I HAVE many comments to make about CUC and the problems it faced when I was on the board of directors back in 2015-2017.
I served as chairman of the board of directors for the Guam Power Authority back in 1987-2004.
CNMI law gave the CNMI governor (at the time, Gov. Eloy Inos) authority to appoint a non-CNMI resident to serve on the CUC board of directors. Per the law, the nominee must have utility management or policy-making experience. Governor Inos appointed me to fill that seat on the CUC Board. I was subsequently confirmed by the Senate.
For everyone’s information, Guam Power Authority’s total generator capacity is over 560 megawatts, serving about 53,500 customers.
Compared to CUC’s Saipan operation: Total generator capacity is 60 megawatts with about 10,000 customers.
It was necessary to replace all the old generators in Saipan, with more efficient generator units. In other words, generators that use less fuel but power output is equal or better than what the old generators could produce. Funding might be provided by the U.S. Department of the Interior, as they provided funding for upgrading CUC’s water distribution system. CUC could have explored that funding source and other possible means.
The old generators could have been replaced within 3 years — by 2019-2020 back then.
We also started to replace the poles with concrete ones. Not sure if this pole change out project is still being pursued by CUC’s Board and management.
During my time on the Board, I wanted to establish an apprenticeship training program for about 40 of our local citizens to learn how to run a power plant, transmission and distribution system, etc. so we can return about 40 Filipino contract workers in CUC back to their country. The budget was approved, but that priority never materialized.
All these could have been accomplished easily in a few years but several of my colleagues on the board had other intentions.
Unfortunately, we could have fixed the whole islandwide power system within 3-4 years, by replacing 60 megawatts of old generators with more efficient generator units, and added another 40+ megawatts of generator capacity (which equals 70% of peak demand of 60 megawatts on any given day) as reserve power when base load generator units are taken down for maintenance; built a new power plant away from the Lower Base shoreline (to avoid seawater surges during typhoons that will damage the power generators); installed about 6,000 concrete power poles; improved the SCADA control center (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition system). SCADA is a type of system used to monitor and control industrial operations such as power plants to collect data from sensors and remotely control equipment. We would have built a typhoon proof building maybe on Navy Hill or Capital Hill to house the SCADA system.
But when Governor Inos died, my colleagues back then removed me from the chairmanship of CUC and took over. Unfortunately, I am not seeing, to this day, any significant improvement to CUC’s service to the people of Saipan.
So sad. I believe it is easy to change out the old inefficient generators for more efficient generators that will lower the rates for the people and businesses.
I hope the current Administration can see fit to address quickly CUC’s needs to better serve the people of Saipan.
DAVID J. SABLAN
Former CUC Chairman
