Deputy Chief Executive Officer at Guyana Sugar Corporation Rajendra Singh said no assessment has been made of the power generating plant at the Skeldon Factory which is down, but experts are expected to diagnose the problem by tomorrow.
The corporation is still to determine what is wrong at the plant, Singh told Stabroek News yesterday, and before any assessment can be done the plant has to be dismantled.
Singh is acting CEO in the absence of Paul Bhim and according to him, an expert opinion is crucial to finding out what is wrong with the Wartsila power plant, which reportedly encountered electrical problems some two weeks ago.
Singh said a contractor has been appointed because the plant has to be dismantled for the assessment to be made. “We expect that experts from Wartsila would diagnose what the problem by Wednesday, but the plant has to be dismantled before this can be done… this is where we are at the moment,” Singh said.
GuySuCo reported that the 5 megawatts (MW) plant at Skeldon was not working following a report in a section of the press. The corporation issued a statement on Friday last saying that the electrical problem affected the alternator of the power set.
The unit supports the national grid during the out-of-crop period and was overhauled last year, the corporation said, adding that it is also supported by two other Wartsila Units, each with a capacity of 2.5 MW, which are currently operational and available to the grid.
GuySuCo said it was unfortunate that the unit developed problems during the out-of-crop season, when it does not have the option of support to the grid via the co-generation turbines which are capable of generating 30 MW.
“The smaller units continue to support the grid,” Singh said yesterday, adding that they are interested in having the mega plant operational at the earliest possible date.
