FEMA Awards Over $74.4 Million to PREPA for Repairs to the Aguirre Transmission Center
Guaynabo, Puerto Rico – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded over $74.4 million to the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to undertake the second phase of repairs at the Aguirre Transmission Center in Salinas.
Part of the work in this second phase includes building high-voltage electrical interconnectivity zones to connect renewable energy projects.
“This obligation is an important step for renewing Puerto Rico's electric grid into a robust, reliable and resilient system. The Aguirre Transmission Center is one of the country’s main power generation centers and these funds will help modernize it and increase its energy production,” said FEMA’s Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator José G. Baquero.
The second phase of repairs also includes upgrades to the power protection, control and monitoring systems, the acquisition of one emergency generator and the replacement of several transformers. In 2022, FEMA allocated over $35 million to start the first phase of repairs to increase the capacity and operational stability of the complex.
The Aguirre Transmission Center is one of the four most important plants in Puerto Rico’s power generation network, with a maximum generating capacity of 1,500 megawatts.
The funds to the Aguirre Power Plant are part of nearly $9.5 billion under FEMA’s Accelerated Award Strategy, known as FAASt, approved in September 2020 to repair the island's electric power generation, transmission and distribution system.
The executive director of the Central Office of Recovery, Reconstruction and Resiliency (COR3), Manuel A. Laboy Rivera, said that “as part of the transformation of the electrical grid, this obligation for the execution of the second phase of the work at the Aguirre Power Plant in Salinas will integrate new energy technologies, which supports the transition necessary to comply with Act 17-2019 created by the Government of Puerto Rico, with the purpose of increasing the Renewable Energy Portfolio to reach 100% by 2050.”
To date, the federal agency has awarded $9.9 billion to PREPA for permanent projects to repair damage caused by Hurricane María; and nearly $8.8 million for permanent projects that will address the reconstruction following the 2020 Earthquakes.
For more information about Puerto Rico’s recovery, visit fema.gov/disaster/4339, fema.gov/disaster/4473 and recovery.pr. Follow us on our social media at Facebook.com/FEMAPuertoRico, Facebook.com/COR3pr and Twitter @COR3pr.
Aguirre Transmission Center, Salinas, PR
SALINAS, Puerto Rico (March 3, 2023) – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awarded over $74.4 million to the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to undertake the second phase of repairs at the Aguirre Transmission Center in Salinas. Part of the work in this second phase includes building high-voltage electrical interconnectivity zones to connect renewable energy projects. Photo FEMA
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