The American Samoa Power Authority is set to break ground early next year, with the new Satala power plant to replace the one destroyed by the 2009 tsunami.
The authority has put out a request for proposal for the project which is estimated to cost some 50 million US dollars and funded by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Samoa News quotes the power authority's executive director, Utu Abe Malae, saying that the design and construction for the new plant is open to any contractor.
He says the work is somewhat specialized and challenging, with bids for the generators separate from the building.
Utu explains that if an off-island company is awarded the project, they would have to sub-contract much of the civil, concrete, and mechanical and some of the electrical work to local companies.
Utu told the Samoa News that the work on the new Satala power plant is expected to start in February 2014 to be completed within an 18 months time period.
He says the new power plant will have newer engines that are more fuel efficient.
