WAPA Questioned on Outages, Aging Equipment and Debt in FY 2027 Budget Hearing

The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority presented a $316.7 million fiscal year 2027 operating budget Wednesday as senators questioned officials over recurring outages, aging equipment and the utility’s financial condition.

WAPA Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director Karl Knight told the Senate Budget, Appropriations and Finance Committee that the budget supports about $310.8 million in projected expenditures, including $121.5 million for fuel, $63.5 million for personnel and $29.5 million in debt service.

Knight said fuel remains WAPA’s largest expense and the authority has under-recovered fuel costs for several years, meaning revenue collected through the fuel surcharge has not fully covered actual fuel purchases. He said utility rates increased about 9% between fiscal years 2019 and 2026, while liquefied petroleum gas prices increased 45% and diesel prices rose 75%.

“If there is a vulnerability in our expenditure forecast, it is the current volatility of that fuel market,” Knight said.