Business View Caribbean | May 2019

48 BUSINESS VIEW CARIBBEAN MAY 2019 St. Thomas/St. John Underground Utilities, LLC is an electrical contracting firm that specializes in the installation, maintenance, and repair of electrical high voltage underground systems. It is also a distributor of electrical products including medium/high voltage components. The company has been in business for 17 years and is equipped to handle any type of electrical installation or repair. St. Thomas/St. John Underground Utilities, LLC warranties all its workmanship and supplied equipment against defect for a period of one year from final installation. It is a customer- oriented company that focuses on its customers’ feedback and needs, with the assurance of quality tech support and competitive pricing. ...... For more information, please email us: djregiste@hotmail.com accommodate visitors. As such, USVI has become one of Airbnb’s hottest destinations because of hotel traffic being down. Sprauve notes, “I travel by plane at least once a month, and they are always full. And not just residents - it’s primarily tourists, coming and going. That bodes well for the territory. It shows that there is a strong interest in the USVI and what we have to offer and we really appreciate that.” Lockhart Realty’s operations include management and development of seven shopping centers on St. Thomas, and one on St. Croix. It also owns and operates commercial real estate parks, where it provides the necessary roads and utilities infrastructure, then enters into long-term leases with selected commercial tenants. In addition, the company owns approximately 400 acres of undeveloped St. Thomas real estate zoned for commercial and residential development. One of the recent additions to the portfolio is an energy company – Vital Energy, LLC. Sprauve explains, “We decided we needed to diversify a little more, especially as it relates to the electrical services fallout after the two hurricanes, and the fact that we were without power for such a long time. Energy is a main concern on an island. Our public utility has done its best trying to get us back online as quickly as possible. The islands received great assistance from FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Administration) and several U.S. energy jurisdictions, some of whom remain, helping with that recovery process. “A lot of folks are interested in alternative energy, such as solar, to augment what is available now on the island. The fact that we have properties that lend themselves to that type of development, we are making ourselves available to participate with the public utility and anyone else who might like to do a partnership or venture in the energy arena. We formed Vital Energy to be able to engage and to negotiate with the public utility. They are regulated by the PSC (Public Services Commission), in order for us to engage in any discussions with them we had to become a Qualified Facility - whether it’s providing land, constructing a building, or participating in something else. For us, it’s partly about looking at the demand of our St. Thomas/St. John Underground Utilities, LLC