WAPA Board Approves Extension Of $400,000 BDO Contract For Auditing Purposes

The governing board of the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority on Thursday approved a contract extension at its monthly board meeting, and received an update on the operations of the electrical and water systems, the utility announced via release.

Unanimous approval was given to amend an existing contract with the auditing firm, BDO, to fund the cost of the Voluntary Employees Benefits Association Trust (VEBA) audit for Fiscal Year 2017 as well as cost overruns associated with the electrical and water financial audits for the same fiscal year, WAPA said.

The additional funding request cannot exceed $100,000 bringing the total of BDO’s work in FY 2017 to $400,000, according to the release. The amendment also funds the cost of both the VEBA trust audit and the electrical and water systems audits for Fiscal Year 2018. The amendment provides an additional $30,000 to fund BDO’s work in FY 2018, work that is capped at $395,000. The Authority must conduct the audits to maintain compliance with local and federal regulations. The approval vote was unanimous.

In a summary of his monthly report to the board, WAPA Executive Director Lawrence J. Kupfer noted the normalization of potable water service to the west end of St. Croix. Kupfer recapped the installation of new pumps, reactivation of control devices, and other work done to end the water service interruption. The new pumps have contributed to an increase of water flow to the Kingshill tank of approximately 300-400 gallons per minute. Early Thursday morning, the water level stood at 7’ 6”, the utility said.

On the electric system, he reported that the testing phase for three new generators at the Harley plant on St. Thomas is underway. The new engines will be started for the first time later today and are expected to be tested with load on Sunday. According to WAPA, on St. Croix, progress is being made towards commissioning new units at the Estate Richmond plant within the next week.  The new generators being introduced in St. Thomas and St. Croix are powered by propane. Kupfer also advised the board that there were no OSHA reportable injuries at the Authority during the month of February.

Board members present included: Chairwoman Elizabeth Armstrong, Vice Chairman Hubert Turnbull, Secretary Juanita Young, Cheryl Boynes Jackson, Noel Loftus, and Gerald T. Groner, Esq.