💧 Water and Power · St. Croix, VI
WAPA board approved health-plan changes and retained officers at Sept. 29 meeting
The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority’s governing board approved changes to the utility’s Gold Health Care Plan on Sept. 29, 2022, and received an update on renewable-energy discussions for a proposed St. Croix solar project.
WAPA said the health-plan changes shifted dependent coverage under the Gold plan to an 80%/20% employer-employee cost split from 65%/35%. The authority said the change would raise its annual premium cost by about 1.1%, or less than $70,000 a year.
At the meeting, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director Andrew Smith also presented an overview of discussions previously shared with the Public Services Commission. WAPA said seven solar developers had submitted indications of interest for the St. Croix solar project and that negotiations were continuing on terms for a power-purchase agreement. The authority said any such agreement would require approval from both the Public Services Commission and the governing board before it could be signed.
The board also held officer and committee elections. Members unanimously retained Kyle Fleming as chairman, Hubert Turnbull as vice chairman and Juanita Young as secretary. The board also appointed Joel Lee as Finance Committee chair and Turnbull as Planning Committee chair.