MAN Adds To Caribbean Presence

Two 18.5 MW MAN Diesel & Turbo 48/60 engines were officially commissioned as part of an ongoing partnership with the Caribbean Utilities Company (CUC) and Burmeister & Wain Scandinavian Contractor A/S (BWSC).

The two engines join five existing MAN engines at the Grand Cayman power plant.

Combined, the 7 MAN engines provide nearly 90MW of power, which is more than half of CUC’s 171 MW generating capacity. CUC is the sole provider of electricity to the more than 50 000 residents of Grand Cayman. The newest phase of the power plant will help CUC continue to meet the increasing demand for power on the island.

The four-stroke 48/60 engine has an electrical generator set output range of 12 310 to 18 465 kW and is designed for  medium and large engine-based plants, MAN said. The 48/60 engine is capable of continuous operation on heavy oil in an output range of 20 to 100%. For brief periods, it can even operate below 20%. the company said.

“We are thrilled to be involved in this project,” said Walter Offner, Head of Project Execution at MAN Diesel & Turbo. “Our company has a longstanding, excellent relationship with CUC and BWSC, supplying them with our efficient, medium speed diesel engines through multiples phases of expansion. We’re proud to help supply more than half the power in Grand Cayman in their most efficient power house yet.”

David Watler, Vice President of Operations & Engineering for CUC, praised MAN for the project.

“We are very pleased with MAN Diesel & Turbo’s performance and completion of our new 40MW power plant. This is the sixth power plant built at CUC with MAN Diesel & Turbo engines, totaling over 115 MW of generating capacity. All of the MAN projects have been on time and on budget with excellent quality at competitive prices,” Watler said. “By utilizing the latest generation technology, we are able to provide our customers with competitive electricity rates amongst our peer utilities within the Caribbean. Our power plants built with MAN provide environmental benefits amongst the best in industry in the areas of waste heat recovery, noise emissions, hydrocarbon containment and air quality.”

MAN and BWSC have been strategic partners of CUC since 1998 and have designed and installed several diesel generating units on a turnkey basis for the company prior to this project. They have also collaborated on several other projects throughout the Caribbean, including in the Bahamas, Barbados, and Curacao.