WAPA approves $3.4 million diesel purchase as fuel inventory remains tight

The V.I. Water and Power Authority's governing board approved a purchase of 15,026 barrels of diesel from Borinken Towing and Salvage for more than $3.4 million during an emergency meeting Tuesday.

WAPA CEO Karl Knight said the utility is relatively secure in its liquefied-petroleum-gas inventory but has been unable to keep diesel at its desired reserve level. The order follows an emergency meeting less than two weeks earlier that ratified a separate $3.33 million diesel purchase for the Randolph Harley Power Plant.

Some Randolph Harley generators were designed for either diesel or LPG, but WAPA officials have reported that the plant's Wartsila units experienced serious failures when operated on LPG. Plant staff also told a federal judge that fuel-pump problems currently require diesel use and overnight maintenance.

The purchase adds fuel inventory; it does not add generating capacity or guarantee uninterrupted service. WAPA representatives told senators Monday that limited backup generation means rotating outages could return while older units remain under repair, although the authority's website listed no programmed service interruption Wednesday morning.