SENATOR Paul A. Manglona is very grateful to the Commonwealth Utilities Corp. board of directors for approving the emergency procurement of a new power engine for Rota.
In an interview on Thursday, the Rota lawmaker, who attended the CUC board meeting on Wednesday, said island residents have been experiencing power outages for several months now.
“Should the lone generator completely shut down, our people will be left in the dark. Our people are gravely concerned about the power situation and this action by CUC will ensure that the safety and well-being of our people are not compromised,” Manglona said.
During a meeting on Wednesday, the CUC board unanimously voted to approve the request of CUC acting Executive Director Betty G. Terlaje for an emergency purchase of a two-megawatt engine to replace engine No. 6 on Rota, and a new six-megawatt power engine for Saipan.
The two-megawatt engine for Rota is estimated to cost between $600,000 and $700,000 while the six-megawatt engine for Saipan will cost about $6 million.
Manglona at the same time cautioned CUC about its procurement process. He said the last emergency generator they purchased for Rota four years ago was not done in the best interest of CUC. Many questions pertaining to the price of the generator and its shipping cost, which included sending a crane equipment to Rota from Guam and back for offloading, remain unanswered, the senator said.
In an interview on Thursday, Terlaje said about a month ago, the CUC board approved an emergency procurement but only to rent a generator for temporary power supply on Rota.
But when the solicitation for price quotations started, they learned that the length of time for a temporary power generator to get to Rota was the same length of time for a brand new engine to arrive on the island, which is about three and half to four months.
Terlaje said CUC does not want to spend too much money on renting a generator so they asked the board to cancel the emergency procurement for renting a generator and instead approve an emergency procurement for a brand new engine.
Terlaje added that if Rota’s lone power plant engine “goes down, then there will be blackouts on the island.”
If their homes, health center, schools, seaport and airport lose power, the people of Rota will suffer, she added.
Paul A. Manglona
