The Board of Water and Light's Coal Plant Proposal
History:
The Lansing Board of Water and Light (BWL) is a municipal utility, owned by the citizens of Lansing, Michigan. In 1885, Lansing citizens approved a $100,000 bond issue to build a water system to provide for drinking water and fire protection. Electricity was added to the list of utility services in 1892, and steam heat in 1919. The BWL has grown to become the third largest electric utility in the state, the largest municipally owned utility in Michigan and a major employer in the Lansing area.
Customers Served:
- Electric Utility serves approximately 97,000 customers;
- Water Utility serves approximately 56,000 customers;
- Steam Utility serves approximately 320 customers.
Electricity:
The Lansing Board of Water and Light serves approximately 97,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Lansing, East Lansing, Lansing Township and Delta Township. The BWL currently has a total capacity of approx. 681 MW from a variety of resources.
Baseload Generation:
Ekert Station: Located near downtown Lansing, Eckert Power Station is the BWL's oldest operating power plant. The 350-megawatt plant's generation units were installed over several years, beginning in the mid-1950s. It includes six electric generating units ranging from 41 megawatts (MW) capacity to 77 MW.
Erickson Station: Erickson Station was completed in 1973 and contains a single generator capable of producing 165 MW of electricity.
Purchase Agreements:
Detroit Edison's Belle River plant: Through a membership with the Michigan Public Power Agency (MPPA), the BWL receives 150 MW of electricity from the Belle River Plant, a coal-fired generator located near St. Clair, Michigan which is built and operated by Detroit Edison Company.
Renewables (16MW):
Black Start Capacity:
- The BWL also has 10 MW of "Black Start Capacity" which is necessary during blackouts or other emergencies.
(The BWL's Coverage area by zip code.)
Current Proposal for BWL's New Hybrid Coal Plant:
Description: By the end of 2016, the Lansing Board of Water and Light's projected demand and energy growth will supposedly cause its reserve margin (the difference between the generating capacity available to serve an area and the expected peak demand divided by the peak demand) to drop below what it considers to be sufficient levels (14%). In 2007, the BWL plans to begin taking some of the Eckert Station's generating units offline due to the future cost of maintenance and regulations. Based on these assumptions, the BWL conducted an internal Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) and hired the consulting firm Ventyx to model and analyze the Utility's resource options.
Through their analysis, the best option available was the construction of a new hybrid coal-biomass generation plant that if constructed, would be the largest in the state. The proposed plant would burn coal and have the capability to burn up to 30% biomass (consisting of mostly waste wood and agricultural waste). The BWL, however, admitted that at first, the plant would be unable to meet this 30% goal do to difficulties associated with obtaining enough "sustainable" biomass. The plant would more likely start burning around 10% biomass, with the hopes of increasing this percentage to 20% and 30% over time. Officials at the BWL also estimate that the new plant would be 20-25% more efficient than Eckert Station.
Location: On a site next to the pre-existing BWL-owned Erickson Station in Delta Township.
Capacity: The total capacity of the new facility will be 350MW, however, only 250MW would be used by the BWL. The BWL hopes other utilities would use the remaining 100MW in return for sharing in the cost of construction.
Jobs: The BWL estimates that 700 construction-related jobs would be created in the Greater Lansing community.
Cost: Total cost of the new facility is estimated at $1 Billion.
Estimated Rate Increase: The Lansing Board of Water and Light has estimated a rate increase of 18-21% over several years to pay for the construction cost of the new facility (BWL also estimates a 52-55% rate increase if no plant is constructed and upgrades are made to the Eckert facility).
Annual Increase in Customer Consumption: Consumption is projected to increase at a rate of 1.4% a year (1.6% increase at peak load). The BWL plans to entirely offset all growth in consumption through renewable energy options and energy efficiency programs.
Energy Efficiency: Though the Lansing Board of Water and Light has not made extensive use of energy efficiency programs in the past, their IRP devoted 1% of their operational budget or $1.4 million annually on such programs. These programs could include educational campaigns, audit programs, rebate and incentive programs, intra-utility programs that will improve transmission/distribution efficiency and energy efficiency modifications to public facilities. Savings are estimated to be 3,000 MWh in the first year (2008) and 65,000 MWh annually by 2018.
Future of Eckert Station: Lansing Board of Water and Light officials claim that the cost associated with updating Eckert station to meet New Source Review (NSR) standards would require an investment of $260 million. In the IRP, most scenarios were based on the assumption that 3 generating units at Eckert Station would be taken offline in 2017 and the plant would be decommissioned entirely in 2025.
