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Released August 07, 2015 | SUGAR LAND
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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--As the Environmental Protection Agency's new Clean Power Plan is scrutinized, Industrial Info takes a look at the top 10 counties for Power Industry project activity. Ranking is based on the total investment value for power projects that are planned, engineered or currently under construction.
10) Maricopa County, Arizona (33 projects, $5.31 billion)--Solar power has arrived in a big way in Maricopa County, home to Arizona's capital, Phoenix, and the fourth-most populous county in the United States. Small and utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) projects are adding billions of dollars to the county's planned project activity. One of the largest of these projects is LS Group Incorporated's (New York, New York) 175-megawatt (MW) Arlington Valley Solar Power Project, which could kick off in the middle of next year and be wrapped up in early 2018. The project has an estimated total investment value of $700 million, and plans for an expansion are already in the works.
Solar isn't the only power source pumping money into the Maricopa County's economy. Two planned natural gas-fired unit additions with a combined TIV of more than $1.2 billion are also planned to kick off in the county in the near future.
9) Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska (3 projects, $5.67 billion)--While not technically a county, Alaska's Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area (according to U.S. Census Bureau, roughly the size of Montana or Germany) boasts one of the largest renewable energy projects planned in the U.S. The $5.6 billion Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project remains in the very early planning stages. If completed, the project would generate about 600 MW of power. However, like other large hydropower projects, this one faces stiff environmental opposition. In addition, the project's hefty price tag may hinder development. Due to plunging oil prices, Alaska Governor Bill Walker froze spending on this and other large projects in December 2014; however, the spending moratorium was lifted in July.
8) Virginia Beach, Virginia (1 project, $6 billion)--The independent city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, does not actually belong to any county, and the renewable energy project that puts the city in the No. 8 position is technically not in Virginia Beach--it's in federal waters off the coast. Like the Alaska project, Dominion Virginia Power's (Virginia Beach) planned grassroot windfarm is also in the very early planning stages and is having some difficulty getting off the ground. Dominion Virginia Power is a subsidiary of Dominion Resources Incorporated (NYSE:D) (Richmond, Virginia).
In December 2012, the Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project (VOWTAP), a partnership of Dominion and other companies and organizations, received a $4 million grant to help fund the research and development of a small-scale pilot wind power project off the coast of Virginia. A few months later, Dominion received an additional $47 million in funds to construct the demonstration project, which was to consist of two 6-MW offshore turbines.
However, in April 2015, Dominion had delayed construction of the two-turbine VOWTAP project, as the sole bid to construct the turbines came in at between $375 million and $400 million, compared to Dominion's estimated $230 million, according to a Dominion spokesman. The proposed completion date for the VOWTAP project has now been pushed out from 2017 to 2018.
Separately from the VOWTAP project, in September 2014, Dominion placed the winning $1.6 million bid to lease about 113,000 acres of federal waters for the construction and operation of an offshore windfarm. Dominion's stumble over the construction of two test turbines casts a shadow over the prospects of a much larger windfarm in federal waters, which could consist of hundreds of turbines and generate up to 2,000 MW of power. Lower development costs seem the only sure way to keep the project moving, particularly as Dominion views the cost benefits of its natural gas-fired station that is under construction in Lawrenceville, Virginia, which will generate more than 1,200 MW of power at a fraction of the current costs of offshore wind development.
7) Los Angeles County, California (36 projects, $6.09 billion)--Nine of the ten highest-value power generation projects in the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, are for natural gas-fired projects. In Long Beach, AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) (Arlington, Virginia) plans to spend more than $900 million at its Alamitos Power Station in the form of a 642-MW, combined-cycle repower, although the project probably will not kick off until early 2017. A second combined-cycle unit may be added to the facility, although this would be several years in the future. In total, Industrial Info is tracking more than $5.2 active, natural gas-fired capital and maintenance projects in the county.
6) Kern County, California (42 projects, $9.25 billion)--Los Angeles County's neighbor to the north, Kern County, ranks No. 6 in terms of planned power project value, but unlike L.A. County, natural gas is a very minor player in the county's planned project activity. One of the highest-value projects planned for the area is the Bison Peak pumped-storage hydropower project, which has a total investment value of approximately $2 billion. The project would pump water to a high elevation during times of low power use, then release through hydro turbines when energy is needed, generating approximately 1,000 MW of energy.
