HomeMy WebLinkAbout200406231st Response of U S Geo to Staff.pdfConley E. Ward (ISB No. 1683)
GIVENS PURSLEY LLP
601 W. Bannock Street
O. Box 2720
Boise, ID 83701-2720
Telephone: (208) 388-1200
Fax: (208) 388-1300
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Attorneys for U.S. Geothermal, Inc.
S:\CLIENTS\6667\2\USGeo Rsp to 1st Prod Req of IPC.DOC
BEFORE THE IDAHO PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC., an Idaho
corporati on Case No. IPC-04-
Complainant S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.
RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER
COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST
vs.
IDAHO POWER COMPANY, an Idaho
corporation
Respondent.
BOB LEWANDOWSKI ~d MARK
SCHROEDER Case No. IPC-04-
Complainants
vs.
IDAHO POWER COMPANY, an Idaho
corporati on
Respondent.
COMES NOW U.S. Geothermal, Inc. ("S. Geothermal"), by and through its attorneys
of record, Givens Pursley LLP , and hereby responds to the First Production Request of Idaho
ORIGINAL
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 1 of
Power Company to U.S. Geothermal, Inc. All responses were prepared by Kevin Kitz, in
consultation with counsel.
REQUEST NO.1: Please provide the following for each turbine generator that will be
used to generate electric energy to be delivered to Idaho Power under the Firm Energy Sales
Agreement U.S. Geothermal seeks to obtain from Idaho Power as a result of this complaint
proceeding:
(a)The manufacturer s nameplate capacity rating in KW.
(b)Documentation showing how the manufacturer s nameplate rating is computed.
RESPONSE: In the USGEO testimony to the Idaho Public Utilities Commission
(IPUC), filed after this request for information from Idaho Power (IPCo), USGEO indicated that
it does not yet know the precise turbine generator rating. As soon as that information is
available, USGEO will provide that information to Idaho Power. To summarize the testimony
submitted to the IPUC, the reason that the information is not known at this time is:
Detailed engineering of the power plant has not yet been started, and the exact
parasitic load of the power plant is not yet known.
The turbine generator nameplate is in part dependent on the combined load of the
production well pumps and injection well pumps, which in turn is a function of
the well performance, which is not precisely known at this time.
The turbine generator nameplate rating is dependent on the outcome of the
complaint currently before the IPUC, and whether the proposed contract will be
based on an annual average generation, or a delivery not to exceed 10 MW in any
hour.
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 2 of 12
REQUEST NO.2: Does U.S. Geothermal intend to deliver any electric energy
generated by any of the turbine generators identified in Request No.1 to any entity other than
Idaho Power? If the answer is yes, please identify the prospective recipients, the amounts which
may be delivered to these recipients and the reason for such deliveries.
RESPONSE: USGEO has no other contracts, nor immediately pending contracts, which
would be served by RRGPP generator(s). USGEO is pursuing other opportunities for power
sales from the first unit or additional units at Raft River. These opportunities include BP A, other
BP A customers in Oregon, and the ongoing PacifiCorp renewables RFP. Over the next several
years, as more geothermal resource is proven-up, USGEO would expect to add additional
capacity under the FERC QF number of the first power plant. (The FERC limit is no more than
80 MW.
The reason for pursuing sales to other parties is that Idaho Power has offered only 850/0
the regional non-firm rate for deliveries above the 10 MW limit from the RRGPP firm capacity
New firm capacity of any type, including geothermal, cannot be built for the spot market dump
rate being offered by Idaho Power. Therefore in order to build a strong geothermal power
business, U.S. Geothermal Inc. must seek other purchasers than Idaho Power.
REQUEST NO.3: Please provide a map showing the location of each well and turbine
generator that will be used to generate electric energy to be delivered to Idaho Power under the
Firm Energy Sales Agreement U.S. Geothermal seeks to obtain as a result of this complaint. The
map should be to scale with the scale explicitly stated.
RESPONSE: The general conceptual layout for the development of the RRGPP is
shown in Figure 1. It includes all information for requests numbers three and four, to the extent
that the information is known at this time. A summary description follows.
