A small Montana company located in Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's hometown has signed a $300 million contract to help get the power back on in Puerto Rico, The Washington Post reported.

Whitefish Energy had only two full-time employees on the day Hurricane Maria hit Puerto Rico, according to the Post. The company signed the contract — the largest yet issued to help restore Puerto Rico — with the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to fix the island's electrical infrastructure.

The company now has 280 workers on the island, the Post reported, a majority of whom are subcontractors.

A former senior official at the Energy Department and state regulatory agencies said it was "odd" that Whitefish Energy would be chosen.

“The fact that there are so many utilities with experience in this and a huge track record of helping each other out, it is at least odd why [the utility] would go to Whitefish,” Susan Tierney said.

http://thehill.com/business-a-lobby...nterior-chiefs-hometown-wins-massive-contract

 

I read about that a day or so ago. I would be inclined to think a lot of money changed hands.

 

Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke's has claimed he did not sign the deal.....

according to the Post. The company signed the contract — the largest yet issued to help restore Puerto Rico

where is the 300 million coming from and who signed the contract for Puerto Rico.....this would be the key right now...

 

Someone had to sign the contract. Should be very simple to see who gave them the contract.
Just read the name.
The money is coming from us, the tax payers.
We just don't know who was the one who decided who to give it to.
Why do politicians try to make things hard.
Just look at the contract and read the names.

 

It could be coming from the Puerto Rico Power Agency and paid for in many ways.....

This is the left wing press trying once again to make it look like Trump is doing something
under handed without adding all the facts....

 

LOL!! So is it draining the swamp or noses in the trough??

Thinskin

 

There is still a name on the paperwork.
That much money does not change hands just because some company shows up and tells everyone they have the contract.

 

here is the contract----I have not read it yet---

you all can be my guest and tell me.....

https://apps.npr.org/documents/document.html?id=4151304-Whitefish-Contract-Signed-10-17-Copy

 

Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority


Puerto Rican Gov. Ricardo Rosselló has ordered an audit of the contract. And yesterday, the chairmen of the House Committee on Natural Resources and its Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations instructed Ramos to retain all records related to the Whitefish deal and provide them to Congress.

The contract permits audits, except regarding "the cost and profit elements" of its labor rates — likely a core interest of any auditor.

While PREPA probably has no recourse to demand lower labor rates, the contract states that the power authority can terminate the contract at any time, "for any or no reason, when in PREPA's judgment such action responds to its best interest."

If PREPA were to terminate the contract, Whitefish would be compensated for "actual, reasonable, and necessary expenses, including reasonable demobilization costs." PREPA would retain all documents, data, surveys, maps and property prepared by Whitefish.

 

Thanks, I gave it a quick read through.
It was signed by
Ricardo Luis Ramos Rodriguez
Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority

That is the man who should get the blame.

 

Did FEMA sign off on this?

The contract says that the agency did: "By executing this contract, PREPA hereby represents and warrants that FEMA has reviewed and approved of this Contract, and confirmed that this Contract is in an acceptable form to qualify for funding from FEMA or other U.S. Governmental agencies."

But on Friday morning, FEMA disputed that. "Any language in any contract between PREPA and Whitefish that states FEMA approved that contract is inaccurate," the agency said in a statement.

On Monday, FEMA announced it would give $215 million to PREPA for power restoration, as part of more than $500 million in disaster assistance for the island. But FEMA says it has not paid any reimbursement for the Whitefish contract.

"Based on initial review and information from PREPA, FEMA has significant concerns with how PREPA procured this contract and has not confirmed whether the contract prices are reasonable," the agency said, adding that applicants for FEMA Public Assistance(such as Puerto Rico) that don't follow its procurement guidelines risk not being reimbursed for their disaster costs.

 

Ridge here is the contract----
https://apps.npr.org/documents/document.html?id=4151304-Whitefish-Contract-Signed-10-17-Copy

in you vid at the 51 second mark they talk about Article 50-----

That is not what the contract says at all.....

MSNBC----does not surprise me

 

Oh no... more fake news, those dark-sider's just won't quit...

 

Look at the bottom of the contract.
You will see the name of the person who signed the contract.
He is the first person people need to hear from. He is the person who signed the contract.
If you have a problem with the contract, and I do, we should have that man answering questions.

 

Pay scale for workers are like we have lawyers up on the lines...300 bucks an hour....

 

Wow, too bad I'm not a lineman. I'd be right there...

 

Puerto Rico Gov. Ricardo Rossello called Sunday for the island's power company to nix a contract with Whitefish Energy Holdings, a Montana company from Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke's hometown.



The $300 million contract was awarded by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA) to help crews restore transmission and distribution lines damaged or destroyed during Hurricane Maria.

The two-year-old company had just two full-time employees when the storm hit last month, but says it is contracting with hundreds of workers for the Puerto Rico project.

"I have petitioned the board of PREPA to invoke the cancellation clause so that after the current immediate work that is being done is finished, that contract is no longer available

 

This stinks to high heaven!!

Thinskin

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41795774

 

Maybe it is time for the person who signed the contract to answer a few questions.