5) Clark County, Nevada (33 projects, $9.88 billion)--Solar is arriving in a big way in Clark County, Nevada, which is home to a sleepy little city known as Las Vegas. Industrial Info is tracking solar projects with a combined total investment value of more than $6.5 billion that are under construction or in the planning or engineering stages. One of the largest solar projects under construction in the county is the 250-MW Solar State South Project in Primm, Nevada, about 40 miles south of Las Vegas. Construction of the project, which has an estimated TIV of $1.5 billion, began in the third quarter of last year, and the project is expected to be complete by the end of 2016. Natural gas and hydropower projects contribute another $2.27 billion in planned spending.
4) Salem County, New Jersey (10 projects, $14.52 billion)--Three of the top four highest Power Industry spenders make the list because of nuclear power projects. The high cost of nuclear plants, compared with other forms of generation, as well as political and environmental opposition, make them somewhat tenuous proposals at the moment. The influx of inexpensive natural gas from the U.S. shale boom not only decimated the coal-fired sector, but also completely reversed the economics of what seemed to be an impending "nuclear renaissance" a few years ago. Construction delays and cost overruns at the Vogtle and Summer nuclear plants in Georgia and South Carolina (see the No. 1 and No. 2 entries) certainly have not helped make a case for new nuclear construction.
However, nuclear power may have been given a boost by the Obama administration's recently updated Clean Power Plan, in which new nuclear plants and nuclear uprates can help individual states meet reduction targets for carbon emissions. While natural gas has emerged the clear winner in Clean Power Plan, nuclear stands alongside renewables as a form of emissions-free power generation.
That said, the addition of a second reactor at PSEG Nuclear LLC's (Newark, New Jersey) Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station in New Jersey may have edged closer to fruition. The estimated $14 billion project remains in the early planning stages and construction would be years away, but the plant could be a significant player in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's goal of reducing carbon emissions 23% from 2012 levels in Jersey by 2030. PSEG Nuclear is a division of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) (Newark).
3) Carbon County, Wyoming (12 projects, $14.62 billion)--Plans are afoot in Wyoming to bring wind power to the masses--specifically the masses in California, which is home to the nation's most stringent Renewable Portfolio Standards. The Anschutz Corporation's (Denver, Colorado) plans to construct a 1,000-turbine windfarm in southern Wyoming capable of generating 3,000 MW of renewable energy, bringing $5 billion of planned power spending to the state. But this remains only half of the equation: Planned transmission projects to move this power from the region to Nevada and ultimately California weigh in at a hefty $6.5 billion.
2) Fairfield County, South Carolina (7 projects, $15.09 billion)--The previously mentioned addition of two reactors at the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Generating Station near Jenkinsville, South Carolina, places Fairfield County, South Carolina, in the No. 2 position for power project spending. The project has faced delays and cost overruns. Unit 2 is scheduled for completion in June 2019, and Unit 3 is scheduled to be completed a year later. The project will bring approximately 2,200 MW of new power generation. For additional information, see July 14, 2015, article - Nuclear Power Update: Finish Line in Sight for Watts Bar Unit 2, but Delays and Cost Overruns Still Plague Vogtle and Summer Unit Additions.
1) Burke County, Georgia (8 projects, $15.11 billion)--Judging by the last few entries, it should come as no surprise that the addition of two reactors at the Alvin W. Vogtle nuclear power plant in Georgia brings $15 billion in spending into Georgia and puts Burke, Georgia, in the No. 1 position for Power Industry spending in the U.S.
