Hunters Point Power Plant
The Hunters Point Power Plant (HPPP) was a fossil fuel-fired power plant in the Hunters Point area of San Francisco, California, operated by Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) from 1929 to 2006. It was one of two electric power plants in San Francisco, the other being the Potrero Generating Station.
History
It was one of the oldest and dirtiest oil-fired power plants[1] in the state and was a major source of pollution. Residents and community activists pushed to have the plant shut down.[2] In 1998, the City of San Francisco entered an agreement with PG&E to shut down HPPP "as soon as the facility is no longer needed to sustain electric reliability in San Francisco and the surrounding area and the FERC authorizes PG&E to terminate the Reliability Must Run agreement for the facility".[3]
On May 15, 2006 PG&E permanently shut down the plant once transmission lines along the Peninsula were upgraded to carry reliable replacement power.[4][5] It was demolished in 2008 and cleanup of the site was nearing completion in 2014.[6]
Design
In 2004, the plant had a large boiler (designated S7) with a thermal power of 1,720 million British thermal units per hour (500 MW) and two diesel-fired turbines (designated S1 and S2) with thermal power ratings of 364 million British thermal units per hour (107 MW) each.[7]:5;10 Steam from S7 was used to generate 170 MW electric output, and the two standby gas turbines were rated at 26 MW electric each.[5][3] S7 was permitted to burn natural gas or fuel oil, but the oil-burning capability was deleted in the 2004 permit application. Previous to that, the plant also had four other boilers (designated S3 through S6) with a collective thermal power of 2,680 million British thermal units per hour (790 MW) which were shut down in 2001.[7]:5
S1 and S2 were collectively designated Unit 1, and began operation in 1976. S7 was designated Unit 4, and began operation in 1958. Unit 4 would have required retrofitting of selective catalytic reduction equipment to meet tightening NOx emissions requirements beyond 2005.[3]:3–3
See also
- List of power stations in California
- Pacific Gas and Electric Company
- Bayview-Hunters Point, San Francisco
References
- "Final MAJOR FACILITY REVIEW PERMIT, Issued To: Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Hunters Point Power Plant Facility #A0024" (PDF). Bay Area Air Quality Management District. 9 November 2004. Archived from the original on 29 October 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- Garcia, Teresa (19 September 2008). "Hunters Point power plant demolished". ABC 7 News. Archived from the original on 18 June 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- "Section 3.0: Purpose and Need". San Francisco Electric Reliability Project (PDF) (Report). California Energy Commission. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- Fulbright, Leslie (15 May 2006). "Big victory for Hunters Point activists / As PG&E closes its old, smoky power plant, the neighborhood breathes a sigh of relief". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- "PG&E Hunters Point Power Plant Officially Closes" (PDF) (Press release). Bay Area Air Quality Management District. 15 May 2006. Archived from the original on 8 December 2012. Retrieved 16 February 2018.
- PG&E Hunters Point Site
- Permit Evaluation and Statement of Basis for Renewal of Major Facility Review Permit for Pacific Gas & Electric Company, Hunters Point Power Plant, Facility #A0024 (PDF) (Report). Bay Area Air Quality Management District. September 2004. Retrieved 16 February 2018.