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 3 of 12
Wells & Pipelines: The existing five production wells are located within 1 000' to 6 000'
of the tentative power plant site. The current injection wells are located about 3 000 feet beyond
the furthest production well, or about 9 000' from the power plant site. The geothermal water is
pumped from the wells with downhole pumps. Pipelines will deliver the water from the
production wells to the power plant. Where the flow from more than one well can be combined
in a single pipeline, it will be. At the power plant site, the flow from all the wells will be
combined in a single pipe to the first power plant heat exchanger. After the geothermal water
has passed through the power plant, it will be delivered to the injection wells through another
pipeline. Production and injection pipeline routes will be optimized within the constraints of
land use, ownership, and leases. Additional wells will be required for the 10 MW operation.
New wells will likely be sited near existing wells.
Power Distribution Lines: Each of the production wells will require a power supply to
operate the downhole pumps. Additionally, high-pressure injection pumps may be required at
the two injection wells. The power lines used to supply these pumps will be separate distribution
poles from those used for the local domestic and irrigation loads of the Raft River Rural Electric
Co-Op (RRREC) in order to improve power plant reliability and availability. Distribution lines
will most likely be at 34.5kV. They will originate from the power plant, following existing
distribution corridors. At least some of the distribution lines will be able to be back-fed from the
RRREC to enable power plant startup.
Transmission Lines From the 13.8kV power plant generator(s), the power will be
transmitted 2.5 miles north-east to the 138/34.5 kV Bridge Substation. Bridge is a point of
delivery of the Bonneville Power Administration (BP A) to the RRREC. Power from the RRGPP
will be delivered to the BP A side of the 34.5 kV buss through a buss expansion. There is room
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 4 of 12
in the substation yard for the expansion. Power deliveries at Bridge will be metered at the
substation. Discussions with BP A confirm that the amount of power deemed delivered to Idaho
Power under the proposed PURP A contract will be the power deliveries metered at Bridge
minus any losses determined by the BP A transmission group.
REQUEST NO.4: Please provide a drawing showing how the wells and turbine-
generators shown on the map provided in response to Request No.3 will be interconnected to
deliver energy to the electrical systems of Idaho Power, BP A and Raft Rural Electric Co-op.
RESPONSE: Please see Response to Request No.3 above.
REQUEST NO.5: Please identify the months, days within the months, and hours within
the days when U.S. Geothermal expects its energy deliveries to Idaho Power will exceed 10 000
kWh's per hour. For each month, day and hour identified, please specify the amounts by which
S. Geothermal expects its energy deliveries to exceed 10 000 kWh's per hour.
RESPONSE: As IPCo knows, the output from a fully capable thermal plant is a function
of the ambient conditions. Therefore, IPCo is essentially requesting USGEO to forecast the
weather on an hourly basis for the next 20 years, which is neither reasonable nor possible.
Although IPCo s request cannot be answered precisely, USGEO has examined historical
hourly data over a 10-year period, and has attached the histograms of the temperatures and
resultant generation that would occur for the RRGPP at full capability in answer to IPCo' s
InquIry.
Figure 2 is the preliminary theoretical output of a 10MW plant versus temperature.
Figure 3 is a 10 year histogram of the hourly temperatures.
Table 1 provides the data used in Figures 2 and 3.
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 5 of 12
REQUEST NO.6: What is the expected capacity factor of the Facility (as that term is
defined in Exhibit A to your Complaint)?
RESPONSE: USGEO presumes that IPCo is requesting information on the annual
capacity factor of the RRGPP. The geothermal power industry has a long history of operating
binary plants at 95% annual capacity factor or greater. USGEO expects similar performance
from the RRGPP, and based the net monthly energy, provided in the table of Article 6.2 of the
proposed contract as being 95% of the maximum monthly energy. The maximum monthly
energy amount is the expected net output of a 10MW air-cooled geothermal power plant, at the
historical monthly average temperature.
Geothermal power plants do not require an annual scheduled maintenance period. When
routine scheduled maintenance is required, USGEO will try to schedule it during Season
(March, April, May) when power is least needed by IPCo. Because there will be few shutdowns
during Seasons 2 and 3 , net energy deliveries during those seasons will generally be closer to the
Maximum Monthly Energy amounts.
