Caribbean Utilities Company

The tide of change┬áJason Burke explains to Gay Sutton how Caribbean Utilities Company has been rebuilding Grand CaymanÔÇÖs infrastructure and proofing its power generation equipment against the disruptions of hurricane season. Located on an idyllic coral island, surrounded by turquoise seas, where the main industries are tourism, banking and fishing, Caribbean Utilities Company (CUC) operates a world-class electricity generation, transmission and distribution network supplying power to the people of Grand Cayman. But for CUC the old world order is changing.Where the company used to operate under license with a monopoly on power supply, a new system is being introduced to bring the island in line with much of the rest of the Caribbean and to open CUC to competition. The new Electrical Regulatory Authority (ERA) formed by the Government on Grand Cayman will regulate this new marketplace, analyzing CUCÔÇÖs operational performance and reliability of service, and granting the necessary licenses for operation and expansion of facilities. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre at a juncture now,ÔÇØ explains facilities and operation manager Jason Burke. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre currently installing a new engine, but this will be the last one under the old license and monopoly.ÔÇØ The new CI$22 million, 60-MW MAN engine is being installed in a new powerhouse at the companyÔÇÖs North Sound site on the outskirts of George Town and is scheduled to come online in July this year. When power consumption on the island warrants greater power generation capacity, though, the company will be bidding against other competitors. ÔÇ£We have three other competitors right now,ÔÇØ says Burke. ÔÇ£At present, weÔÇÖre preparing bids for future expansion, part of which will be to replace two of our existing engines and part to cover a growth in demand. The work is scheduled to occur in 2012 or 2013, but the timing will depend on growth, and that is largely dictated by the global financial climate.ÔÇØ CUC has, however, an excellent track record in power provision, and its transmission and distribution systems rank among the best in the world. And it is perhaps Grand CaymanÔÇÖs location that has made this level of excellence necessary. Every year the island is threatened by severe weather during the hurricane season. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖre basically in Hurricane Alley,ÔÇØ Burke says philosophically. ÔÇ£Almost every year we have close calls, with the eye wall coming within 20 miles of us. Just last year we were fortunate. A hurricane was heading directly for us, and when the eye wall was within two hours of hitting us, it diverted to the northeast. Unfortunately, it hit our sister island Cayman Brac, and it was devastated.ÔÇØFifteen years ago the company began the process of taking its vulnerable substations indoors to protect them from the weather. Now, after a period of continuous investment, ÔÇ£the majority of them are now indoors, and they look like residential buildings.ÔÇØFive years ago, however, Grand CaymanÔÇÖs luck ran out, and it found itself in the direct path of Hurricane IvanÔÇöa Category 5 hurricane with greater than 150-mile-per-hour winds and a storm surge of roughly 10 feet. ÔÇ£There was significant damage across the island and to our operations,ÔÇØ Burke says. ÔÇ£We pretty much lost one of our five powerhouses. There was severe damage to the structure. The electrical equipment, all of which had been installed approximately five feet above sea level, was destroyed by the storm surge.ÔÇØ The transmission and distribution systems across the island were utterly devastated. ÔÇ£It took us a total of three months to reconnect to our customers.ÔÇØ In the aftermath of that event, CUC has made considerable changes to its operations. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖve elevated all the electrical equipment to the second floor of our powerhouses, so theyÔÇÖre well above the floodplain. WeÔÇÖve also improved our engineering standards, and we build nothing thatÔÇÖs critical below 10 feet above sea level. WeÔÇÖve invested a significant amount of money in the transmission system, replacing the standard wooden poles with concrete poles, and weÔÇÖre using larger-gauge conductors and more guy wires for the distribution system. So the whole system has been beefed up.ÔÇØ Most of the power generation on the island is diesel powered, and since the Cayman Islands have very little in the way of natural resources, everything that is required on the island is imported. ÔÇ£All our fuel comes in by ship,ÔÇØ Burke says.┬áÔÇ£That often presents us with scheduling problems and also makes us vulnerable to the weather conditions. We have built in sufficient capacity between our suppliers and onsite fuel storage for approximately 20 days of power generation at peak load. But of course, when thereÔÇÖs a hurricane around the islands, it becomes a huge issue for us.ÔÇØCUC has also put in place contingency plans to import diesel from alternative suppliers, and this forms an essential part of its risk management process. ÔÇ£We get some of our fuel from Cura├ºao, for example, and when they had a strike in their refinery, it unsettled us for a while.ÔÇØ Looking to the future, the company is investigating the viability of a whole range of alternative power generation technologies, including ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC), wind turbines and solar power. ÔÇ£WeÔÇÖve just gone through the process of installing our first photovoltaic array on site,ÔÇØ says Burke. ÔÇ£At the moment weÔÇÖve concluded that OTEC is a developing technology and not viable for us at present. And the economics of installing wind power generators is dictated by the cost of fuel. Last year, when fuel prices were high, it would have made sense to invest in turbines, but it doesnÔÇÖt make sense at the moment.ÔÇØIt is, however, the staff members who make the company the success it is, and a large amount of investment is continually being made in training and personnel development. The company runs a highly effective apprenticeship scheme through its in-house trainers. ÔÇ£We also offer several scholarships a year, and itÔÇÖs a very attractive program,ÔÇØ Burke says. ÔÇ£The scholarship covers the costs of tuition, accommodations and incidental expenses. And if youÔÇÖre a full-time employee, you receive 70 percent of your salary.ÔÇØ The scholarships last two to four years and enable employees or talented local people to attend a college or university in the Caribbean, the US or Canada and study for a degree or diploma in engineering. Investing in employee development, Burke believes, is investing in the future of the company.  ÔÇô Editorial research by Jason Moore┬á