.

“Every day, work is carried out by Belco's highly trained engineers and technically skilled energy professionals who do it for a living.

“This is exactly the expertise the IRP is designed to draw on to reach the best outcome for Bermuda.

“Changing that process is not in the best interest of Bermuda.”

Mr Caines described the IRP as an independent, evidence-based process that draws on comprehensive data, public opinion and the oversight of the RA.

He added: “The RA is an independent body whose purpose is to represent the people of Bermuda. Governments and their priorities change over time. The RA does not and that consistency is part of what protects customers.”

The IRP is a living document that is adapted every few years.

In 2023, The Royal Gazette reported how, in 2018, the Department of Energy warned that the planning application for Belco’s North Power Station could be “premature” as the island’s previous IRP had not been finalised.

This meant that the country had not yet had its say on the future energy mix.

Documents released to the Gazette by the Department of Planning under the Public Access to Information Act 2010 revealed that without knowing the final outcome of the IRP, the department could not provide a response to its application.

As feared by the department, the legally binding IRP did not support Belco’s initial proposal to run the NPS on liquefied natural gas.

The IRP instead opted for a mix of fuel oils while paving the way for more renewable energy sources — at that time, an estimated 85 per cent of the island’s generation by 2035.

However, Belco had already procured engines optimised for LNG and when the RA’s final IRP was published rejecting LNG, on commissioning of the NPS in April 2020, the utility ran the engines on approved heavy fuel oil instead.

Mr Caines later admitted that this move caused problem emissions and soot being released from the station into the surroundings.

The Government recently slashed the previous renewable energy targets in its National Electricity Sector Policy, saying it now expects to produce 93 per cent from fossil fuels in 2030.

The policy said the Government’s guiding principle would be cost, reliability and equal access.

It gave little mention of LNG, a generation source that Mr Caines last year said the company “desperately” hoped to get approval for.