The British Virgin Islands Electricity Corporation (BVIEC) has published a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) to solicit prospective applicants for Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) services for a renewable energy powered microgrid at Paraquita Bay, British Virgin Islands (BVI).
After the devastating Category 5 hurricanes that hit the BVI in 2017, it was recognized that a strategic and whole-systems process was required to ensure the pursuit of a low-cost and resilient electricity system for the BVI. To transition to an electricity system that is more resilient, reliable, and low-cost; values environmental stewardship; and promotes job and industry creation, BVIEC, together with the Caribbean Development Bank and its technical partner, RMI, are designing a resilient microgrid system to diversify the technology mix and the locations where electricity is generated. This decentralization will allow electricity to be provided to localized communities and critical services if there are disruptions to the wider network, as the system needs to be designed with consideration of future extreme weather events.
This microgrid will be the second utility-owned and operated microgrid in the BVI and is a significant milestone in the evolution of the electricity sector in the territory. The project scope includes solar photovoltaics, battery storage, power management systems and a substation. It would also require undergrounding of electrical cables, in order to integrate with existing fossil fuel generating assets in the BVI.
Interested eligible applicants may obtain a complete set of the prequalification documents in English at the following link:
Requests for further information or clarification can be sent to the following: bviecmicrogridQandA@bvielectricity.com
Prequalification submissions must be in English and must be submitted by 1400 hours, local time on January 7, 2022.
Submissions should be sent to BVIECmicrogridproject@bvielectricity.com with the subject line: BVIEC Microgrid Project PD.
