Puerto Rico's Perpetual Darkness: A Colonial Playbook in Motion
THE CLAIM: Entertainment vs. Infrastructure? The original article from The Hill , in its typical fashion, frames the debate as Luma Energy responding to 'criticism' over Bad Bunny's concert, as if the core issue was a scheduling conflict rather than systemic failure. Luma's carefully worded statement almost implies inconvenience to them , rather than widespread suffering for millions. Curiously,
the article itself is inaccessible, perhaps a testament to the digital blackouts that mirror the physical ones in Puerto Rico. THE EVIDENCE: A Grid in Shambles, By Design. Puerto Rico's power grid has been notoriously fragile since Hurricane Maria in 2017. However, the move to privatize it in 2021, handing control to the Canadian-American consortium Luma Energy, was pitched as the solution.
Instead, blackouts have become more frequent and longer. Data from the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau (PREB, 2023) shows that average outage duration increased by 65% in the first year of Luma's operation compared to the publicly owned utility. This isn't just a failure; it's a feature of a system designed to maximize short-term profit for the operator, not resilience for the population. THE
CONTRADICTIONS: Who Benefits from the Darkness? The promise of privatization was efficiency and reliability. The reality has been the opposite. Yet, Luma Energy continues to operate, shielded by a contract that limits its liability and grants it significant financial incentives regardless of performance. One might wonder why a dysfunctional system is allowed to persist. The answer lies in the