WAPA Inks Temporary LPG Contract with Empire Gas

Two weeks after the V.I. Water and Power Authority governing board voted to revoke the utility’s contract with liquid petroleum gas supplier Empire Gas Company, WAPA chief executive Karl Knight told board members Thursday that the utility entered into a temporary supply contract with the Puerto Rico-based Empire while the utility reissues a request for proposals.

The board narrowly approved the initial contract with Empire in July, but the award was criticized after it became known that WAPA gave up on the RFP process and negotiated directly with Empire. Board members ultimately voted to rescind the contract during an emergency meeting earlier this month and authorized Knight to find a temporary supplier. On Thursday, he reported that the utility is sticking with Empire for the next six months.

“They provided a fairly decent rate of fifty-one and a half cents, which is a reduction from what we’re currently paying on our current fuel contract, and so we look forward to that new partnership — albeit on a temporary basis,” he said. “But it does mark the transition from what has been a more exclusive arrangement for the last upwards of a decade.”

During his report to board members, Knight also noted that the utility weathered the effects of Hurricane Erin and did a “fairly good job” restoring power to the territory.