Calaveras Power Station

Calaveras Power Station
Calaveras Power Station viewed from Calaveras Lake
Official name J.T. Deely Power Plant
O.W. Sommers Power Plant
J.K. Spruce Power Plant
Country United States
Location Bexar County, near San Antonio, Texas
Coordinates 29°18′27″N 98°19′26″W / 29.30750°N 98.32389°W / 29.30750; -98.32389Coordinates: 29°18′27″N 98°19′26″W / 29.30750°N 98.32389°W / 29.30750; -98.32389
Status Operational
Commission date J.T. Deely Power Plant
Unit 1: 1977
Unit 2: 1978
O.W. Sommers Power Plant
Unit 1: 1972
Unit 2: 1974
J.K. Spruce Power Plant
Unit 1: 1992
Unit 2: 2010
Decommission date J.T. Deely Power Plant
Units 1–2: late-2018 (planned)
Owner(s) CPS Energy
Operator(s) CPS Energy
Thermal power station
Primary fuel Coal
Natural gas
Cooling source Calaveras Lake

The Calaveras Power Station is a series of power plants located southeast of San Antonio, in Bexar County, Texas near Calaveras Lake. These plants include the J.T. Deely Power Plant, the O.W. Sommers Power Plant, and the J.K. Spruce Power Plant. They are operated by CPS Energy.

J.T. Deely Power Plant

J.T. Deely is a two unit coal power plant with a combined capacity of 871 megawatts (MW).[1] Deely was constructed as a coal plant due the economics and unreliability for natural gas at the time.[2] The plant began commercial generation with Unit 1 in 1977 and Unit 2 in 1978.[1][3] The total cost to construct the two units was $236 million.[2] The construction of Deely included a 700 ft (210 m) smokestack.[4] The plant is named after former CPS General Manager, J.T. Deely.[5] CPS Energy commissioned in 2009 the installation of a selective catalytic reduction (SCR) system to Unit 2 to replace an electrostatic precipitator (ESP).[6] In 2011, it was announced that J.T. Deely would be shut down in 2018 due to pending federal regulations. CPS Energy calculated that spending $3 billion to overhaul the plant to comply with environmental regulations outweighed the benefits.[1] CPS Energy reiterated in 2017 that the plant would still close in 2018 even with the changes in environmental policy from the Trump administration.[7]

O.W. Sommers Power Plant

O.W. Sommers is a two unit natural gas power plant with a combined capacity of 892 MW.[8] Unit 1 began commercial generation in 1972 and Unit 2 began in 1974.[9][10] The plant is named after former CPS General Manager, Otto W. Sommers.[11]

J.K. Spruce Power Plant

J.K. Spruce is a two unit coal power plant with a combined capacity of 1,300 MW.[12] Construction of Unit 1 was completed in 1992.[13] The plant is named after former CPS General Manager, Jack Spruce.[14] A LO-NOx burner was installed to Unit 1 in 1999 to reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions.[13] In order to meet future electricity demand, CPS Energy commissioned Unit 2 in 2005 and was completed in 2010 at a cost of $1 billion.[12] The second unit constructed included modern pollution controls such as the installation of a SCR system and flue-gas desulfurization (FGD) system which removed NOx and sulfur dioxide (SO
2) respectively.[12] According to a report by Synapse Energy Economics, Spruce operated at an estimated loss of $135 million from 2015 to 2016 as depressed natural gas prices made coal uneconomical to operate.[15] Moody's revealed in a 2018 report that a generator issue at Spruce's Unit 2 has made the unit run at less than half its capacity thereby raising the plant's expenses.[16]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 O'Grady, Eileen (June 21, 2011). "CPS Energy to Shut Coal-Fired Plant in Texas, Turn to Renewables". Reuters. inside climate news. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  2. 1 2 Scott, Rick (June 15, 1977). "Coal Power Changeover Due". The Brownsville Herald. Associated Press. p. 5A. Retrieved May 12, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  3. ↑ Wood, Jim (July 6, 1977). "Coal cools S.A. homes". San Antonio Express-News. p. 3-A. Retrieved May 12, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  4. ↑ "700-foot chimney marks plant". San Antonio Express-News. February 15, 1975. p. 8-G. Retrieved May 12, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  5. ↑ "Power plant dedication, tours due". San Antonio Express. September 2, 1977. p. 7-B. Retrieved June 17, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  6. ↑ Siegfriedt, William E.; Carstens, Andrew J.; Perez, Jr., Gavino; Hufstetler, Lisa (April 1, 2013). "Project Planning Key to Smooth J.T. Deely 2 SCR Retrofit". POWER. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  7. ↑ Druzin, Rye (March 28, 2017). "CPS Energy pursues clean energy plans despite Trump environmental order". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved February 20, 2018.
  8. ↑ "Unit Nears Completion". San Antonio Express. March 1, 1972. p. 14-A. Retrieved June 17, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  9. ↑ "O.W. Sommers To Be Honored". San Antonio Express and News. October 15, 1972. p. Part I Section B Page 9. Retrieved June 17, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  10. ↑ "Power Plant On Calaveras Lake". San Antonio Express and News. December 30, 1973. p. 14-C. Retrieved June 17, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  11. ↑ "New Power Plant Named After CPSB's Sommers". San Antonio Express. November 24, 1970. p. 13-C. Retrieved June 17, 2018 – via https://www.newspapers.com/.
  12. 1 2 3 Peltier, Robert (October 1, 2011). "Top Plant: J.K. Spruce 2, Calaveras Power Station, San Antonio, Texas". Power. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  13. 1 2 Peltier, Robert (October 15, 2008). "J.K. Spruce Power Plant, Unit 1, San Antonio, Texas". Power. Retrieved May 14, 2018.
  14. ↑ "CPS Energy touts 'clean coal' at new 'Spruce 2' plant". KENS-TV. September 20, 2010. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
  15. ↑ Gibbons, Brendan; Druzin, Rye (September 7, 2017). "Report finds CPS Energy's newest coal plant losing money". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
  16. ↑ Druzin, Rye (April 6, 2018). "Moody's: Newest San Antonio coal plant economically challenged". San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved May 12, 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.