Unit 2 at Aguirre Power Plant goes back online
By The Star Staff
Unit 2 of the Aguirre Power Plant in Salinas is back in service following an obligation of some $29 million allocated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for repairs to the electrical generation complex.
Wednesday’s announcement followed a visit by the executive directors of the Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction and Resilience (COR3) and the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA), Manuel Laboy Rivera and Josué Colón Ortiz, respectively, along with Juan Rodríguez, the vice president of capital programs at LUMA Energy, and FEMA leadership, who toured several permanent works in development at the plant, whose total obligations are estimated at $69 million.
“The reconstruction of the energy system in Puerto Rico continues its course and an example of this is the renovation of the generation and transmission infrastructure that is taking place at Aguirre Power Plant,” Laboy Rivera said. “During the visit, we were able to verify the work led there by PREPA and LUMA aimed at renewing the equipment and facilities that will give resilience and greater stability to the service received by customers. As part of the commitment of Gov. [Pedro] Pierluisi’s administration, we recently made an advance of $31.7 million, an amount that was approved through a request of the Working Capital Advance pilot program.”
Among the works that PREPA has advanced is the repair of Aguirre Units 1 and 2 at an approximate cost of $20.9 million. Repairing those generators augments the available reliable generation, which in turn will increase the resilience of the system, the officials said.
Meanwhile, LUMA is carrying out fieldwork to make way for phase 1 of the installation of new protective equipment with a value of $39 million that will increase the reliability and continuity of electrical service at such an important point of the power grid.
The PREPA chief noted meanwhile that “we reiterate our gratitude for the collaboration and work of the employees of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority, together with FEMA and COR3, who have made it possible for the Authority to complete the repair work on Unit 2 of Aguirre.”
“This base generation unit is essential for the supply of energy to customers and for the operational stability of the electrical system,” he said. “We were able to synchronize this unit in time to be able to complete other repairs in process before the start of the peak of the hurricane season.”