💧 Water and Power · U.S. Virgin Islands
WAPA marked completion of Phase II Wärtsilä generation project on St. Thomas
Official document: https://www.viwapa.vi/docs/default-source/2023-pr/press-release-(1.17.25)-wapa-celebrates-ribbon-cutting-ceremony-for-phase-ii-wärtsilä-project-(3).pdf?sfvrsn=f5c2aa89_3
The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority said it held a ribbon-cutting ceremony on January 17, 2025, for the completed Phase II new-generation Wärtsilä project at the Randolph Harley Power Plant in the St. Thomas-St. John district.
According to WAPA, the project added four dual-fuel Wärtsilä engines with a combined output of 36 megawatts. The authority said the units were designed to operate primarily on liquid propane gas and could also run on light fuel oil diesel if needed.
WAPA said the new engines had the capacity to supply 55% of the St. Thomas-St. John district. The authority said the project was funded through a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant.
The January 17 ceremony included remarks from Gov. Albert Bryan Jr., Senate President Milton E. Potter, Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority Executive Director Eugene Jones Jr., and Office of Disaster Recovery Director Adrienne L. Williams-Octalien, according to the release.
WAPA said the Housing Finance Authority oversaw the project from its start and worked with the utility on delivery. Williams-Octalien said in the release that the HUD-funded project totaled $95 million.