WAPA Receives Shipment of Propane at Estate Richmond

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The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority (WAPA) and Vitol Oct. 21 received their first inventory of LPG at the Estate Richmond terminal, signaling a two-year electrical generation conversion project is nearing the finish line. “It was just about 8 a.m. today when the feeder fuel ship Epic Curacao pulled up alongside WAPA’s fuel dock near the Richmond Power Plant with a load of LPG that will be used for commissioning and testing of the storage and delivery systems ahead of WAPA’s generating units burning propane to generate electricity for customers on St. Croix,” said WAPA executive director and CEO Hugo V. Hodge Jr.

Vitol will be testing and commissioning various components of the storage and propane delivery systems prior to introducing LPG to the generators for power generation. While the St. Croix terminal project edges closer to completion, WAPA continues to work with the Office of the Governor and the Congressional Delegate’s office to ensure that the pending permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is finalized. The permit will ensure that remaining marine work, including a permanent mooring for very large gas carriers, can be completed. That work will allow the St. Thomas terminal to be brought online, the second half of the fuel conversion project.

“The arrival of the first inventory of LPG to the Virgin Islands marks the beginning of a process that will see a continuous movement of LPG product from a very large gas carrier to St. Croix until all storage tanks are filled,” Hodge said. He noted that the move away from the dependency on fueloil to propane for electrical generation will be transparent to WAPA customers.

The Oct. 21 arrival of the LPG shipment also allowed the water and power authority to demonstrate the fire protection system on St. Croix. “We had the opportunity to bring in officials of the VI Fire Services to demonstrate the extensive and redundant firefighting systems that are in place on the site. Fire inspectors, firefighters, and others were on hand to watch the simulated activation of the fire detection and firefighting systems,” Hodge said.

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