Southern Company (NYSE:SO) (Atlanta, Georgia) subsidiary Georgia Power Company's (Atlanta) project has been an uphill battle. Like the Summer nuclear power plant, cost overruns, project delays and disputes have hindered this project as well. Vogtle units 3 and 4, currently planned for completion in 2019, will bring approximately 2,234 MW of power online.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
10) Maricopa County, Arizona (33 projects, $5.31 billion)--Solar power has arrived in a big way in Maricopa County, home to Arizona's capital, Phoenix, and the fourth-most populous county in the United States. Small and utility-scale photovoltaic (PV) projects are adding billions of dollars to the county's planned project activity. One of the largest of these projects is LS Group Incorporated's (New York, New York) 175-megawatt (MW) Arlington Valley Solar Power Project, which could kick off in the middle of next year and be wrapped up in early 2018. The project has an estimated total investment value of $700 million, and plans for an expansion are already in the works.
Solar isn't the only power source pumping money into the Maricopa County's economy. Two planned natural gas-fired unit additions with a combined TIV of more than $1.2 billion are also planned to kick off in the county in the near future.
9) Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska (3 projects, $5.67 billion)--While not technically a county, Alaska's Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area (according to U.S. Census Bureau, roughly the size of Montana or Germany) boasts one of the largest renewable energy projects planned in the U.S. The $5.6 billion Susitna-Watana Hydroelectric Project remains in the very early planning stages. If completed, the project would generate about 600 MW of power. However, like other large hydropower projects, this one faces stiff environmental opposition. In addition, the project's hefty price tag may hinder development. Due to plunging oil prices, Alaska Governor Bill Walker froze spending on this and other large projects in December 2014; however, the spending moratorium was lifted in July.
8) Virginia Beach, Virginia (1 project, $6 billion)--The independent city of Virginia Beach, Virginia, does not actually belong to any county, and the renewable energy project that puts the city in the No. 8 position is technically not in Virginia Beach--it's in federal waters off the coast. Like the Alaska project, Dominion Virginia Power's (Virginia Beach) planned grassroot windfarm is also in the very early planning stages and is having some difficulty getting off the ground. Dominion Virginia Power is a subsidiary of Dominion Resources Incorporated (NYSE:D) (Richmond, Virginia).
In December 2012, the Virginia Offshore Wind Technology Advancement Project (VOWTAP), a partnership of Dominion and other companies and organizations, received a $4 million grant to help fund the research and development of a small-scale pilot wind power project off the coast of Virginia. A few months later, Dominion received an additional $47 million in funds to construct the demonstration project, which was to consist of two 6-MW offshore turbines.
However, in April 2015, Dominion had delayed construction of the two-turbine VOWTAP project, as the sole bid to construct the turbines came in at between $375 million and $400 million, compared to Dominion's estimated $230 million, according to a Dominion spokesman. The proposed completion date for the VOWTAP project has now been pushed out from 2017 to 2018.
Separately from the VOWTAP project, in September 2014, Dominion placed the winning $1.6 million bid to lease about 113,000 acres of federal waters for the construction and operation of an offshore windfarm. Dominion's stumble over the construction of two test turbines casts a shadow over the prospects of a much larger windfarm in federal waters, which could consist of hundreds of turbines and generate up to 2,000 MW of power. Lower development costs seem the only sure way to keep the project moving, particularly as Dominion views the cost benefits of its natural gas-fired station that is under construction in Lawrenceville, Virginia, which will generate more than 1,200 MW of power at a fraction of the current costs of offshore wind development.
7) Los Angeles County, California (36 projects, $6.09 billion)--Nine of the ten highest-value power generation projects in the nation's most populous county, Los Angeles County, are for natural gas-fired projects. In Long Beach, AES Corporation (NYSE:AES) (Arlington, Virginia) plans to spend more than $900 million at its Alamitos Power Station in the form of a 642-MW, combined-cycle repower, although the project probably will not kick off until early 2017. A second combined-cycle unit may be added to the facility, although this would be several years in the future. In total, Industrial Info is tracking more than $5.2 active, natural gas-fired capital and maintenance projects in the county.
6) Kern County, California (42 projects, $9.25 billion)--Los Angeles County's neighbor to the north, Kern County, ranks No. 6 in terms of planned power project value, but unlike L.A. County, natural gas is a very minor player in the county's planned project activity. One of the highest-value projects planned for the area is the Bison Peak pumped-storage hydropower project, which has a total investment value of approximately $2 billion. The project would pump water to a high elevation during times of low power use, then release through hydro turbines when energy is needed, generating approximately 1,000 MW of energy.
