NV GEBE wishes to advise our valued customers that due to continuing issues with several engines at the production plant load shedding will continue throughout the week. The company announced that two of the larger units are still out of service while a smaller unit developed a mechanical problem. The mechanics, technicians and engineers at the power plant has been working continuously to remedy all issues surrounding the units. It was also stated that the parts for one of the larger engines is scheduled to arrive on the island this week, once the part arrives the engineers will safely install, test the engine and put the unit back into normal operation. From the other two engines, we expect to have one in operation by tomorrow morning with 6.5 MW available. With three units out of service the need to shed load is important. Load shedding is done island wide as a controlled option to respond to unplanned events to protect the electricity power system from a total blackout. While we generally use the word blackout loosely to mean “no lights” in our local area, an island wide blackout has much more serious consequences, which can occur when there is too much demand and too little supply, bringing the power system into an imbalance which can trip the power system in its entirety.
NV GEBE apologizes for the inconvenience caused and ensure the community of St. Maarten that our company is doing everything possible to have all issues remedied.