Modern Combined Cycle Plant Promises Reliable, Flexible, Efficient Electricity for Years to Come
GWF Energy LLC announces today that as part of a ten-year power purchase agreement with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) for about 300 megawatts (MW) of power, it will convert its existing Tracy Peaker Plant — located near Tracy, California — into a more efficient and environmentally responsible combined cycle plant.
“We’re pleased that our ‘re-powering’ project will help California meet its energy and environmental objectives for the next decade and beyond,” said Duane Nelsen, President and Chief Executive Officer of GWF Energy. “Once complete, the converted Tracy Combined Cycle Power Plant (TCCPP) will provide environmentally clean, efficient, and flexible capacity that can help back up California’s planned expansion of renewable resources, such as wind and solar, which provide intermittent power. It’s a win-win-win.”
The ten-year agreement provides PG&E with the entire output of the facility. PG&E previously purchased the peaker plant’s output indirectly through a contract with the California Department of Water Resources. The repowering will add an incremental 145 MW of output to the facility. The agreement is subject to approval by the California Public Utilities Commission.
“Electricity isn’t the only benefit of upgrading our Tracy plant,” explains Nelsen. “The TCCPP will also reduce greenhouse gas emission rates by 31%, reduce water use by over 95% through use of dry cooling technology, create more than 400 union jobs and contribute $3.5 million to the local economy during construction. When operational, the project will create about 20 full-time jobs and provide approximately $4 million in annual property tax revenue.”
In addition to the air quality benefits that are associated with the state of the art emissions control systems that will be utilized, GWF and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District have entered into an Air Quality Mitigation Agreement that will specifically benefit the greater Tracy community.
The new TCCPP facility is currently undergoing review by the California Energy Commission with completion expected by March 2010. The conversion process is expected to begin in August of 2010, with commercial operations beginning mid-year 2012.
As an enhancement to the TCCPP agreement, and upon approval by the CPUC, GWF also agreed to shut down the Tracy Peaker Plant one year earlier than planned and replace its output with GWF units in Hanford and Lemoore, which are 13% more efficient and have a 13% lower CO2 emission rate. These units also provide PG&E greater services and flexibility than the Tracy Peaker Plant — at the same price PG&E and its customers would have paid for Tracy — allowing PG&E to respond quickly to changes in customer demand.
Since 1989, GWF and its affiliates have constructed, owned and/or operated nine power plants/cogeneration facilities in California with a combined generation capacity of approximately 500 megawatts (including the Tracy Peaker Plant, which was originally approved and licensed by the CEC in 2002) to help meet California’s energy needs for the past 20 years.
Contacts:
GWF Energy LLC
Riley Jones, 559-583-2078
