PHILIPSBURG:--- The Prime Minister of St. Maarten, Dr. Luc Mercelina, told Parliament on Tuesday during the continuation of the central committee meeting that NV GEBE has rented a containerized 10-megawatt generator.
NV GEBE has laid out short-term solutions to mitigate the load-shedding plaguing residences and businesses in St. Maarten.
The short-term solution includes renting the 10-megawatt container while Engine 8 at the power plant is back online, producing 3 megawatts of electricity.
An agreement was made with large consumers to go offline at scheduled hours, which the Prime Minister said would allow GEBE to save 4 megawatts of electricity to feed its grid.
Containers should be operational five weeks after the mobilization fee has been paid.
Mobilization fee to be paid on Wednesday, June 26, 2024
SoEnergy Company International
Mobilization fee $553,400 USD
Monthly cost $378,500 USD *
Total rental cost $1,135,500 USD *
Demobilization fee $253,250 USD
Overall cost $1,942,150 USD*
*Cost is exclusive of fuel
Included in the terms:
• Personnel for installment and operation of
the container generators for the duration of
the rental contract
• three days fuel tank storage
NV GEBE made agreements with the following large businesses.
Maho Sonesta Beach Hotel
- AUC American University
of the Caribbean
- Oyster Bay Beach Resort
- Royal Palm
- Flamingo Beach Hotel
- Westin Dawn Beach Hotel and Spa
NV GEBE made its downpayment on the containerized generator on Friday, June 21st, 2024.
However, the container will only be operational in 3 months after the downpayment was made. The container generator that was ordered has the following specs:
Company CMEC
Product 18 x 20 ft Containers
Brand Cummins
Contract type Lease to own
Fuel Type Diesel
Lifespan 20-30 years
Transit time Approx. 6 weeks
The containerize generator is expected to take six weeks for shipment while another three weeks for connection.
The container was rented for 36 months or three years on a rent-to-own basis.
With 20MW Container Generators capacity, load-shedding will be mitigated or eliminated.
The Prime Minister said that the financing offered to NV GEBE fits the company’s liquidity. NV GEBE will also have a storage fuel tank that should last 3 days, which they said is crucial for contingency.
The Container Generators are brand new zero hour and were manufactured in 2024. It has a
Factory warranty 15 months after arrival/ 12 months after installation/ 1000 running hours.
Mercelina said there is no pre-payment penalty. Generators can be paid off early if finances allow without incurring a penalty.
Financing Options for the 3 New Generators
Prime Minister Dr. Luc Mercelina also informed parliament that negotiations are ongoing with a consortium and BZK.
While NV GEBE is working on getting the load-shedding under control, they are still conducting testing with the crankshaft of engine 19. If the testing is successful, Engine 19 will become operational by the end of July 2024. If it turns out that the crankshaft testing proved unsuccessful, a new crankshaft will be ordered. However, the price tag for a new crankshaft is $2.5M, and this will be available by December 2024.
Long-Term Solutions.
NV GEBE is working on purchasing three new 9-megawatt generators. Negotiations have begun with the following institutions.
- World Bank/ EnergyNautics
- Cooperation/ collaboration with BZK for access to:
- Growth Fund
- BKMB (BorgstellingsregelingMidden en Kleinbedrijf)
- SDE++ (The Sustainable Energy Production and Climate
Transition Incentive (SDE++) provides subsidies to
companies and non-profit organizations that generate
large-scale renewable energy or reduce CO2 emissions).
- European Bank
However, the new generators will only operational within 18 to 24 months after the initial downpayment. The approximate cost for the three generators will be $42,000,000 USD or approximately (USD 14,000,000 per generator)
