Puerto Rico Pays US$1.25 Million a Day for Gas Delay

Energy: Puerto Rico

A gas supply stoppage at a San Juan power plant is costing the US territory about US$1.25 million a day in costlier diesel, the government’s partnerships authority says. The supplier is New Fortress Energy, a US-listed company, and the island’s government has now ordered a formal claim against it as hurricane season runs on.

What We Know

The Public-Private Partnerships Authority, known by its Spanish initials AAPP, says the gas stoppage costs about US$1.25 million a day in replacement fuel. It calls the figure a preliminary estimate that does not fix the final amount the government can recover, or rule out a force majeure defence (an unforeseeable-event excuse) by New Fortress, according to Metro Puerto Rico.

The extra cost since 16 September exceeds US$27.5 million, the authority says. Units 5 and 6 of Central San Juan have run on diesel since the tanker Amur River, which carries New Fortress’s liquefied natural gas (LNG), was not able to unload its cargo at the plant.

On Thursday 8 October 2026, the authority told the island’s Third-Party Procurement Office, known as the 3PPO, to begin a claim for the undelivered gas. The 3PPO is a procurement oversight office tied to the Public-Private Partnerships Authority, and it has 48 hours to report on its review.

The claim would use a “deliver or pay” clause in the gas purchase agreement. Under such a clause, a supplier that fails to deliver the agreed volumes can owe the buyer compensation.

How the Dispute Reached This Point

The US Coast Guard said its objection concerns the dimensions of the tanker Amur River relative to the 2025 waterway suitability assessment, not the ship’s entry, according to El Nuevo Día on 3 October 2026. New Fortress has also said a recent order from the Puerto Rico Energy Bureau, the regulator, created uncertainty about payments for gas supplied under the contract.

On 28 September, Governor Jenniffer González Colón ordered a lawsuit against NFEnergía LLC, a New Fortress subsidiary, according to El Nuevo Día. The suit asks the US District Court for Puerto Rico for a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction.

It relies on Section 22.12 of the gas purchase agreement dated 4 December 2025, which lets another supplier use the New Fortress terminal in San Juan when the company cannot deliver. The government invoked it on 22 September, and the suit alleges that New Fortress refused to take part.

The governor said the contract offers a solution when the company cannot supply gas, namely opening its terminal for another supplier, “however, NFE has refused” (our translation from Spanish). On 1 October a federal judge, Silvia Carreño Coll, set conditions for the Amur River’s transit, but the outcome of the governor’s lawsuit is not yet known.

A Conflict Inside the Gas Chain

Energy czar Josué Colón Ortiz, who also leads the partnerships authority, ruled that Genera PR cannot negotiate replacement gas on its own. Genera PR is affiliated with New Fortress, so he sees a conflict of interest, according to Metro Puerto Rico.

The authority has taken over those talks, gave New Fortress 24 hours to confirm steps to resume deliveries, and set a 5 p.m. deadline on 9 October for Genera to document its contacts with suppliers. We found no report of Genera’s response yet, and two TM2500 units, which are mobile gas turbines at San Juan and Palo Seco, are also without gas.

Separately, El Vocero reports that on 8 October the 3PPO referred matters tied to NFE to US federal prosecutors. It named six federal statutes that could potentially have been violated, but stressed that it draws no criminal or civil conclusion.

The same office puts the extra diesel cost from 16 to 30 September at more than US$18 million. These are the government’s allegations and estimates, and New Fortress has not been shown to have broken any law.

What Is Not Known

It is not known when the Amur River will be able to unload or when gas deliveries to Central San Juan will resume. We could not confirm a New Fortress response to the 8 October claim instruction.

Nor is it clear how much of the US$27.5 million the government can recover, since the authority itself calls its figure preliminary. We also could not confirm how any extra diesel cost will reach customer bills.

What It Means for US Readers and Investors

Puerto Rico is a US territory with about 3.3 million people (2020 census), who are US citizens and pay for this fuel through their power bills. For US investors, New Fortress, listed on the Nasdaq under NFE, now faces a government claim, a federal lawsuit and a referral to federal prosecutors over one contract.

The Atlantic hurricane season officially runs until 30 November, and a grid that leans on one gas supplier has fewer fallback options in a storm. Readers with exposure to Puerto Rican utilities or to LNG shipping should watch the court rulings and the 3PPO’s report on the claim.

More: Puerto Rico news in English, every day from The Rio Times.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is costing Puerto Rico US$1.25 million a day?

The Public-Private Partnerships Authority estimates that running units 5 and 6 of the Central San Juan plant on diesel instead of gas costs about US$1.25 million a day. The authority calls this a preliminary estimate.

Why did the gas deliveries stop?

The tanker Amur River, carrying New Fortress gas, has not been able to deliver since 16 September, and the US Coast Guard has raised an objection tied to the ship’s dimensions. New Fortress has also pointed to uncertainty over payments after a regulator’s order.

What is the government doing about it?

On 8 October the authority told the 3PPO to start a claim for the undelivered gas, and the governor ordered a federal lawsuit against a New Fortress subsidiary on 28 September. The 3PPO has also referred NFE-related matters to federal prosecutors.

Why does this matter to US readers?

Puerto Rico is a US territory whose residents are US citizens, and the dispute involves New Fortress, a Nasdaq-listed company. It also affects power costs and grid resilience during hurricane season.