Found at: http://www.anguillaguide.com/article/articleprint/2513/-1/135/
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ANGLEC PREPARES FOR HIGH ELECTRICTY DEMAND Upgrading Costing Millions
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The Anguilla Electricity Company (ANGLEC) has embarked on a number of projects aimed at ensuring that the utility keeps ahead of the high demand for electricity, which is being caused by several projects now under construction.
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Mr. Neil McConnie
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General Manager, Neil McConnie, says that as a result the Power Station is being expanded, the work having started on Monday, May 23rd. It is expected that the civil works will continue for a period of 6 - 8 months.
The expansion includes offices for the supervisory staff, a modern mechanical workshop and the commissioning of two new 3.9 megawatt engines supplied by Wartsila Caribbean Inc. The generating sets are expected to arrive in Anguilla towards the end of the year with commissioning scheduled for April 2006. The total cost of this project, including the purchasing of the new engines, is approximately US$9 million. The Power Station’s expansion is being supervised in-house by Thomas Hodge, Generation Superintendent.
In preparation for the load increase expected in the future, an 85,000-Imperial Gallon fuel tank has been installed at the southeastern end of the power station and was recently put into use. This brings the total bulk storage to approximately 173,000 gallons.
In further anticipation of the load increase towards the end of 2005, a 1.8 megawatt high-speed set has been ordered to ensure that there is no shortfall in available plant capacity to satisfy the demand. This unit will be integrated into the system within the next week.
Mr. McConnie has reported that in May this year ANGLEC had an unprecedented peak demand. This is a reflection of the number of activities taking place on the island and also the sustained nature of the tourism season in 2005.
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ANGLEC’s Power Station at Corito
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ANGLEC has just completed a phased training programme for its Technical Services Staff in preparation for the introduction of a Geographic Information System (GIS). When introduced, ANGLEC will be among the first utilities in the Caribbean to utilise this method of recording information on its assets and systems on the distribution networks. The system is being coordinated by Sylvan Brooks, Electrical Engineer.
ANGLEC is also upgrading its Billing System, making it more customer-friendly. The provider is Daffron & Associates Inc of Missouri, USA. At present, several training sessions are being held to ensure that members of staff are fully acquainted with the system before it is completely commissioned in the near future. Systems Analyst, Elvin Richardson, is coordinating the introduction of the new system.
It is anticipated that all of these projects will enhance the service that ANGLEC is expected to provide to its customers.