A major contract signed with the LUMA Energy consortium may prevent Puerto Rico from building a safe, reliable and resilient electrical system, according to a new report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA). The deal to operate the island’s grid came in the wake of a series of devastating 2017 hurricanes and amounts […]
Six towns affected by the earthquakes that rattled Puerto Rico in January recently got the go-ahead from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to tap into a combined $19 million in Community Disaster Loans (CDL) to rebuild. Guayanilla, Mayagüez, Ponce, Salinas, Santa Isabel and Villalba will be able to tap into the operational funds meant to […]
Fermín Fontanés, executive director of the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority, provides an update on several proposals in the pipeline in the areas of energy and transportation, as well as the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the proceedings.
The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority spent $192 million to buy land or to develop projects that were not built or completed, according to an audit by the Puerto Rico Office of the Comptroller. The report reveals that PREPA spent $62.2 million in the cancellation of the Gasoducto del Sur natural gas pipeline project, disbursed […]
The Roberto Clemente Municipal Sports Complex in Carolina will be rebuilt with help of an obligation of nearly $9.5 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The facility consists of several structures built between 1988 and 2009. These include a playground for children with access and functional needs, the Guillermo Angulo Coliseum and a Sports Hall of […]
The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Puerto Rico Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction and Resilience, or COR3, announced the obligation of more than $91.4 million in additional funds for 135 projects related to the recovery and reconstruction of Puerto Rico after Hurricane María. These grants were assigned during the week of Sept. 11-17, the government agencies confirmed. Among the […]
The municipal government of the town of Carolina announced the start of construction of a new, $12.7 million medical tower that will incorporate retail spaces and a multi-level parking facility. The new six-floor building will provide support to the Doctors’ Center Hospital San Fernando de la Carolina in the town’s urban center, Mayor José Carlos […]
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development office in Puerto Rico has partnered with the Puerto Rico Housing Finance Authority to help low-or moderate-income families become homeowners. In a news release, Josué E. Rivera, USDA Rural Development Director for Puerto Rico and José J. Hernández Caraballo, deputy director of the Puerto Rico Housing Financing Authority, […]
The U.S. House Judiciary Committee approved legislation authored by Rep. Nydia M. Velázquez (D-NY) aimed at extending to firms working on Puerto Rico’s debt restructuring the same disclosure requirements that apply to companies involved in other bankruptcies. The bill, H.R. 683, is meant to address instances where companies consulting for Financial Oversight and Management Board for Puerto […]
The Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC, in Spanish) announced the completion of the Request for Qualifications application process to develop the proposed $300 million Puerto Rico Ocean Technology Complex (PROTech) in Yabucoa. As a result, three companies — WSP USA Building, Inc./Marvel Marchand, Agru America, and Energy Center Cajuhu, LLC — have been […]
By Vanessa Colón-AlmenasCenter for Investigative Journalism Of the $20.2 billion recovery funds allocation granted after Hurricane María through the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery program (CDBG-DR), Puerto Rico has been approved to use only 16%, or, $3.2 billion. Of the money available, the government had used a mere 2%, as of June 30, the […]
The Puerto Rico Department of Labor announced the launch of a new online Pandemic Unemployment Assistance platform — known as FastPUA — to expedite claims, by working in tandem with the Puerto Rico Treasury Department, which will share taxpayer information. The Labor Department began testing the platform last week, during which some 5,749 claimants accessed […]
The Federal Emergency Management Agency announced the appointment of José G. Baquero as the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator for disaster recovery operations in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Baquero will permanently lead disaster recovery coordination and collaboration between the federal interagency and the government of Puerto Rico, the private sector and voluntary, faith-based […]
The Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority announced it has received approval to receive up to $163 million for 28 capital improvement projects through a loan agreement with the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources and the Infrastructure Financing Authority’s State Revolving Fund (SRF). The projects include improvements for sanitary infrastructure in the municipalities of […]
Gov. Wanda Vázquez has signed Senate Bill 1649 to amend the Puerto Rico Government Accounting Act to allow the use of electronic documents in the billing, processing and payment of a government obligation. This measure is consistent with the approval and implementation of the laws on the evolution of new information technologies and telecommunications, which […]
The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration is awarding a $547,705 CARES Act Recovery Assistance grant to the Autonomous Municipality of Caguas, the federal agency’s Secretary Wilbur Ross announced. The funding will capitalize and administer a Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) that will provide “critical gap financing to small businesses and entrepreneurs adversely affected by […]
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