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10MW LNG power plant for The Nest

Published:Wednesday | July 25, 2018 | 12:00 AM

A tripartite deal is in the works for the development of a power plant at CB Group's expansive property and future home called The Nest, that is meant to supply all the poultry company's energy needs.

The disclosures so far indicate that Jamaica Public Service Company Limited, JPS, will develop and own the 10MW power plant that will be fuelled by liquefied natural gas (LNG), while New Fortress Energy will develop the LNG infrastructure and supply gas for the plant.

The energy project is referenced in a newly released environmental study on the proposed development of The Nest at Hill Run, St Catherine, which was published on planning authority NEPA's website.

CB's Corporate Affairs Manager, Dr Keith Amiel, said the power plant would make The Nest self-sufficient. CB and most of its satellite and subsidiary operations are expected to move into The Nest in 18 months.

"Anything remaining would be sold back to power the grid," Amiel said on Wednesday.

The financing of the project was not disclosed, but the EIA for The Nest makes clear that JPS and New Fortress would have to develop their own environmental study for the power project - suggesting that the bulk of the investment may be coming from those two entities.

New Fortress, which has developed and is developing LNG supply infrastructure for several corporate entities, including JPS, typically fully finances and owns the gas infrastructure for such projects.

"US-based NFE will deliver LNG to the JPS 10MW distributed generation facility, located at the CB Hill Run facility, in order to provide the fuel required to operate electric power-generation units," said the EIA report for The Nest. "NFE will provide all the infrastructure required to complete the LNG system and the distribution of natural gas project successfully, including storage tanks and regas/processing system."

The project will include two storage tanks of more than 18,000 gallons in size, but the exact specifications are to be determined. The facility would be designed to store gas for five days, but will accept daily deliveries of 19,000 gallons trucked from New Fortress' Montego Bay facility.

"They estimate 17.8 truck deliveries per week," the report noted.

The Financial Gleaner awaits JPS' promised response on its plans to develop the power plant.

CB's poultry-processing plant at The Nest is an energy-intensive operation designed to process roughly 100,000 birds per nine-hour shift.

Development of The Nest 100, which spans acres at Hill Run, will proceed in phases over seven years. CB Group is investing $15 billion in the facility.

steven.jackson@gleanerjm.com