Granholm Gone Wild? Energy Sec Takes Fourth Trip to Puerto Rico in Five Months

US Department of Energy secretary Jennifer Granholm has travelled to Puerto Rico on an official visit funded by taxpayers, marking her fourth visit to the island since October 2022. Her visits are part of her goal, as the energy secretary, to help modernize Puerto Rico’s power grid that was severely affected by Hurricane Maria in 2017. Her current trip is for a week and had a public schedule of three events in the first two days, including a tour of a technical college and a visit with a local homeowner. Granholm also plans to tour a community solar project, host an energy and agriculture round table, and visit a bioenergy generation center during her visit this week. There is also a scheduled disability round table later in the week.

However, her extended visits are raising questions and criticisms from energy experts. Granholm has spent at least 10 official workdays on the island since February, amid a global energy crisis, leading many to question the necessity of such costly trips. A former official from the Department of Energy has voiced criticism saying, “This trip will easily cost taxpayers tens of thousands of dollars…Unless Granholm is there installing the solar panels herself, there is no reason for her to be on the ground for that long.”

Granholm’s spokesperson defended the visits, saying that “residents of Puerto Rico are American citizens who, for too long, have suffered from an unreliable electric grid… Secretary Granholm’s highest priority is helping ensure all Americans everywhere gain access to clean, reliable, and affordable power, and Puerto Ricans are no exception.”

Puerto Rico has struggled with its power grid for decades, and the 2017 hurricane knocked out electricity for many residents for nearly a year. In 2021, a private company took over managing the system from the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, a state agency riddled with corruption and mismanagement. Despite the aid, Puerto Rico continues to face recurrent power outages.

Granholm’s current trip follows her appearance before Congress where she claimed the Department of Energy had no plans to restock the US strategic oil reserves despite the dip in oil prices to improve the country’s gasoline prices before the election. She justified her decision by saying, “This year, it will be difficult for us to take advantage of this low price…But we will continue to look for that low price into the future because we intend to be able to save the taxpayer dollars.”