💧 Water and Power · St. Croix, VI
WAPA said repaired switchgear restored normal operations at Estate Richmond plant on St. Croix
The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority said on April 6, 2020, that repairs to damaged switchgear at the Estate Richmond Power Plant had been completed and plant operations on St. Croix had returned to normal.
WAPA said the damaged insulator in the switchgear, not the generating units themselves, caused the island-wide service interruptions over the weekend. The switchgear supplied power to auxiliary systems that supported generator operations.
According to WAPA, crews isolated the faulty switchgear on April 4, 2020, and used a portable air compressor to operate Unit 20 while restoring service. The authority said all customers were restored shortly before 7 p.m. that day, but Unit 20 later tripped during a period of high demand. WAPA said service was fully restored after LPG-powered Aggreko units and two other generators were brought online.
WAPA said another interruption occurred just before 5 a.m. on April 5, 2020, when the portable air compressor operating Unit 20 failed. After what the authority described as a fuel-related issue was corrected, the compressor was restarted, the unit was returned to service and customers were restored.
By the night of April 5, 2020, WAPA said the switchgear and related components had been repaired.
Separately, WAPA said engineers on April 5, 2020, modified the electric grid configuration to address technical issues at the Gregory E. Willocks substation. That work caused a late-night interruption affecting the west end of St. Croix, including customers on Feeders 8B, 9B and 10B. WAPA said the work was completed early on April 6, 2020.
As of mid-morning on April 6, 2020, WAPA said the Richmond plant was operating on 100% LPG with Unit 20 and the Aggreko generators dispatched.