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FortisTCI Plant Outage Report

FortisTCI Plant Outage Report 09Feb 2014

Shortly thereafter, during the troubleshooting phase to determine the cause of the explosion, a major fault was located on one of the main cables leading to the plant’s 12Kv substation and electrical bus bar. The combination of both these incidents resulted in a complete shutdown at approximately 1:38 p.m. Engineers immediately began working to repair and restore power to customers. Given the magnitude of the damages, significant repair time was required. Work on all faults and damages that occurred earlier in the day were completed at approximately 9:00 p.m. Unfortunately, challenges occurred as the engineering team attempted to begin restoration efforts leading to further delays.
Power was restored at approximately 1:42 a.m. today (Monday) to the first group of customers, followed by another group of customers restored at 2:42 a.m. FortisTCI President and CEO Eddinton Powell said in an afternoon press briefing, “No power plant in the world is free and clear of technical problems. These are very complex systems. This is an incident that occurred in the oldest section of our plant for reasons at this time we are unaware of. Our focus right now is to fully restore power to all of our customers in Providenciales. We understand the importance of having electricity in your homes and businesses and I assure you that we are working around the clock to resolve this unfortunate series of events.”
As of 4:35 p.m. today crews are working to restore power to parts of Grace Bay, Leeward, Leeward Palms, and Blue Hills. Updates will continue to be provided to customers as the restoration efforts progress. FortisTCI apologizes to customers for the inconvenience caused and thank you for your understanding and patience during this challenging time.

Notes to Editors:

1) FortisTCI Limited (FTCI) became a wholly owned subsidiary of Fortis Inc. located in Newfoundland, Canada in August 2006. Turks and Caicos Utility Limited (TCU), which is the sole provider of electricity on the Islands of Grand Turk and Salt Cay, was acquired by FTCI in August 2012. FTIC is the sole provider of electricity in Providenciales, North Caicos, Middle Caicos, East Caicos and adjacent Cays, and South Caicos. Together the two companies serve approximately 12,000 electricity customers in the Turks & Caicos Islands. The Utilities have an aggregate diesel-fired generating capacity of approximately 75 megawatts. Additional information on FortisTCI can be accessed at www.fortistci.com.

2) Fortis Inc. is the largest investor-owned gas and electric distribution utility in Canada. Its regulated utilities account for 90 per cent of total assets and serve more than 2.4 million customers across Canada and in New York State and the Caribbean. Fortis owns non-regulated hydroelectric generation assets in Canada, Belize and Upstate New York. The Corporation’s non-utility investments are comprised of hotels and commercial real estate in Canada and petroleum supply operations in the Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States. Fortis Inc. shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange and trade under the symbol FTS. Additional information can be accessed at www.fortisinc.com or www.sedar.com.

CONTACT:

Allan Robinson
VP, Customer & Corporate Services
FortisTCI Ltd
Tel: 649-946-4313 Ext. 2507
Email: arobinson@fortistci.com