Minister for Communication and Works Honourable Kye Rymer has said that the British Virgin Islands Electricity Corporation (BVIEC) is working assiduously to restore its power generating capacity to optimum levels, to adequately meet the needs of the Territory.

Honourable Rymer gave the assurance that the technical and operational issues that are affecting the reliability of the electrical power supply, and which are also affecting the water supply, are receiving the highest priority attention from the Government and the corporation.

Minister Rymer said, “Providing reliable and dependable utilities to the Territory is paramount to everyone. We appreciate that the current issues are inconveniencing the public. This includes interruption of the water supply. For this, we apologise. We are working tirelessly to resolve the issues, but we need the public to bear with us while the solution is put in place.”

General Manager at the BVI Electricity Corporation Dr. Neil Smith said one of the largest generators at the plant is being overhauled while another has been experiencing issues with its governor that has to be rectified by specialists from the manufacturers.

Dr. Smith added, “Another smaller generating set has been un-operational and awaiting assembly. Complicating matters even further is the fact that power consumption in the Territory is currently at the highest levels that it has ever been. Coping with the situation has forced the corporation and some of our public partners, to take steps to manage the load on the system so that we can maintain general power to the Territory.”

The General Manager said the Seven Seas desalination plant consumes 4 Megawatts of energy when operating at full capacity and that in order to regulate the load on the power system, it has become necessary for the desalination plant to be taken offline for certain periods. He said during these times, water production is interrupted and its supply to customers is impacted.

“We appreciate that persons would have endured frustration due to the present situation, but we apologise and we are asking the public to be patient with us as we carry out the necessary work to restore the power plant to its optimal load carrying capacity,” he said.

Dr. Smith is also appealing to the public to conserve electricity by reducing their consumption of the commodity. He said this will lower their electricity bill and contribute to lowering the load on the power system, which in turn will assist in reducing the disruptions to the electricity and water supply.

The BVI Electricity Corporation continues to strive to provide the best possible service to its customers, and assist in the development of the Territory’s electrical infrastructure. The corporation aims to ensure that the entire VI population has an adequate, reliable and continuous electricity supply at an affordable cost.

NOTES TO EDITORS

Photo 1: Official photo of Minister for Communications and Works Honourable Kye Rymer

Photo 2: Photo of General Manager of the BVIEC Dr. Neil Smith

 (Photo credit: GIS)