Since Oct 14, 23 government contracts of $1 million or more with private firms have been newly filed in the Comptroller’s contract registry.
What stands out
The week’s filings lean toward energy and infrastructure. LUMA’s 3-year vegetation management contract and Genera PR’s two filings, one for fuel over 11 months and one for water-retention structures over 9 months, show the power system among the heaviest users of private contractors. The listed contracts hold 85 percent of the edition’s private-contract value, so the money is concentrated in a few large awards.
Beyond energy, the larger filings cover loans, information-systems services, educational services for students, and highways, roads, streets and bridges. They run from 2 months to 3 years, so the amounts are not directly comparable. Separately, the Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC) filed two agreements for federal funds with local workforce development areas, each for 21 months.
The largest new contracts
Names and categories are the registry’s own, in Spanish; hover over or tap an underlined one for the English.
| Agency (The public body that signed the contract) | Amount (Total to be paid over the contract's full term, as filed) | Contractor (As named in the registry) | Service (The registry's own service category) |
|---|---|---|---|
| LUMA (LUMA Energy - Autoridad de Energía Eléctrica de Puerto Rico (LUMA Energy, operator of the Electric Power Authority's grid)) | $103,156,958.75 over 3 years | XPERT'S, LLC | servicios de mantenimiento de áreas verdes (vegetation management: clearing trees and brush, for a power utility typically along its lines) |
| Autoridad para el Financiamiento de la Vivienda de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Housing Finance Authority) | $80,573,908 over 3 years | PENNROSE PONCE DE LEON HOUSING LLC | préstamos (loans) |
| Genera PR (GENERA PR, LLC - Autoridad de Energía Eléctrica (Genera PR, operator of the Electric Power Authority's power plants)) | $50,000,000 over 11 months | PEERLESS OIL & CHEMICALS INC | combustibles (fuel) |
| Corporación del Fondo del Seguro del Estado (State Insurance Fund Corporation (workers' compensation)) | $23,000,000 over 2 months | HATO REY UNO, LLC | |
| Hacienda (Departamento de Hacienda (Treasury Department (Hacienda))) | $16,010,647 over 8 months | FAST ENTERPRISES, LLC | servicios relacionados con los sistemas de información (information-systems services) |
| Educación (Departamento de Educación de Puerto Rico (Puerto Rico Department of Education)) | $10,725,686.27 over 1 year | PEARSON PEM PR, INC. | servicios educativos a estudiantes (educational services for students) |
| Añasco (Municipio de Añasco (Municipality of Añasco)) | $9,499,940.40 over 1 year | BETHEL GROUP LLC | carreteras, caminos, calles y puentes (highways, roads, streets and bridges) |
| Genera PR (GENERA PR, LLC - Autoridad de Energía Eléctrica (Genera PR, operator of the Electric Power Authority's power plants)) | $9,139,700 over 9 months | ENERSYS ENGINEERING CORPORATION | estructura para retención de agua (water-retention structures) |
The table lists the 8 largest of the 23; every one is searchable in the Comptroller’s registry.
Between public bodies
Agreements where both sides are part of government, so the money moves inside the public sector rather than out of it. The largest listed here are federal funds and collaboration agreements.
| Agency (The public body that signed) | Amount (Total to be paid over the agreement's full term, as filed) | Counterpart (The other public body) | Service (The registry's own service category) |
|---|---|---|---|
| DDEC (Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Comercio (Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC))) | $12,462,222 | ÁREA LOCAL DE DESARROLLO LABORAL DE SAN JUAN (ALDL-SAN JUAN) (Local workforce development area, San Juan) | fondos federales (federal funds) |
| DDEC (Departamento de Desarrollo Económico y Comercio (Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC))) | $3,425,294 | ÁREA LOCAL DE DESARROLLO LABORAL DE GUAYNABO/TOA BAJA (ALDL GUAYNABO/TOA BAJA) (Local workforce development area, Guaynabo/toa Baja) | fondos federales (federal funds) |
| DTOP (Departamento de Transportación y Obras Públicas (Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP))) | $2,399,985.60 | JUANA DÍAZ (Municipio De Juana Díaz (Municipality of Juana Díaz)) | acuerdos colaborativos (collaboration agreements) |
Our recent coverage of these agencies
LUMA
- Energy Czar Says Supreme Court Ruling Does Not Validate LUMA’s Arguments
- Puerto Rico Governor Calls LUMA’s New Rate Increase Request a ‘Barbaridad’
Genera PR
- Energy Bureau Fines Genera PR $25,000 for Missing Deadline on Natural Gas Documents
- Energy Czar Withdraws Genera PR’s Authority to Purchase Replacement Natural Gas Due to Conflict of Interest with New Fortress
Department of Economic Development and Commerce (DDEC)
Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTOP)
About this list
This is the 5th Contract Watch (the previous one is here). Source: Oficina del Contralor de Puerto Rico, Registro de Contratos (https://consultacontratos.ocpr.gov.pr/), contracts on file as of Oct 21.
Agencies file with the Comptroller days or weeks after signing, so recent weeks fill in over time; a contract can also be amended or canceled after it is filed.