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Frustrated Samoa businesses speak out

The electricity supply from the Electric Power Corporation (EPC) is extremely unreliable.That's the verdict of the majority of businesses in the Vaitele industrial area the Samoa Observer spoke with yesterday. Many of them are frustrated to the point where they say that if an alternative supplier of electricity was available in Samoa, they would not hesitate to switch.“Last week, the power went out three times in one day,” said Unasa Tau, General Manager of Tropical Island Bottling. “And that continued for the rest of the week. It went right up until Saturday.”Unasa said the power cuts are costing them a lot of money.“We use electricity for our contactors (an equipment used in the processing of drinks),” he said. “And every time the power goes out, one of these contactors burns out.It is a $300 burn out.”Unasa though is not the only one.A hotelier in the area said he’s had to pay “thousands of dollars to repair my air conditions.”What’s more, his kitchen equipment which includes expensive freezers have all been affected one way or another. That does not include computers and expensive electrical appliances such as flat screen TV sets and more.“It’s just frustrating,” he said. “I’ve gotten to the point where I’ve given up being angry when the power goes off. I mean it goes off every other day now. You really wonder if some people care at all.“We are taking about our hard-earned money here. It’s our livelihoods.”Owner of Loibl repairs, Mercy Loibl echoed the hotelier’s sentiments.