Wind Power in Samana

[Dolores]

Let's give him a few days to come up with the English version. By posting in Spanish we would be alienating most of our readers.

[Andy B]

There is a meeting scheduled for 4pm today here in Las Galeras. It is my understanding that a group of Dominican LyF customers have retained a lawyer to confront LyF regarding their high rates and other practices. We won't go as although we are very unhappy with LyF's high rates and have done everything we can to reduce our hotel's consumption, leaving LyF's service and returning to our own generator/planta is just not a viable alternative.

[Squat]

Originally Posted by Andy B

... group of Dominican LyF customers have retained a lawyer to confront LyF regarding their high rates and other practices.

That will soon happen in Las Terrenas too, as of the vast majority of Luz&Fuerza customers are really unhappy about high rates !!! Something will happen...

Originally Posted by Andy B

...we are very unhappy with LyF's high rates and have done everything we can to reduce our hotel's consumption.

Same here... But Orsini is like a mafioso, he knows he has the monopoly because of some political contacts, and he takes advantage of it to ROB us !!! One day, his little construction will crash, and he will suffer...

[SamanaJon]

Originally Posted by Dolores

Let's give him a few days to come up with the English version. By posting in Spanish we would be alienating most of our readers.

I will wait for the official LyF response, Dolores. Andy, I wish I could be there to attend, but I am in the USA at the moment. Although, I would be very interested to hear what was discussed and planted at this meeting. I understand your non-participation position, somehow things could come back to haunt us (Gringos) in someway. Let us wait and see for a few more days..

[Squat]

Originally Posted by Dolores

Let's give him a few days to come up with the English version. By posting in Spanish we would be alienating most of our readers.

Dolores, I propose that if Orsini doesn't offer anything by Tuesday, you either publish it in Spanish, or have it translated by one of us... It is unfair to retain those infos, and we can't expect some folks to be on time...

[Andy B]

Related to this is the reliability of LyF's service lately. In addition to longer than usual outages recently, the past few nights the voltage has been going up and down considerably. It does this periodically and seems like the generator's governor or voltage regulator is malfunctioning. In the past, malfunctions like this have caused user problems as refrigeration units and other electrical equipment subsequently fails due to the stress these fluctuations place upon them. I've replaced a number of refrigeration compressors prematurely due to this and even had a voltage surge in our hotel lines of 220v when THEIR faulty connection at the meter failed. This took out our main computer, a compressor, some other electrical equipment and caused several days of guest cancellations because we had no electricity. This cost us considerably when they denied all culpability. Of course LyF was not responsible for the damage their faulty performance caused,...there is a clause in the contracts we sign with them absolving them of all liability in these cases.

However, on the other hand, whenever we have had a problem with electrical service such as when our fused, main-power switch let go, Nino, their main local guy has been Johnny-on-the-spot, day or night, getting us back in operation.

[Dolores]

I will post the Spanish version on Wednesday, if I don't receive an English version from Orsini by Tuesday.

[Andy B]

The power is fluctuating again tonight and we called Noni (not Nino, my mistake in the earlier post) at LyF. He said this is being caused by the wind generator surging and falling off with varying wind. It's dropping below 100v, probably down to less than 90v, from the way the lights are dimming and the TV picture shrinking. This is hard on electronics and refrigeration compressors. Hopefully they will resolve this before something else let's go and they refuse to pay for damage caused.

[Dolores]

I could not make time to subscribe to the DR1 forums, and to be honest I’m not prone to reading things people write when they’re unidentified, for it’s the usual that they are not well informed either about what they write. Now, to appease your note, and as one of my obligations towards the users of Luz y Fuerza, I come to you with the answers to the commentaries on the Wind Generator.


1. Breaking the inertia and having started up the first generator out of a total of 1.2 MWs to be installed powered by wind in Las Guázumas has an incalculable value for the economy of our country.

2. The fact that this economy to the country transfers itself over to the users and costumers of Luz y Fuerza also has a considerable importance for the same users that issued their commentaries on the forums.

3. The participation of NREL, NRECA and USAID has been of great importance in the creation of the Wind Park in the Dominican Republic, they have financed and led wind studies all across the country, identifying the zones where it might be economically viable to install wind generators. In the particular case of the expansion of Luz y Fuerza de Las Terrenas in Las Galeras, NRECA was hired by our company for the design and supervision of the expansion operations started June of last year, among which were the wiring to Las Guasumas, where the first generator was installed and the Wind Park “Juan Bosch” is being built. This work was paid to NRECA and financed by the USAID with a loan superior to the US$500,000.00 which is being religiously paid by Luz y Fuerza. Our company has not received any sort of donation from either one of these institutions, and if the transformers have a NRECA tag, that’s because they were bought via that institution in the US.

