FMPA Weekly
A weekly e-newsletter for FMPA members
May 29, 2018
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LAST WEEK
Hurricane Tabletop Exercise
Members of FMPA’s staff and staff at FMPA power plants participated in a hurricane preparedness tabletop exercise last Monday. The group was given a fictitious hurricane scenario impacting Florida and had to react accordingly. The exercise tested the effectiveness of two procedures, the “Major Emergency Overarching Plan and the “Major Emergency Operations Procedure. The drill helped test procedures and identify opportunities for improvement. Contact: Frank Gaffney
Invitations to Bid
Two bids were received last Tuesday in response to an Invitation to Bid (ITB) for Refurbish, Repair and Disposal of Transformers. Nine FMPA members are participating in the bid for transformer minor repair, recondition and re-manufacture, voltage regulator repair, recloser repair, and disposal of transformers, meters and capacitors. Also, the Meter Testing Services ITB closed last Thursday with one bid received. Seven members are participating in the bid for inspection, testing and reporting requirements for in-service revenue meters. The submittals will be evaluated by FMPA staff. The bid documents are available for download on FMPA.com. Contact: Sharon Samuels
Cane Island Power Park
Cane Island Unit 3 came back online last Wednesday and Cane Island Unit 1 came back online last Saturday after planned maintenance outages. Contact: David Schumann
3 Phase Times
FMPA’s Power Resources Division published the April 2018 edition of 3 Phase Times last week. This monthly report provides information about the All-Requirements Project’s (ARP) system peak, hourly loads, resource fuel mix, natural gas usage, natural gas pricing and more performance information. The report shows peak demand in April was 3% lower than budget, and sales were 16% below forecast. The lower-than-forecasted sales were due to an extended outage of Cane Island Unit 4. Natural gas represented 75% of ARP’s total energy sources in April. ARP sold 8% of its generation to the Florida Municipal Power Pool (FMPP). Pool sales helped offset ARP costs by 13 cents per MWh. The FMPP Average Monthly Gas Dispatch Price in April was $2.73 per MMBtu, which was 14 cents below budget. The equivalent availability factor of FMPA’s base-load units in April was 70%, which is lower than the annual projection due to the Cane Island outage and a planned outage of Treasure Coast Energy Center Unit 1. For more information, download 3 Phase Times from the Portal. Contact: Frank Gaffney
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THIS WEEK
Business Planning and Budget Committee
The Business Planning and Budget Committee meets Wednesday at 9 a.m. via conference call to review the All-Requirements Project’s proposed fiscal 2019 budget. The committee will consider approving the budget and recommending it to the Executive Committee. The full agenda package is available on the Portal. Contact: Rich Popp
Meter Tech Roundtable
FMPA will hold a Meter Tech Roundtable on Thursday at 10 a.m. in Fort Pierce. The roundtable provides a forum for participants to discuss metering topics, such as policies, procedures, equipment, AMI, technology, safety, training, apprentice programs and more. Participants include anyone with an interest in metering or meter-related topics, including meter techs and meter shop staff. Contact: Sharon Samuels
Member City Visit
Jacob Williams travels to Bushnell on Friday to meet with Mayor Bill Spaude, Interim City Manager Jody Young and Director of Utilities David Mulholland.
All-Requirements Project Weekly Load Statistics
The weekly update of the All-Requirements Project historical load graph has been posted on the Portal. The graph is updated through May 28. Contact: Jim Arntz
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COMING UP
Crew Leadership Course
The deadline to register for a two-day Crew Leadership Course has been extended to Friday. The training class scheduled for June 6-7 will be presented by Northwest Lineman College and hosted at FMPA’s Orlando office. The training provides crew leaders and general foremen with the knowledge and tools to lead crews efficiently, responsibly and safely. Registration is $650 per person, which includes breakfast and lunch. FMPA will invoice participants for the course. Contact: Sharon Samuels
Distribution Reliability Roundtable
FMPA will host a Distribution Reliability Roundtable on June 12 in Orlando. The roundtable is an opportunity to discuss the details of FMPA’s Distribution Reliability Measurement Program as well as reporting procedures and best practices among participating utilities. This year’s roundtable will include an analysis of historical reliability data and presentations on best practices from member utilities that excel in reliability indices. Registration is free, and lunch will be provided. A webcast will be available for those not able to attend in person. Contact: Sharon Samuels
FMEA Annual Conference
Now is the time to register for the Florida Municipal Electric Association’s (FMEA) Annual Conference scheduled for July 17-19 at The Breakers in West Palm Beach. A special mid-conference seminar called “Responding to Crisis Situations: Tactics for the Public Power Executive has been added to the agenda. The conference includes the annual FMPA Board of Directors luncheon and FMPA’s goveing board meetings.
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INDUSTRY NEWS
Southern Company to Sell Gulf Power and other Florida Assets to NextEra
NextEra Energy, the parent company of Florida Power & Light (FPL), announced plans last Monday to buy Gulf Power from the Southe Company as part of a $6.475 billion deal. The purchase of Southe’s assets in Florida includes stakes in Plant Oleander near Cocoa and Stanton A in Orlando. FMPA is a co-owner of Stanton A and has a power purchase agreement from Oleander. Gulf Power has more than 450,000 customers in the panhandle. As part of the deal, FPL will also buy Florida City Gas, a natural gas provider with nearly 110,000 customers. The proposed purchase, which is expected to close in the first half of 2019, will require approval by two federal regulatory agencies.
TECO to Convert Plant to Natural Gas
Tampa Electric Co. (TECO) announced an $853 million project last Thursday to convert Big Bend Power Station Unit 1 in Hillsborough County to be fueled by natural gas instead of coal. The changes are expected to be complete by 2023. As part of the project, Big Bend Unit 2, which runs on coal, will be shut down by 2021.
PSC Approves Rooftop Solar Plan
The Florida Public Service Commission (PSC) voted unanimously last Friday to allow Sunrun to sell its home solar lease product in the state. Sunrun’s business model is to install and own residential, rooftop solar systems and lease them to residents. In the past, households in Florida were unable to lease solar systems due to restrictions on electricity sales from third-party providers. Sunrun plans to start taking orders in select markets in the coming months. The cable provider Comcast has entered into a marketing agreement with Sunrun that would allow Comcast customers to bundle solar power with cable and inteet services.
Hurricane Sales Tax Holiday Begins Friday
Hurricane season starts Friday and so does a sales tax holiday on hurricane supplies. The holiday is a full week this year, up from three days last year. Sales taxes will be lifted on self-powered light sources, various portable radios, tarps or other waterproof sheeting, ground anchor systems or tie-down kits, gas or diesel fuel tanks, batteries, coolers, portable generators and reusable ice.
Forecasters Predict Near- or Above-Normal Hurricane Season
The Atlantic Hurricane season begins Friday and runs through November 30. The National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration’s Climate Prediction Center forecasts a 75% chance that the 2018 season will be near- or above-normal. The center predicts 10 to 16 named storms. Of those, five to nine could become hurricanes, including one to four major hurricanes.
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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 Jeff Grainger or Lisa Rienhardt in FMPA’s Public Relations Department.
Want more background on the names and terms used in this newsletter? Check out FMPA’s 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.
Have a question, comment or story idea for the newsletter? FMPA welcomes your feedback at any time. Contact: Jeff Grainger or Lisa Rienhardt