Craig Power Station in Colorado Shuts Down Coal-Fired Unit

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--A 446-megawatt (MW), coal-fired unit at the Craig Power Station in Craig, Colorado, shut down on September 13 due to a turbine rotor failure, which resulted from warping caused by water leakage. The station is owned and operated by Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association (Tri-State Generation) (Westminster, Colorado).

After a brief investigation, plant officials determined that a drain had closed and leaked water into the coil reheat section of the turbine, damaging some of the blades and the rotor.

Officials are still investigating the cause, but say they have assessed the issue enough to determine that the unit's rotor will need to be sent off-site to Utah, where General Electric (NYSE:GE) (Fairfield, Connecticut) will determine what repairs are necessary. Plant officials have projected that the unit may be ready to return to full capacity in six weeks, with an anticipated restart date of October 17.

The coal-fired plant has three generating units and a total generating capacity of 1,338 MW. Units 2 and 3 will continue to operate at full capacity while repairs are made to Unit 1.

Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association supplies wholesale electricity to 44 rural distribution utilities that serve about 1.5 million customers in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Wyoming. The member-owned cooperative has a generating capacity of about 4,250 MW, primarily from its interest in fossil-fueled power plants. Additional utilities with stakes in the company are Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement & Power District (29%), Pacificorp (19.3%), Platte River Power Authority (18%) and Public Service Company of Colorado (9.7%).

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