Two renewable energy projects worth close to $150 million got off the drawing board and into the implementation phase today with ground breaking ceremonies at the American Samoa Power Authority compound in Tafuna.
One is a 20-megawatt Solar Photovoltaic project to be built near the Veterans Memorial Stadium at a cost of $42 million dollars and the second one is a 42 megawatt wind farm at Aasu with a price tag of $100 million dollars.
The contractor for the Solar PV project is Canadian Solar/Recurrent Energy while the contractor for the wind power project is Green Globe Solutions Inc.
Both projects are undertaken as Power Purchase Agreements whereby the contractor will finance, design, build and operate the plants and sell power that’s generated to ASPA.
Mike Toomey said the solar PV farm should be on line next year and will be feeding clean renewal power into ASPA’s grid.
Play Audiotoomey
Chris Thunken, representing Green Globe Solution Inc., said the wind energy project will provide a redundancy in power supply that has never been available before in the territory.
Play AudioChris-thunken
Governor Lolo Moliga repeated the goal he had given the late Utu Abe Malae to reduce the cost of electricity to 10 cents per kilowatt hour. He pledged his support to the contractors and the ASPA Board of Directors, management and staff seeing this goal through.
Play AudioLolo-energy
VIPs who joined the governor and contractors in turning the ground included Congresswoman Aumua Amata, Secretary of Samoan Affairs Mauga Tasi Asuega, Rev. Asiata Fouvale and Chairman of the Board of ASPA Fonoti Perelini Perelini.