No. 2 boiler could be back by Christmas

THE Guyana Electricity Corporation (GEC) is working hard to restore the out-of-order Kingston Number Two boiler to have it operational by Christmas, corporation sources said.

Repairs to the turbines continue and special mandrils are “due any day now” from England for the boiler, the sources disclosed.

If the boiler is back in order it could add another 8.5 megawatts to the current power supply which hovers at between 22 and 25 megawatts.

Peak demand at nights is close to 40 MW and although the repaired boiler would not meet this demand, it could ease the current prolonged spate of blackouts during the holidays.

Power currently comes from Garden of Eden (3 MW); Kingston (17 MW) and Guymine (between two and five MW).

In the meantime, government has decided to buy a 10 MW power barge from the United States to supplement current power supply.

The second-hand diesel engines for the barge are now being re-conditioned, sources said and the barge will be towed here from Houston, Texas where it is now berthed.

Sources said the cost of the equipment is reasonable and the GM diesel engines should not be too expensive to run, another source said.

Additional pilings will have to be put down at Garden of Eden to moor the barge and if everything goes according to schedule, it should be operational by the end of January, sources said.

The Dutch firm Boskalis which is currently dredging the channel in the Demerara Harbour to permit loading of bauxite ships, is said to have helped in the acquisition of the barge.

With the No. 2 boiler and the barge in place supplies would be close to covering demand though sources have noted that equipment has to be taken out for repairs and maintenance from time to time so blackouts could still occur though with much less regularity.