WILLEMSTAD - In June 2023, Refineria di Kòrsou (RdK) reached an agreement with Global Oil Management Group (Global Oil), granting Global Oil the rights to operate, among other things, the GT9 and GT10 units for the production of electricity needed for its own asphalt production in Emmastad. Since these two units (GT9 and GT10) generate more electricity than Global Oil requires for its asphalt production activities, Aqualectra and Global Oil had to negotiate the terms for supplying the extra capacity to Aqualectra, especially during times when it was necessary to meet Curaçao's electricity demand at all hours of the day.
Unfortunately, by the end of July, these negotiations had reached an impasse, which could have had negative consequences for local electricity users if the situation wasn’t resolved properly and in time. Upon learning about the issue, RdK and Aqualectra informed the government, and Prime Minister Pisas, as the minister responsible for RdK, immediately contacted Global Oil. He informed them that the government had requested the Regulatory Authority Curaçao (RAC), the authority overseeing the energy market in Curaçao, to investigate the situation and provide recommendations as soon as possible.
As a result, on August 1st, Prime Minister Pisas requested Global Oil to postpone any actions they were considering taking until the beginning of September, to avoid any risks to the production and supply of electricity on the island. Prime Minister Pisas explained at that time that he expected the necessary decisions to be made within a month. Global Oil agreed to the request to wait for the recommendations from the Regulatory Authority Curaçao (RAC).
RAC’s recommendations regarding the issue between Aqualectra and Global Oil for the temporary electricity supply during the high-demand period were finalized on August 5th. Subsequently, on August 7th, Prime Minister Pisas and the Minister of Economic Development informed both Aqualectra and Global Oil that they should continue negotiations until the end of August, with the assistance of a guidance commission consisting of Caryl Monte representing the government and Patrick Newton from RdK.
On September 11th, the Guidance Commission informed Prime Minister Pisas and Minister of Economic Development Charles Cooper that the negotiations had been successfully concluded. This morning, Aqualectra and Global Oil signed an agreement for the temporary supply of electricity to Aqualectra, which will last until the end of 2024.
It was also agreed that both parties will continue negotiations by the end of 2024 at the latest to reach a new Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) between Aqualectra and Global Oil for the years 2025 and beyond. In this way, Prime Minister Pisas successfully resolved the impasse between Aqualectra and Global Oil, restoring peace in the community in the interest of electricity users and the economy of Curaçao.
The government congratulates both Aqualectra and Global Oil for all the efforts made over the past weeks to reach a solid agreement for the supply of electricity during the period when Aqualectra needs extra capacity to serve the community of Curaçao.