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CUC exec defends privatization plans
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Posted on Jun 23 2005
A Commonwealth Utilities Corp. official yesterday defended the power plant privatization project, which critics said would solve nothing but CUC’s power generation problem.
CUC board vice chair Herman P. Sablan, who heads the board’s operations committee, said the privatization program would address the utility’s power-related issues—from generation to distribution problems, from mechanical to environmental matters.
Under an independent power producer, the power plant will undergo a comprehensive refurbishment that the government—with its limited resources—could never afford to do, said Sablan.
He said the contractor would fix the power plant’s foundation, modernize the engines, and update the control technology used at the plant, among other things.
“We have to start fixing somewhere. How can we have power on the lines if no power is being generated at the power plant?” Sablan said.
He noted that due to the age and inefficiency of the engines, about 20 percent of power generation fuel is being wasted. Without privatization, he added, the generators would not be made more efficient and the power plant would not be brought to compliance with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency standards.
In addition, Sablan maintained that the privatization project was not being expedited, with the program having been in the works for the past three years.
“This project is way overdue. It should have been done five to 10 years ago,” said Sablan.
