Africa Renewables: Timor-Leste thermal power stations managed, maintained by Wärtsilä

Finnish group Wärtsilä will continue to operate and maintain the 119-megawatt Hera and 136-megawatt Betano natural gas plants in Timor-Leste (East Timor) under a new five-year contract signed with Electricidade de Timor Leste (EDTL), the group announced.

EDTL’s managing director, Virgílio Guterres, said that this new five-year contract, following an identical agreement signed in 2012, will help the company to guarantee a stable supply of electricity.

The Hera thermal plant, located on the outskirts of the capital Dili, started operating in 2011 and Betano, located in the south of the country, started generating electricity in 2014.

Guterres said that the proposal presented by the Finnish group “was the one that best fits with our intention to have thermal power plants operated and maintained by Timorese citizens.”

The contract, which includes local staff training, includes the operation and maintenance of the 17.3-megawatt Inur Sakato thermal power station.

The Wärtsilä group manufactures and maintains power stations and other equipment for the maritime and energy markets. It specialises in construction of large combustion engines for cruise ships and ferries. (Source: Macauhub)