The V.I. Water and Power Authority is looking to follow industry standards by developing a resource plan that will help assess the authority’s needs, what they have available, and how they can move forward in power generation.

To do that, the WAPA board approved Thursday a contact with Black and Veatch for $169,500 to develop the plan, which the authority’s executive director, Hugo Hodge Jr., said is needed before the Public Services Commission can make progress with setting rates for any of the new generation projects WAPA currently has under way.

Hodge said WAPA was working with the Department of the Interior on funding for the plan and recently received a $500,000 grant award to make it happen. While the contract price is currently less than that amount, Hodge said other associated costs, such as travel, could be built in, but that the authority will approach Interior afterward to see if funding left over could be used for other needs.

Hodge said a request for proposals was issued for a company to develop the plan and that WAPA shortlisted three; Black and Veatch was the final selection.

The process of developing the plan has different components, including community/stakeholder meetings that will give the public a chance to offer suggestions on future opportunities. A refined avoided cost study will also come out of the project, he said.

In other news, the board approved a $198,000 change order for the redesign of the Unit 21 steam heat recovery generator, which will allow the unit at St. Thomas’ Randolph Harley Plant to operate more efficiently. WAPA officials said the redesign will generate approximately $34 million annually in savings.

Basically the redesign will do away with the unit’s old low-pressure system and concentrate on a high-pressure system that allows for maximum output to the steam turbines. Reliability will also be increased as deterioration seen on the unit and plugged tubes will be fixed or replaced.

The total project cost is $3.1 million, officials said.