5) Clark County, Nevada (33 projects, $9.88 billion)--Solar is arriving in a big way in Clark County, Nevada, which is home to a sleepy little city known as Las Vegas. Industrial Info is tracking solar projects with a combined total investment value of more than $6.5 billion that are under construction or in the planning or engineering stages. One of the largest solar projects under construction in the county is the 250-MW Solar State South Project in Primm, Nevada, about 40 miles south of Las Vegas. Construction of the project, which has an estimated TIV of $1.5 billion, began in the third quarter of last year, and the project is expected to be complete by the end of 2016. Natural gas and hydropower projects contribute another $2.27 billion in planned spending.
4) Salem County, New Jersey (10 projects, $14.52 billion)--Three of the top four highest Power Industry spenders make the list because of nuclear power projects. The high cost of nuclear plants, compared with other forms of generation, as well as political and environmental opposition, make them somewhat tenuous proposals at the moment. The influx of inexpensive natural gas from the U.S. shale boom not only decimated the coal-fired sector, but also completely reversed the economics of what seemed to be an impending "nuclear renaissance" a few years ago. Construction delays and cost overruns at the Vogtle and Summer nuclear plants in Georgia and South Carolina (see the No. 1 and No. 2 entries) certainly have not helped make a case for new nuclear construction.
However, nuclear power may have been given a boost by the Obama administration's recently updated Clean Power Plan, in which new nuclear plants and nuclear uprates can help individual states meet reduction targets for carbon emissions. While natural gas has emerged the clear winner in Clean Power Plan, nuclear stands alongside renewables as a form of emissions-free power generation.
That said, the addition of a second reactor at PSEG Nuclear LLC's (Newark, New Jersey) Hope Creek Nuclear Generating Station in New Jersey may have edged closer to fruition. The estimated $14 billion project remains in the early planning stages and construction would be years away, but the plant could be a significant player in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's goal of reducing carbon emissions 23% from 2012 levels in Jersey by 2030. PSEG Nuclear is a division of Public Service Enterprise Group Incorporated (NYSE:PEG) (Newark).
3) Carbon County, Wyoming (12 projects, $14.62 billion)--Plans are afoot in Wyoming to bring wind power to the masses--specifically the masses in California, which is home to the nation's most stringent Renewable Portfolio Standards. The Anschutz Corporation's (Denver, Colorado) plans to construct a 1,000-turbine windfarm in southern Wyoming capable of generating 3,000 MW of renewable energy, bringing $5 billion of planned power spending to the state. But this remains only half of the equation: Planned transmission projects to move this power from the region to Nevada and ultimately California weigh in at a hefty $6.5 billion.
2) Fairfield County, South Carolina (7 projects, $15.09 billion)--The previously mentioned addition of two reactors at the Virgil C. Summer Nuclear Generating Station near Jenkinsville, South Carolina, places Fairfield County, South Carolina, in the No. 2 position for power project spending. The project has faced delays and cost overruns. Unit 2 is scheduled for completion in June 2019, and Unit 3 is scheduled to be completed a year later. The project will bring approximately 2,200 MW of new power generation. For additional information, see July 14, 2015, article - Nuclear Power Update: Finish Line in Sight for Watts Bar Unit 2, but Delays and Cost Overruns Still Plague Vogtle and Summer Unit Additions.
1) Burke County, Georgia (8 projects, $15.11 billion)--Judging by the last few entries, it should come as no surprise that the addition of two reactors at the Alvin W. Vogtle nuclear power plant in Georgia brings $15 billion in spending into Georgia and puts Burke, Georgia, in the No. 1 position for Power Industry spending in the U.S.
Southern Company (NYSE:SO) (Atlanta, Georgia) subsidiary Georgia Power Company's (Atlanta) project has been an uphill battle. Like the Summer nuclear power plant, cost overruns, project delays and disputes have hindered this project as well. Vogtle units 3 and 4, currently planned for completion in 2019, will bring approximately 2,234 MW of power online.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.
