CUC has seven maintenance personnel, and additional engineers and mechanics are needed to fix a mechanical breakdown, Muna said.
Engine 6 of Power Plant 1 is down and CUC has to “cannibalize” an exhaust valve from engine 7, he added.
According to Muna, CUC will not delay engine 7 overhauls.
Mechanics will be taking the valve from engines 5 or 6 and reconditioned them to replace the valve taken from engine7, he added.
If CUC has to hire additional mechanics, Muna said they want to avoid manpower service since they may be costly.
At this time, CUC is still looking at both options — direct hire or manpower service, he added.
Muna will meet with power plant technical staff to determine how many mechanics are needed, what their specific job is and the timetable for their service.
CUC will ask the Legislature’s help, he added.
The temporary generating power of Aggreko International Project Ltd that CUC will rent will arrive no later than Sept. 14, Muna said.
Meantime, he added, CUC will operate the available engines “at a level that we can expect they will perform but minimizing further damage to the greatest extent possible.”
“It is a balancing act of maximizing load without overheating while ensuring the best efficiency under these adverse conditions,” he said.
Taotao Tano president Gregorio S. Cruz Jr. warned Muna against hiring inexperienced mechanics and engineers.
Cruz reminded Muna about the case of the DCM Group that was supposed to bring its own experienced mechanics but failed to repair and rehabilitate Power Plant 1.
