Puget Sound Energy Receives Approval To Buy Goldendale Energy Center
Bellevue, WA - Puget Sound Energy recently received approval to buy a 250-megawatt power-generating facility in south-central Washington from the federal court administering the Calpine Corporation bankruptcy proceedings.
The court approved PSE's $120M bid in Monday's bankruptcy auction for the Goldendale Energy Center. Acquisition of the 2-year-old power plant in Klickitat County, which can operate at up to 277 MWs with duct firing capacity, is designed to help the utility serve a steadily growing customer base across the vibrant Puget Sound region. PSE expects to retain appropriate staff currently operating Goldendale.
"We're excited about becoming part of the Goldendale community and acquiring a virtually new generating plant at a price that is much less than building it from scratch," said Stephen P. Reynolds, PSE's chairman, president and CEO. "Goldendale will help supply our customers' rising electricity demands immediately with the most efficient, environmentally advanced gas-fired technology available anywhere."
The power plant's turbines, fired by natural gas, employ "combined-cycle" technology that generates electricity using both a natural gas cycle and a steam cycle. This process provides higher operating efficiencies, lower fuel costs, and lower air emissions. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission completed its review of the purchase last week and authorized the transaction. PSE hopes to conclude the purchase and close the acquisition on Feb. 21.
The Goldendale acquisition stems from PSE's need to secure about 1,500 average MWs of new power supply by 2015 to meet its customers' energy needs. That need led the company to seek outside proposals in fall 2005 for new power-supply resources. The Goldendale plant was among the seven top proposals PSE received — and was the first the company pursued. PSE is still negotiating potential contracts on the six other power-supply projects it short-listed out of 120 submitted proposals.
SOURCE: Puget Sound Energy