Utility briefs

Electrical Apparatus, Apr 2001 by Jones, Kevin

Amphitheater's new name is music to utility's ears

Pine Knob, an amphitheater in Clarkston, Mich., that hosted nearly a million visitors last year, has entered an agreement to be renamed the DTE Energy Music Theater. DTE Energy, a holding company whose chief operating subsidiary is Detroit Edison, is paying an average of $1 million per year over a ten-year period for the venue's naming rights. Proceeds from the deal are expected to be used to improve the amphitheater's sound system and grounds.

Sempra Energy plans Baja California plant

San Diego-based Sempra Energy Resources, the independent power generation subsidiary of Sempra Energy, recently announced plans to build a $350 million, 600 MW power plant near Mexicali, in Baja California, Mexico. The plant, known as Termoelectrica de Mexicali, will be connected to the U.S. electric grid by means of a new, 230,000 volt transmission line. The location was chosen because of its proximity to the North Baja pipeline, which begins construction this summer, and to the Southwest Powerlink, a high-voltage transmission line connecting California and Arizona. The plant is scheduled to begin operation in the summer of 2003.

Washington plant to use municipal wastewater gas

FuelCell Energy, Inc., of Danbury, Conn., has signed an agreement with King Co., Washington, to install a power plant using municipal wastewater digester gas as the fuel. The 1 MW plant at the county's wastewater treatment facility in Renton, Wash., is being co-funded equally by FuelCell Energy and King County through a cooperative grant to the county by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The total value of the contract is $18.8 million. Operations are scheduled to begin during the third quarter of 2002.

New book attempts to make sense of deregulation

How is it that utility deregulation appears to have worked so far in Pennsylvania but has resulted in higher prices and rolling blackouts in California? A new book called The New Rules: A Guide to Electric Market Regulation attempts to clarify this and other issues by explaining the new energy rules and legal restrictions that are transforming the utility industry. The book, by Steven Ferrey, is published by PennWell Corp., (800) 752-9764. 0

Edited by Kevin Jones