When music superstar Bad Bunny climbed an electric pole during the Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday, he showcased a painful reality during what was otherwise a joyous celebration of Puerto Rican culture.
Puerto Rico’s power grid has been crumbling for nearly a decade, ever since Hurricanes Irma and Maria battered the U.S. territory in 2017 and all but destroyed its centralized electricity system. Bad Bunny highlights the ailing grid in his 2022 song “El Apagón” (“The Blackout”), which he sang yesterday from a sparking utility pole in a show seen by perhaps 135 million viewers.
Despite billions of federal recovery dollars and post-hurricane repairs, Puerto Rico’s 3.2 million residents continue to endure widespread disruptions, electrical surges, and soaring electricity rates — even on storm-free days. Utility customers in Puerto Rico experienced an average of 27 hours of power grid interruptions not related to major events like hurricanes per year between 2021 and 2024. By contrast, people living on the U.S. mainland lacked power for an average of just two hours per year, according to federal data.
Yet rather than invest in Puerto Rico’s recovery, the Trump administration is clawing back key federal funding meant to modernize and decarbonize the territory’s electricity system.
In January, the Department of Energy canceled $450 million for grid resilience programs in Puerto Rico, Latitude Media recently reported. The clawback effectively marks the end of the $1 billion Puerto Rico Energy Resilience Fund that the Biden administration launched in 2023 to help keep people’s lights on and their schools open, hospitals running, and supermarkets stocked.
President Donald Trump’s DOE had previously redirected $365 million of that funding meant for rooftop solar and battery storage projects toward “practical fixes and emergency activities.” To the administration, that means doubling down on the old model: far-flung power plants fueled by coal, oil, and gas, which send electricity along transmission lines that crisscross the island — and which were mercilessly mowed down during last decade’s hurricanes.
But some energy experts and community leaders say that approach is impractical. They argue that building clean and distributed energy systems close to population centers is the best way to supply Puerto Ricans with reliable, affordable power that can withstand natural disasters.
Great Job Maria Gallucci & the Team @ Canary Media for sharing this story.
