Blackouts Challenge U.S. Virgin Islands Amid Power Struggles

On Sunday, a complete blackout struck St. Thomas and St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands. This marked the second such incident during the weekend, highlighting the territory’s persistent power issues.

The Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority identified the power loss at a central plant as the cause. A previous blackout occurred late Saturday, and although crews managed to temporarily restore power, another outage soon followed.

St. Thomas is home to over 42,000 residents, while nearly 4,000 reside on St. John. Power outages are becoming more frequent, igniting frustration among residents who demand solutions from the government via social media.

Governor Albert Bryan Jr. has aimed to address the issue by investing approximately $100 million in federal funds into the utility over recent years. Despite these efforts, the Virgin Islands Water and Power Authority continues to face challenges.

In discussions with lawmakers, officials attributed the outages to several factors: natural disasters, equipment shortages, inadequate generation capacity, mechanical failures, and deferred maintenance. More than half of the petroleum-fueled generating units are over 25 years old, as reported by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

The devastation caused by Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017 severely impacted the infrastructure, with up to 90% of the transmission and distribution systems damaged or destroyed.

To combat the outages, the utility agency plans to implement temporary power generation and increase battery storage at a major plant in the coming months.

Currently, renewable energy sources contribute only about 3% to the territory’s power. The electricity cost averages 33 cents per kilowatt hour in 2024, nearly double the U.S. average of 16 cents, according to energy statistics.