Heightened stakeholder engagement critical to difficult “last mile” of JPS restoration

(January 8, 2026 – Kingston, Jamaica) JPS has highlighted strong stakeholder engagement as a critical factor in the progress being made to restore electricity to the remaining ten per cent of customers, as the company works through the most challenging phase of restoration — the “last mile”.

During a restoration update provided to Minister of Energy, Daryl Vaz, at the JPS Incident Command Center in Whitehouse, Westmoreland, President and CEO, Hugh Grant, outlined how ongoing collaboration with local representatives has helped to strengthen and refine restoration efforts across the parish.

Grant reported that, over the past several days, JPS has met with Members of Parliament and Councillors in Westmoreland to share updates on the status of restoration in the parish, better understand community-level challenges, and factor local insights into operational planning. He added that this engagement has also supported clearer communication with residents who have been without electricity for extended periods.

He explained that the last mile of restoration typically presents the greatest difficulty, as it requires a significant amount of work to restore electricity to fewer customers, particularly as crews move farther away from town centres and into more remote communities.

Minister Vaz was updated on the overall pace of restoration and the coordination taking place among JPS, government officials and community leaders, as efforts move into their final and most demanding stage.

According to JPS, 91 per cent of customers island-wide have now had electricity restored. Crews continue to work around the clock, supported by additional resources and overseas teams, to complete restoration in the most severely impacted parishes to include St. Elizabeth, Hanover, St. James, Trelawny, and Westmoreland.

JPS reaffirmed its commitment to ongoing stakeholder engagement and thanked customers for their continued patience and cooperation as teams safely complete the final phase of work.