SAIPAN needs a new power plant, Commonwealth Utilities Corporation Executive Director Gary Camacho told Variety.
Commonwealth Utilities Corporation Executive Director Gary Camacho poses for a photo in his office.
The current power plant is run well by CUC personnel, but it needs to be replaced as soon as possible, he added.
“We currently have a 40-year-old power plant and the existing power plant’s total number of running hours equates to 25 total calendar years,” Camacho said in an interview on Friday.
The existing power plant, which has a peak demand of 40 megawatts, now has obsolete parts and maintaining it is labor intensive, he added.
“It is very difficult to get parts from the two manufacturers, BMW out of Germany and Singapore, and Mitsubishi in Japan,” he said.
“So, the non-availability of parts obviously causes delays during overhauls and other maintenance work.”
He noted that the power plant building itself is prone to typhoon damage.
If finally replaced, the old power plant could still be used a few more years as a backup plant.
“With today’s technology and fuel types we would be able to get better fuel efficiency with new engines,” Camacho said. “Fuel efficiency is critical so that we can pass those savings to the consumer through better rates.”
He said the new power plant will also be environmentally compliant. “That includes the engines and the facility.”
As for the current power plant, “the staff has been doing a wonderful job in operating it, but it is labor intensive — it does not have real-time monitoring and safety protection.”
With a new power plant, he added, “we would have technology to help our staff monitor the temperature of lube oil, the temperature of the cooling water system, the temperature of the engine itself, while providing a wide range of control and monitoring mechanism.”
For its part, the cost of operating and maintaining the current power plant is constantly increasing, Camacho said.
“We’re looking forward to transitioning to new technology which will be less expensive, and there will be more parts available,” he added as he noted the importance of a power plant to the island community and its economy.
Camacho said CUC is now trying to identify funding for a new power plant for Saipan.