4. Luz y Fuerza is making investments in the change of technology. There is already a 1MW in Las Terrenas and another two 1.4 MW generators are in the process of installation, which will enter the system around March next year. It’s important to underline the fact that these are not small investments, each MW of Bunker generators costs over US$1.3 millions to be installed, and in the present day, the delivery time of such equipment is around the 24 months.

5. Referring to the comment “they are wiring miles along this end of the Peninsula”, we must clarify to Mr. Andy, that if such electric lines did not exist, there would be no progress whatsoever or energy demands, which does not allow to cheaper production, this being because the smallest generators of heavy fuel have a 1.0 MW capacity. Las Galeras, with all her miles of wiring, still do not reach a consumption above the 500KW (0.5MW), not allowing at this moment of time, the transition to heavy fuel generators. It must be clarified that the total investment of Luz y Fuerza in Samaná is well over the RD$500 million. It currently has over 200 kilometers in distribution lines and over 7,000 users, reason why we are very proud of the positive feedback we have received, in reference to our services and the benefit of development that we receive from most of those customers. Taking time to reply to the comments on this forum is a way of showing how we are always open to listening to the dissidents and try to edify them on our operations.

6. In reference to the meetings we have been invited to, we consider the experience those have left on us are of no benefit to the customers or the company, as they are always led by unscrupulous politicians, reason why we simply don’t go to this sort of events. But the doors to our office are always open.

7. In regards to the “charging three times the usual”, there should be reference to the Los Tocones system, that operated for over five years supplying power 12 hours a day and charging its users RD$18.00 per KwH, where they now have 24 hours of electricity at the price of our fee scales. In Las Galeras, we started operations in May 1998, with a system THAT HAS SO FAR YIELDED NO BENEFITS with the sole idea of the development of the area and the creation of the infrastructure that would allow sustained progress. Some people don’t value the improvement in their standard of living that the availability of electric power has meant, they just want it to be free.

8. If we knew who Sr. Samanajon is, surely his lamp would be installed.

9. Regarding the accusations of dishonesty and abuse, NO COMMENTS

10. Relative to the “investing the money in another place” we must clarify that Las Galeras represents 8% of the operations of Luz y Fuerza, meaning it’s impossible to invest 100% of the money in 8% of the operations.

11. Referring to “the rhythm in which the peninsula progresses”, let it be clear that this rhythm has been marked by the investments that Luz y Fuerza has carried out. From its installation in Las Terrenas in 1993, when there were only 3,000 inhabitants and 350 hotel rooms, the progress has come to the areas we have invested in, where THERE IS ELECTRICAL POWER. We have always delivered development and the raising of life standards of the inhabitants of the peninsula of Samaná. We know the users have had to pay the price as well the price of progress. In the Dominican Republic, the government had to subside RD$50,000.0 millions (US$ 1,500 millions), in the electrical sector of the country, just in the past year, to supply 15 or 18 hours of power, LUZ Y FUERZA HAS NEVER, IN ITS 15 YEARS RECEIVED A SINGLE CENT OF GOVERNMENTAL SUBSIDIES.

12. We are completely aware that these kind of commentaries are only because of a lack of information and not an adequate work from our company, in customer service in Las Galeras, but the operations in Las Galeras do not admit at this point of time the paying of personnel of more capacity that might be able to edify the users and project the image we would like to get across. This is also reflected in the losses by fraud, which in Las Galeras show the highest of our company, reaching 24% in this town. We hope that the operations there keep growing and we can afford more professional personnel to operate this system.

To conclude, I must express that I have had many good comments on the generator, Dominicans form several points in the USA and Europe have already sent countless mails about this, my congratulations, for this proves DR1 has a very wide viewing.

Remaining available for any other information you might require,

Jose Oscar Orsini Bosch
Presidente
Luz y Fuerza de Las Terrenas, C por A.

[annatop]

Dear Mr Orsini,

Thank you for your answer. But charging around 0,35 US$ / kwh is quite expensive... Just a last question...

Is your company ready to buy my surplus of electricity, if I buy for my house a wind power system to produce energy.... ? And at what price... ?

Best regards

Anna