Jamaica Public Service boss Kelly Tomblin believes that American firm New Fortress Energy can meet its end of September deadline to provide the light and power company with liquefied natural gas (LNG), even though infrastructural work is still being done.

“New Fortress Energy is completing some additional dredging and performing pre-commissioning work now,” Tomblin told the

Jamaica Observer on September 15.

“We are adjusting the schedule to determine the optimal time to take Bogue offline for the conversion. Gas should be flowing to Bogue within two weeks; however, many things can show up during commissioning,” Tomblin, the JPS’s president and CEO said.

What is left to be done, she specified, is dredging of the port floor to accommodate the gas ship and normal commissioning activities.

New Fortress Energy is to provide JPS with LNG for its 120-megawatt power plant at Bogue in Montego Bay by the end of this month. The plant, which was first commissioned into service in 2003, has been converted to run on gas instead of automotive diesel oil.

New Fortress hit a snag in August with permits for 1.6 km of pipes being laid, but this was subsequently rectified.

Bogue is running on diesel, meanwhile awaiting the switchover to LNG.

Currently, 95 per cent of fuel used to generate electricity in the island is oil-fired. LNG, considered to be a more stable fuel price-wise, is expected to provide 20 per cent of new capacity from plants in Bogue and another in Old Harbour for which LNG storage facilities will also be built by New Fortress.