JPS and NWC reach MOU

Operations are to resume at the Constant Spring Hydroelectric Power Plant following a Memorandum of Understanding between the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) and the National Water Commission.



JPS Head of Projects and Infrastructure Management, David Cook says the 21-year-old power plant, which has been out of service since 2001, is in the final stages of renovation being undertaken at a cost of US$1 million.



The facility, located at the NWC’s Constant Spring Treatment Plant in St. Andrew, will be accessed by the JPS under a lease arrangement.



The newly renovated Constant Spring Hydroelectric plant will be fully automated, allowing JPS engineers to remotely carry out functions such as closing and opening valves and determining the flow of water.



The JPS says the plant which is expected to be fully operational at the end of November, can result in annual fuel cost savings of up to US$740,000 assuming a fuel cost of $US100 per barrel.



This initiative will also allow the JPS to add just under one megawatt of electricity to the national grid, which can service approximately 3,000 households with an average consumption of 170 kilowatt hours of electricity per month.



The renovation of the Constant Spring Hydroelectric Plant is one of several initiatives by the JPS to increase the power supply to the national grid.



Only recently, an additional 10 megawatts were added to the power generating capacity of the Bogue Power Plant in Montego Bay, St James.