Xcel Energy’s Pawnee Unit Plans Turbine Controls Upgrade in 2008

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Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas). With a major outage already scheduled for the spring of 2008, officials at the Pawnee power station in Bush, Colorado, have placed a bid for replacement of an existing GE Mark V turbine control system on Unit 1. Request for proposal packages were sent out for pricing and design specification to three major companies for consideration to have their product replace the Mark V. The Pawnee Power Station is owned by Public Service Company of Colorado, a subsidiary of Xcel Energy, Incorporated (NYSE:XEL) (Minneapolis, Minnesota).

The first is the new advanced Ovation turbine controls system that was released in November 2006 by Emerson Process Management Group. This would add to the Ovation Digital Control System (DCS) that was installed on the Foster Wheeler (NYSE:FWLT) (Clinton, New Jersey) PC Opposed-Fired Coal Boiler (3.684MM, 2800psi @ 1005F) during the major outage in the spring of 2005.

The second consideration is the General Electric Mark VI system, which is the upgraded version of the current control system, adding more user interface operations and an upgrade platform for operations monitoring. It is also compatible with the current system.

The final consideration is Novatech TCX turbine control system manufactured by Mechanical Dynamics & Analysis (Latham, New York).

Bid packages are expected back later this spring and planning and scheduling will be complete by this fall. The outage is scheduled to start April 1, 2008, which will also incorporate overhauling the lower and intermediate pressure sections of the turbine, auxiliary systems, and boiler work.

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