Energy
Puerto Rico Convinces Montana Energy Company To Resume Work On ‘Good Faith’ It Will Be Paid
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A Montana energy company has returned to work Thursday restoring Puerto Rico’s power grid after receiving a ‘good faith’ payment from the island’s state-owned utility, Bloomberg reports.
Whitefish Energy suspended work in Puerto Rico Monday saying the bankrupt Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (Prepa) owed the company $83 million.
“PREPA released a payment to Whitefish Energy that was enough to show PREPA’s good faith intent to pay Whitefish Energy and its subcontractors for services rendered,” Whitefish said in a statement, according to Bloomberg.
Whitefish did not disclose how large the good faith payment was.
Whitefish will continue to work in Puerto Rico until Nov. 30 under terms worked out after Prepa canceled a heavily criticized $300 million no-bid deal with the company. The canceled deal drew scrutiny from lawmakers and inspired an FBI investigation into the contract.
At the time the contract was signed, it was the largest contract awarded to rebuild Puerto Rico. Whitefish had two full time employees at the time, CNN reports.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency, one of the agency’s overseeing recovery efforts in Puerto Rico, said it had “significant concerns” with the contract, especially the high hourly wages for site supervisors and lineman, $332 per hour and $227.88 per hour respectively, according to CNN.
Prepa Executive Director Ricardo Ramos resigned last week after taking heavy criticism for approving the Whitefish deal, NBC News reports.
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