By Pacific Island Times News Staff
(Updated April 1, 2024)
The Guam Power Authority and Aggreko International are set to begin executing their power rental agreement next week after receiving the green light from the Office of the Attorney General.
“The contract has passed our contract review process and was transmitted to GPA also today,” Attorney General Douglas Moylan said in an email to Guam officials on March 28.
GPA said a notice to proceed is set to be issued on April 1.
"GPA successfully secured a temporary power contract with Aggreko for two years and the contract was approved by both the Attorney General and the Public Utilities Commission last Thursday," GPA said.
The agreement provides for 20 MW of power to be available for customers within 100 days.
“This successful culmination of extensive collaborative work is part of GPA’s aggressive plans to bolster its generation capacity until the commissioning of the Ukudu Power Plant,” GPA said.
Amendments sought by the OAG have been incorporated into the contract, Moylan said.
Under the two-year contract, the Scotland-registered vendor agreed to rent a 34.5kV60Hz power generator to GPA, providing 20MW of power.
Renting a generator is one of GPA’s emergency power projects that would bridge the gap in Guam's power capacity while awaiting the commissioning of the Ukudu Power Plant on Sept. 15.
"The temporary power agreement comes at a critical juncture as Guam braces for increasing temperatures along with the heightened energy demand in the coming months," GPA said.
The OAG earlier returned the Aggreko contract to GPA due to technical errors.
“GPA remains committed to resolving the energy capacity shortfall and
this temporary power contract is a giant step toward providing reliable and sustainable power solutions for our customers for the interim," said John M. Benavente, GPA general manager.
"As temperatures climb and energy demand surges, securing additional generation capacity becomes critical to maintaining uninterrupted essential services," he added.
Benavente said while the contract entails additional operational costs, the upside lies in the fuel efficiency of these generators compared to those currently in operation.
