September 3, 2002
BEL, General Electric Sign Contract for Gas Turbine
Generator Set
The Belize Electricity
Limited (BEL) and General Electric Package Power Inc. (GE) will sign a
contract today for the utility’s purchase of a Gas Turbine Generator Set
from GE. The signing will take place this evening, Thursday, August 29, 2002
at BEL’s corporate headquarters.
According
to BEL’s Vice President Energy Supply Derek Davis, the 22.8 megawatt
ISO-rated Gas Turbine Generator Set will provide much needed energy supply to
help the utility meet peak power demand and also serve as back-up in case of
loss of supply from main energy sources.
“Presently,
BEL has very limited backup capacity,” said BEL’s Vice President Energy
Supply, Derek Davis. “As a
result, when we lose the Mexican supply, large portions of the country are
left without power for extended periods.
With the gas turbine on-line, we will be in a position to significantly
minimize power outages in the event of a failure on the national grid.
In addition, we will be able to use power generated by the gas turbine,
during peak hours, instead of the more expensive Mexican power.”
There
are a few other reasons why the electric utility needs this gas turbine as
well.
“In
situations where we have a total outage, we need a large unit like the gas
turbine to be able to re-energize the grid in a reasonable period of 10 to 15
minutes. The gas turbine will allow us to do this,” Davis said. “Without
this gas turbine, it takes anywhere from 1 1/2 to 2 hours for us to restore
power supply.”
Davis
said BEL decided on the gas turbine based on the results of an economic
analysis. The analysis showed the gas turbine as the most economic of the
various options analyzed to meet peak energy demand. Furthermore, the LM2500
Model gas turbine that BEL is procuring from GE is a very popular model and
more than 500 of these units are running on liquid fuel worldwide. Gas
turbines are also being used in other Caribbean countries such as Barbados,
Trinidad, and Jamaica.
The
contract to be signed this evening, valued at approximately US$8.8 million,
includes the purchase of the gas turbine unit; shipping costs from the United
States to Belize; engineering and design services; and installation
supervision. The schedule is for an 8-month delivery and it is anticipated
that installation will be complete by the middle of June 2003.
BEL
has selected mile 8 on the Western Highway as the preferred location for the
gas turbine unit. This location was selected because of its proximity to the
Belize/Ladyville load center, which accounts for 50 percent of the energy
demand. This is also the central point of BEL’s national grid and therefore
if there were a major loss of supply, BEL would be able to restore power to
the bulk of its customers promptly.
An
Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) started at the end of June will
determine the impact the gas turbine will have on the environment at the
preferred location at Mile 8 on the Western Highway. The EIA is scheduled for
completion by the end of September 2002. Initial indications from the EIA
consultants, however, are that noise pollution and smoke emissions will be
insignificant and nearby residents will not be adversely affected.
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