Wärtsilä, a leading global supplier of flexible and efficient power plant solutions and services, has signed an extension to its operations and maintenance (O&M) agreement with Guyana Power & Light, Inc (GPL). The extension is for an additional four years through 2016. The three power plants covered by the agreement have a combined output of some 80MW.
The first O&M agreement with GPL was established already in 1994, thus making it Wärtsilä’s longest running such agreement. The Guyanese operations and maintenance staff ensures the continual optimization of the plants’ performance, efficiency and availability. Indicative of this capability is the fact that the engines, which were installed almost twenty years ago, are still in operation and have provided an uninterrupted flow of power to consumers in Guyana.
Wärtsilä has also been awarded a contract by Guyana Power & Light to standardize the frequency output of the Kingston I power plant from 50Hz to 60Hz. The project involves converting the electrical and automation systems, and is intended to remove the need for dual equipment.
"The operations and maintenance agreement extension furthers our long standing partnership with GPL, and is a prime example of the commitment of Wärtsilä towards its customers. By working to support and maintain the lifecycle efficiencies of the GPL facilities, we can help the customer to meet the challenges of the changing energy market," said Marc Tarbox, general manager, Wärtsilä in the Caribbean.
"Guyana Power & Light is pleased with the results of the cooperation with Wärtsilä, and looks forward to the same consistent high level of service for the next four years," says Bharat Dindyal, CEO, Guyana Power & Light.
Global experience in ensuring maximum efficiency
An operations and maintenance agreement is a comprehensive form of asset management. Typically, such agreements can be tailored to cover the entire scope of operational, management, and maintenance services, as well as providing performance guarantees for the installation. By taking responsibility for operating and maintaining the facility, Wärtsilä implements its global best practices to ensure that it delivers the design output with maximum efficiency.
Wärtsilä has more than two decades of experience in designing and providing tailored service, maintenance and O&M agreement solutions, both for land based power generation and marine installations. Wärtsilä Services manages some 17GW of generating capacity in 55 countries. In the Americas, Wärtsilä operates approximately 2.4GW of power generation capacity.