Puerto Rico Needs Power, Not Political Lawsuits

Puerto Rico is in the dark—literally and figuratively.

On New Year’s Eve 2024, the lights went out across the island while families prepared to celebrate. Roughly 1.4 million customers lost power. Just four months later, during Holy Week, it happened again within the past 72 hours––another island-wide blackout crippled electricity and water service for millions. In San Juan, traffic lights failed, businesses shuttered, and families scrambled to preserve food and care for loved ones.

These blackouts aren’t anomalies—they’re symptoms of a broken, mismanaged grid that’s been on life support since Hurricane María. And while Puerto Ricans face sweltering nights and stalled businesses, their governor is picking a fight with American energy producers.

Instead of rebuilding the grid, newly elected Republican Governor Jenniffer González-Colón is pressing ahead with a climate lawsuit against oil and gas producers. Filed last year by her predecessor, Democratic Governor Pedro Pierluisi, the lawsuit seeks at least $1 billion in damages from energy companies—accusing them of allegedly deceiving the public about the risks of fossil fuels and contributing to climate change.

Let’s be clear—the lawsuit won’t bring back the power. It won’t deliver a single kilowatt-hour to a hospital, school, or home. What it will do is tie up taxpayer resources in a years-long legal circus while Puerto Ricans sit in the dark.

Even if this lawsuit were to succeed—a big “if”—any payout would be decades away. In the meantime, it does nothing to fix the real issue––a grid that can’t stay online on a sunny day, let alone during a hurricane.

Puerto Rico doesn’t need more climate litigation. It requires energy security.

Governor González-Colón has shown no signs she understands the urgency. She was on vacation and forced to return to respond to the Easter week blackout. Even her energy czar, Josué Colón, stated in response, “It’s regrettable. If you ask me, it is unacceptable that this is happening. There’s no way we can accept for this to happen in Puerto Rico’s electric system.”

Any action the governor takes to address the electricity crisis are being undermined by the climate lawsuit.At best, it’s a distraction. At worst, it’s political theater—a way to score points with the environmentalists while Puerto Rican families suffer the consequences of a failed energy policy.

Let’s talk about priorities.

Puerto Rico’s energy utility, PREPA, has been in bankruptcy for eight years. Billions in federal recovery dollars are sitting unspent. Contract disputes, regulatory delays and political gamesmanship have choked off investment in transmission and generation. The island’s grid was handed over to private operators with little experience and poor track records—and the results have been catastrophic.

Justin Peterson, the former Trump appointee to Puerto Rico’s Financial Oversight and Management Board, posted on X this week, “When will Puerto Rico’s elected officials stand up for its American citizens and get results?”

Instead of investing political capital in suing America’s energy producers, the governor should be focused on stabilizing the grid, enforcing accountability for private operators, and accelerating the deployment of reliable, affordable energy.

And here’s the kicker––even as Puerto Rico sues Big Oil, it remains overwhelmingly dependent on fossil fuels for electricity. Oil, gas, and coal still generate the vast majority of power on the island. The governor herself has backed natural gas conversions and extended coal operations. The governor’s pursuit of a climate lawsuit is at the height of hypocrisy.

If Puerto Rico wants to reduce emissions, let’s have that conversation. But it starts with reliability. It starts with a grid that works. You don’t transition to cleaner energy by litigating your way there—you do it by building the infrastructure that can support the transition.

President Donald Trump has made clear where his administration stands. Just this month, he signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice to investigate state-level attempts to drag energy producers into court over climate change.

The President has made “positioning American energy for the next century” a cornerstone of his domestic agenda. That starts with protecting the companies that power our economy from being weaponized in court by politicians looking for headlines.

Puerto Rico should take note. This meritless lawsuit is a luxury the island can’t afford. It’s a political statement dressed up as policy. And while it may win applause from the environmental activist class, it won’t keep the lights on in San Juan, Ponce or Mayagüez.

Governor González-Colón has an opportunity to change course. She should drop the lawsuit and focus on the job Puerto Ricans elected her to do—fix the grid, restore reliability, and build the foundation for a stronger energy future.

The people of Puerto Rico deserve leadership grounded in results. It’s time to stop suing energy producers and start producing more power.