Jost Van Dyke has been reconnected to the BVI Electricity Corporation electrical grid after the repair of an undersea cable that had been damaged at least since September, officials said Friday.
“We made one of the required joints in the subsea-cable [last Thursday] and a joint on the landside to connect the cable to the grid,” BVIEC General Manager Dr. Neil Smith said in a Friday statement.
“We then commenced the necessary testing and energised the cable. We really wanted to restore the sister island onto the grid today, … and I am grateful to the dedication of the team at BVIEC seeing this through.”
While the BVIEC was waiting on material to repair the sub-sea cable in recent months, the island was powered by a temporary generator system that experienced frequent outages.
The cable repairs were delayed further by unfavourable sea conditions early this month, according to the BVIEC.
On Friday, Communications and Works Minister Kye Rymer praised the efforts of the BVIEC team.
“The favourable weather and calm waters have allowed divers to make some strides in the restoration efforts to completion,” he said.