It is both conceivable and likely that the RRGPP could deliver a 100% capacity factor in
years in which the annual average temperature is 48OF (the presumed design temperature). In
those years in which the annual average temperature is greater than 48O , especially if there is a
long hot summer, the annual capacity factor could be several percent lower. On the other hand
for those years with lower than expected annual average temperature, or those years with
particularly cool summers, the RRGPP will be capable of an annual capacity factor greater than
100%. However, USGEO has agreed to deliveries monthly, seasonally, and annually in
deference to IPCo, even though such caps are a contractual artifice and produce a negative
economic impact for USGEO.
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 6 of 12
REQUEST NO.7: During maintenance outages or at other times when the Facility
energy loads exceed the Facility s total generation, does U.S. Geothermal expect to purchase
back-up, supplemental or any other type of power from Raft River Rural Electric Co-op or from
any other entities? If so, please provide the best available estimate of the amounts and timing of
such purchases.
RESPONSE: Backup power will be supplied by the RRREC.
REQUEST NO.8: Based upon the fuel source and the technology being used by the
Facility, will the Facility operate as a flat, around-the-clock, base load generation resource or
will it run as an intermittent generation resource?
RESPONSE: Unless down for scheduled maintenance, the RRGPP will operate at full
capability between 95% and 100% of the time, on an annual basis. As discussed above, the
capability of the plant is a function of ambient conditions. For this reason the output of the
RRGPP is not flat, but will vary based on the temperature of the air going to the air-cooled
condensers.
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 7 of 12
Fieure 1
(RRGPP facilities, geothermal fluid handling, and interconnection)
June 25 , 2004
I I38kV line to Minidoka
-If
Interconnect at 34.5kV at the existing BP
substation at Bridge, Idaho (2.5 miles from Raft
River Geothermal Power Plant - not to scale)
roo"
",,
\, roo Oa.---~--------_....
..... 18
,..--- -.....
MW-6 \
0 M\jV-6
I.....
- - -
34.5 kV interconnect between power plant & BP A Bridge Substation
138 kV transmission line from Minidoka to Bridge to W. Wendover
- - - -
Hot geothermal water from production wells to power plant
Cooled geothermal water from power plant to injection wells
. .
Tentative Power Plant Location BP A/Raft River Co-op 138/34.5kV substation
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 8 of 12
~ 12.
!. 10.
::::s.& 8.
::::s
'S 6.
~ 4.
.!!!
D. 2.
3500
~ 3000
g' 2500"CI
2000
::::s
::J:
'0 1500
1000
14,F iaure-2
Generation from a 1 OMW Geothermal Power Plant as a function of drybulb temperature
~ ~ ~ & ~ ~ ~ ~ # ~ # # ~ # # # ~ ~ # # # # #
Temperature (degF . in 2 degree increments)
4500
Fiaure 3
Raft River Geothermal Power Plant. US Geothermal. Inc.
Histogram of 10 years of drybulb data in 2degF increments
froJu~et-4Neattier-StatiOA-iJ:l-Malta~ - i!es-NE-o~aft-a.iveJ:.
..
Annual Average T = 48F
. .
4000
500
~ p ~ ~ ~ ~ & ~ # ~ # ~ & # $ # ~ ~ ~ $ # ~ ~
Drybulb Temperature (degF)
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION REQUEST-
Page 9 of 12
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g: J
DATED this ~day of June 2004.
(yJ b-L
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 11 of
CERTIFICA TE SERVICE
I HEREBY CERTIFY that on this J '0 day of June 2004, I caused to be served a
true and correct copy of the foregoing document by the method indicated below and addressed to
the following:
Jean Jewell
Idaho Public Utilities Secretary
472 W. Washington Street
O. Box 83720
Boise, ID 83720-0074
S. Mail
Hand Delivered
Overnight Mail
Facsimile
Barton L. Kline
Idaho Power Company
1221 W. Idaho Street
O. Box 70
Boise, ID 83707
S. Mail
Hand Delivered
Overnight Mail
Facsimile
Peter J. Richardson
Richardson & O'Leary
99 E. State Street, Ste. 200
O. Box 1849
Eagle, ID 83616
S. Mail
Hand Delivered
Overnight Mail
acsimil e
UJ~
Coni
S. GEOTHERMAL, INC.S RESPONSE TO IDAHO POWER COMPANY'S FIRST PRODUCTION
REQUEST - Page 12 of 12