Tuesday August 20, 12:32 pm Eastern Time
Calpine 630-MW Oregon gas unit begins service
SAN FRANCISCO, Aug 20 (Reuters) - Calpine Corp. (NYSE:CPN - News) said its 630-megawatt natural gas-fired power plant in Oregon started full commercial service on Tuesday, providing power to markets in the Pacific Northwest and California.
The company's $300 million Hermiston power plant will deliver electricity throughout the Pacific Northwest's Mid-Columbia market and to the California-Oregon border, a spokesman for San Jose, California-based Calpine said.
The facility supports Calpine's five-year sales contract to supply up to 150 megawatts of power to the federal Bonneville Power Administration, one of the Northwest's biggest power providers.
The spokesman said the rest of the power from Hermiston was currently being sold into Pacific Northwest and California spot electricity markets, and said Calpine was pursuing long-term contracts with other end users.
The Hermiston power plant can meet the power demands of around 600,000 households around the clock, seven days a week, a company statement said.
In just over a year, Calpine has brought nearly 3,400 megawatts of new generation into service in the Western United States.
Calpine is seeking regulatory approval for a 620-megawatt power plant in Oregon and is building a 250-MW plant in Washington, the spokesman said. The company has a 120-MW plant in operation in Washington, he said. |
