34 January 2016 - Business View Caribbean
customers. “That should be finished by the end of the
year,” he says. “And we also have an RFP that we’re in
the final stages of reviewing to convert all of our street
lights to LED (Light Emitting Diode) with controls. So
there’s a lot going on here at the utility.”
When all of these processes, upgrades, and conver-
sions are finally operational, Hodge believes that the
U.S. Virgin Islands will be a world leader in combat-
ing its dependence on fuel oil. “By adding flexibility to
the system and the aggressive nature in which we’re
bringing renewables onto the grid, you’ll see some of
the highest percentages of peak, here, that you’ll see
anywhere,” he states, proudly. “When you take our net
metering and what we have grid-tied - that’s 20 per-
cent of peak, or 23 mega-watts of our system which is
peaking at 110. That’s unheard of in most places. And
we’re going to double that,” he adds. In fact, WAPA is
an integral part of the Virgin Islands’ efforts to reduce
