BPA and Calpine Corp. sign wind deal
By Suzanne Stevens, Business Journal Web Editor
Business Journal Web Editor
The Bonneville Power Administration has launched a pilot project with Calpine Corp. to help balance wind power supply and demand.
Under terms of the agreement, power provider Calpine will provide BPA with up to 75 megawatts of generation flexibility from its natural gas-fired Hermiston Power Project. When more wind power is generated than BPA can use, Calpine will reduce Hermiston's output to accommodate the renewable wind power. Calpine will then buy the excess power on BPA's system to supply customers of its Hermiston plant.
"As the amount of wind power increases, BPA has been looking at other sources to help reduce the balancing burden on the federal hydro system," said BPA executive vice of corporate strategy Elliot Mainzer, who added the pilot project allows BPA to use non-federal power supplies to support wind power generation.
The project is a step forward in the quest to balance the variability of wind energy.
sstevens@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3480
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