By Zoila Palma: Business Senator Kevin Herrera is proposing a Senate inquiry into Belize’s energy sector following repeated power failures, generation shortfalls, and load-shedding events affecting the country.
The motion, scheduled for Friday’s Senate meeting, calls for a comprehensive investigation into the causes of the outages, emergency procurement decisions, regulatory oversight, and power purchase agreements involving Mexico’s Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) and local independent power producers.
If approved, a seven-member Special Select Committee would examine a decade’s worth of communications, technical reports, financial records, contracts, and policy decisions related to energy planning and generation.
The committee would have the authority to summon ministers, chief executive officers, officials from Belize Electricity Limited (BEL), the Public Utilities Commission, independent power producers, and other current and former public officers to provide evidence and produce relevant documents.
Public hearings would be broadcast live, with the committee expected to conclude them before the end of 2026.
The proposed committee would include three senators appointed on the advice of the Prime Minister, one appointed on the advice of the Leader of the Opposition, and the church, labour, and NGO senators.
It could also engage independent experts, including engineers, energy specialists, attorneys, and accountants. The motion invokes Section 61A(2) of the Constitution, which provides for Senate investigations into matters of public importance.
Whether the motion secures sufficient support remains to be seen.
The post Business senator proposes Senate inquiry into Energy Sector appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
By Zoila Palma: Business Senator Kevin Herrera is proposing a Senate inquiry into Belize’s energy sector following repeated power failures, generation shortfalls, and load-shedding events affecting the country. The motion, scheduled for Friday’s Senate meeting, calls for a comprehensive investigation into the causes of the outages, emergency procurement decisions, regulatory oversight, and power purchase agreements
The post Business senator proposes Senate inquiry into Energy Sector appeared first on Belize News and Opinion on www.breakingbelizenews.com.
