Hugo Hodge Jr.
Hugo Hodge Jr. has been tapped by Governor Albert Bryan to join the board of the West Indian Company, WICO.
“Mr. Hodge brings a wealth of experience to the WICO Board,” said WICO President and CEO Anthony Ottley. “We look forward to benefiting from his knowledge and perspective.”
Hodge was appointed to the board during a Public Finance Authority meeting on Thursday. The PFA is the parent of the WICO, according to a release from WICO.
Mr. Hodge, a former executive director of the Water and Power Authority WAPA, was abruptly terminated from his position in January 2016, five months before his contract ended. At the time, he told Consortium journalists that he had just lost his “dream job,” but that he was proud of the part he played in changing the culture at the government-owned utility.
It was Mr. Hodge who led WAPA into the now acrimoniously ended relationship with energy supplier Vitol. At the time, Mr. Hodge argued that the project would result in cost-savings for the utility company. Instead, a report from the V.I. Inspector General found $92 million in unapproved change orders and $113 million in cost overruns for what was initially supposed to be an $87 million project. Instead of lower rates, Virgin Islanders will now have to pay an additional $145 million to Vitol to free WAPA from its contractual encumbrances regarding the propane conversion work.
Despite this debacle, Governor Bryan is optimistic that Mr. Hodge will be a positive influence on the WICO Board.
Following his ouster from WAPA, Hodge went to work for North Carolina-based energy company Tantalus system, which focuses on “smart grid” technology, before starting his own consulting firm, HKT Group.
Correction: July 21, 2023 at 8:47 p.m.
A previous version of this story stated that Hugo Hodge Jr. replaced Tourism Commissioner Joseph Boschulte on the WICO board. That's incorrect. While Hodge was appointed to the Board during a Thursday PFA meeting by Governor Bryan, Boschulte, who is no longer chairman of the board, is still a board member of WICO. We've updated the story to reflect the correct information.
