Extensive Damage Occurs at One of New York City's Oldest Power Plants

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--An explosion occurred at the Astoria Generating Station on July 27, 2011, as the result of a tube leak in the reheat boiler on the facility's 384-megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired Unit 4. Plant personnel were attempting to take the unit offline to repair the boiler tube leak when a fire occurred, followed shortly thereafter by the explosion. The blast rocked the 11-story power plant building and the surrounding, densely populated Queens neighborhood. Amazingly, nobody was killed in the blast; however, one firefighter and one plant employee were treated for minor injuries.

Astoria Generating Station is owned by US Power Generating Company LLC (New York, New York). Contractors were quickly mobilized to begin repairing the extensive damage to the boiler and surrounding structures. The initial repair costs are estimated to be between $50 million and $75 million. Assuming insurance covers the costs, the unit is expected to be offline for 12 to 18 months. Plant officials have stated that if insurance does not reimburse for the repair of the damages, the 40-year-old unit will be closed. There are currently 80 to 100 contractors on site day and night to assist in the repairs. The remaining three units at the station have continued to operate without incident.

The 1,350-megawatt (MW) Astoria Generating Station, which consists of two 387-MW intermediate-demand units, one 376-MW baseload unit, and one 200-MW peak-load unit, became operational in 1952. According to US Power Generating, the plant is part of a 2,180-MW portfolio that supplies electricity to 20% of New York City.

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