💧 Water and Power · U.S. Virgin Islands
WAPA said it was troubleshooting Unit 23 at the Harley plant and expected a 26-megawatt generator back in service by the end of June
The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority said on June 11, 2020, that it was troubleshooting fuel and hydraulic system problems affecting Unit 23, the largest generator at the Randolph Harley Power Plant on St. Thomas, after generation shortfalls contributed to customer outages.
WAPA said the plant had been dispatching all available capacity in recent weeks with little or no reserve. Peak demand in the St. Thomas-St. John district was about 47 megawatts, and when Unit 23 was unavailable the plant was about three megawatts short of required generation, according to the authority.
The utility said it was conducting a systematic review and testing of Unit 23's fuel and hydraulic systems over the following several days.
WAPA also said it had issued a notice to proceed to General Electric to return Unit 27, a 26-megawatt generator, to service. The authority said Unit 27 had previously been one of three rented generators from APR Energy and was then being rented from General Electric, its manufacturer and owner.
WAPA said it expected Unit 27 to be online within two weeks, or by June 30, 2020, at the latest. The authority also said the unit was expected to be retrofitted by the end of 2020 to burn liquefied petroleum gas.