FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
October 19, 2009
LAST WEEK
Cane Island Unit 4
Cane Island Unit 4 achieved a couple of construction milestones last week. Injection of soil-stabilizing grout was completed last Friday and the installation of stone columns at the site will be finished by the end of October. The Florida Reliability Coordinating Council approved an outage of the Osceola-Cane-Taft transmission line, which began at 7 a.m. last Friday. The outage will allow existing lines at Cane Island Power Park to be repositioned to prevent interference with the construction or operations of Unit 4. Contact: Steve Carroll
FMEEC Meeting
Members of the Florida Municipal Energy Efficiency Committee (FMEEC) met in Gainesville last Tuesday. The Committee hosted a roundtable discussion and heard a presentation by Dr. Tim Anderson from the University of Florida’s Energy System Consortium. The Committee also toured Gainesville Regional Utilities’ South Energy Center. Contact: Mike Siefert
Lineman’s Roundtable
FMPA held a Lineman’s Roundtable last Wednesday in Mount Dora. The roundtable was well-received by its 32 participants and will be held in Mount Dora again next year. Contact: Mike Siefert
Bond Issuances
FMPA’s Finance Division held a conference call last Friday with staff and consultants to discuss preliminary Official Statements for bond issuances. The Board-approved financings will pay off pooled loans and raise additional capital. Contact: Janet Davis
Year-end Audit
FMPA’s Treasury Department is nearly finished with its portion of the Agency’s year-end audit and will soon pass its work on to the Accounting Department. Contact: Janet Davis
CR3 Outage Update
The Crystal River Unit 3 nuclear plant refueling outage is currently on budget and 10 days to 14 days behind its planned 77-day schedule. The plan was revised to allow time for the investigation of a crack in the concrete containment building. Progress Energy representatives say the gap does not present any safety conces to employees or the public. Representatives from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission visited the plant last week to verify Progress Energy’s analysis and review the investigation plan. Contact: David Schumann
General Manager in D.C.
Nick Guarriello traveled to Washington, D.C., last week to attend the American Public Power Association’s CEO Climate Change Task Force.
THIS WEEK
FMPP Seminar
Florida Municipal Power Pool (FMPP) holds its annual seminar Monday and Tuesday at Orlando Utilities Commission’s Camp Down. Steve Carroll and Doug Smith will both speak at the seminar. Cara Gowan, Chris Gowder, Richard Montgomery and Tom Reedy will also attend.
Human Resources Roundtable
FMPA hosts a Human Resources Roundtable Tuesday at 10 a.m. Participants will discuss topics such as benefits, recruiting, employee retention, training and policies. Contact: Mike Siefert
Policy Makers Liaisons Committee
FMPA’s Policy Makers Liaisons Committee meets Wednesday at 2 p.m. in the first floor conference room. The Committee will receive an update on the ARP Business Model Working Group from Larry Matte. Sam Doaks of The Energy Authority and Rich Popp will also be on hand to discuss the Agency’s fuel hedging policy. Contact: Mark McCain
ARP Executive Committee
The ARP Executive Committee meets Thursday at 9 a.m. in the Board room. The Committee will consider action items, including: 1) a policy for adding member requests to the agenda, 2) a line of credit with Wachovia, 3) a natural gas storage contract with Florida Gas Utility, 4) a revised contract with The Energy Authority, 5) payments for Lake Worth natural gas transportation, and 6) a contract to install a solar photovoltaic system at the Eco Discovery Center in Key West, Fla. To view the agenda, visit the 2009 agenda packages section on the Member Portal.
ARP Business Model Working Group
The ARP Business Model Working Group meets Thursday at 10 a.m. or immediately following the ARP Executive Committee meeting. The Group will continue to review FMPA’s hedging program.
All-Requirements Project Load
The weekly update of the All-Requirements Project historical load graph has been posted on the Member Portal. The graph is updated through Oct. 18. This week, the format of the graph has been updated to incorporate daily loads for the month of October for 2008 and 2009. The new feature allows readers to compare current loads with last year’s data. Contact: Jim Atz
Service Anniversaries
Congratulations to Mark McCain, who celebrates 23 years with FMPA on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
Congratulations to Liyuan Woeer, who celebrates one year with FMPA on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
COMING UP
Energy Auditor Roundtable
FMPA hosts its next Energy Auditor Roundtable at the Agency on Nov. 11 at 10 a.m. The roundtable will provide an opportunity for energy auditors to discuss work policies, procedures, industry changes, equipment and materials. Visit FMPA’s” rel=”nofollow”>http://fmpa.com/index.php?option=com_registrationpro&Itemid=66&view=event&did=10>FMPA’s Web site to register. Contact: Sharon Samuels
INDUSTRY NEWS
PSC Approves Charges for Nuclear Expansion
The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) voted 3-1 Friday to approve cost recovery amounts for construction of planned nuclear generating units and capacity uprates at existing plants. Costs will be recovered through charges on retail customer bills beginning in 2010. Florida Power and Light’s approved $62.7 million cost recovery includes amounts associated with the upgrade of its existing nuclear generating plants – Turkey Point Units 3 and 4, and St. Lucie Units 1 and 2 – along with the construction of two new nuclear units at Turkey Point. Progress Energy Florida’s approved $213.3 million cost recovery includes amounts associated with the upgrade of its nuclear generating unit at Crystal River and the construction of two proposed nuclear units in Levy County. The final approved charge on customer bills will be determined after the PSC’s decision at the annual fuel cost recovery clause hearing beginning Nov. 2.
FPL to Assess Saltwater Plume Near Turkey Point
Florida Power and Light (FPL) will spend millions to assess whether the cooling canal system at the Turkey Point nuclear power plant is contributing to salt contamination of the aquifer in South Miami-Dade County. After nearly a year of talks with water managers as well as county and state environmental regulators, FPL has agreed to measure and monitor an underground plume of saltwater thought to extend inland to at least Homestead-Miami Speedway. The comprehensive plan calls for collecting water quality and other data for two years before taking any action.
FMPA Weekly is published by FMPA for employees and goveing boards of FMPA member utilities. Questions or comments about this newsletter may be directed to Skye Guthrie or Diane Nelson in FMPA’s Public Relations Department.
Want more background on the names and terms used in this newsletter? Check out FMPA’s new Glossary, which features some of the most frequently mentioned committees, companies, places and terms, or contact the person named in each FMPA story to lea more. (Click here for the Staff Directory).
Have a question, comment or story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes your feedback at any time. Contact: Skye Guthrie or Diane Nelson