Colver Power Project

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Owner Trustee: U. S. Bank National Association
Owner Participant: TIFD VIII-W, Inc.
Lessee: Inter-Power / AhlCon Partners, L.P. (IPAC)
Operator: A/C Power - Colver Operations

 

The Colver Power Project is a 110.0 Megawatt waste coal fired power generation facility, located in Cambria County, Pennsylvania. Construction of the facility started in March 1993 and was completed in September 1995. The power facility was built under an EPC contract by Bechtel Power Corporation. First power was produced in February 1995.

Using a Pyropower (owned by Foster-Wheeler, Inc.) circulating fluidized bed (CFB) boiler, Mitsubishi steam turbine and a Westinghouse Generator, the facility produces electricity for sale under a Power Purchase Agreement with the Pennsylvania Electric Company (Penelec), as a base-load facility.

Using waste coal (locally known as Bony or Gob), which originated from the mining of high quality coal for use in metals refining and utility power plants, the facility more than meets all of its requirements under the existing environmental regulations. The piles of waste coal contain low energy and high ash values and have been the source of ground water and air pollution, with no viable means of disposal until CFB technology was introduced. CFB's are considered by the EPA to be the best available control technology for reducing emissions from the burning of coal. The facility consumes over 70 tons of bituminous waste coal and about 18 tons of crushed limestone per hour.

Ash from the facility is high in lime content (high pH) and is used to reclaim the original refuse site where the residue from mining had been leeching acid into the soil and nearby streams. It is also used for beneficial use programs in reclamation of strip mines and as a soil enhancement additive for farming.

The facility was originally financed with tax-exempt Pennsylvania Economic Development Fund Authority bonds marketed by Goldman, Sachs & Co., as well as bank loans and equity. The bonds initially received a BBB- investment grade rating from Fitch Investors Service and Standard and Poors. A sale / lease agreement completed in December 1995 transformed the owner participant interest from the Partnership to TIFD (an affiliate of GE Capital Corporation). A refinancing of the PEDFA Bonds by Goldman, Sachs & Co. was completed on July 21, 2005. The new bonds received investment grade ratings from Fitch Investors Service and Standard and Poors and Moodys. Ambac Insurance Corporation is insuring the senior debt.

Inter-Power/Ahlcon Partners is a member of The Council of Industrial Boilers Organization (CIBO) and a member of ARIPPA.

The Partnership offices are located in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area at 2593 Wexford-Bayne Road, Suite 100, Sewickley, PA 15143.

Current Statistics: As of December, 2007

Capacity Factor:
Year to Date:93.90%
Month of December:94.49%

Total Generation kWHours:
Since Plant Start-Up:10,236,644,416
Current Fiscal Year:838,992,948
Current Power Purchase Agreement Year:556,522,042

AWARDS

Awards presented to The Colver Power Project, A/C Power – Colver Operations or The Colver Refuse Site Operations
2005CEG President’s Environmental Award
2004Joseph A. Holmes Safety Association Award to The Colver Refuse Site
2002National Safety Council Quality Achievement Award (ACP)
2002Governor’s Award for Safety Excellence (ACP)
2001Community Action Council 18th Annual Humanitarian Award
2000Joseph A. Holmes Safety Association Award to The Colver Refuse Site
2000(Induction Date) Power Magazine’s Power Plant Hall of Fame
2000National Safety Council Outstanding Achievement Award (ACP)
1999PA Resources Council 60th Anniversary Award for Outstanding Achievement by a Business in Promoting a Sustainable Environment
1999National Safety Council Outstanding Achievement Award (ACP)
1998Joseph A. Holmes Safety Association Award to The Colver Refuse Site
1998Environmental Protection Magazine Facility of the Year
1998National Safety Council Outstanding Achievement Award (ACP)
1998PA Recycling Association Waste Watchers Award
1997Three Rivers Environmental Award for Environmental Stewardship
1997Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence
1997National Safety Council Outstanding Achievement Award (ACP)
1996-97Power Engineering International Power Plant of the Year Award
1996Mcgraw-Hill Power Plant Award
1996National Safety Council Quality Achievement Award (ACP)
 
OTHER SIGNIFICANT EVENTS –
 
  • The Suspense Account associated with the Power Sales Agreement was terminated on October 21, 1999 as a result of the Third Amendment to the Power Sales Agreement.
  • On March 1, 1998, the facility set a new generation record for units of its type, completing 200 days of continuous operation. From August 13, 1997 to March 1, 1998 the facility produced 449,190-megawatt hours of electricity.
  • The facility achieved 100% of its Power Purchase Agreement On-Peak and Off-Peak Caps during the 1996-97, 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-00, 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2004-05 contract years.
  • On December 29, 1999 the facility went into an extended outage due to a generator failure caused by a broken cooling fan blade, the facility returned to production before March 30, 2000. The repairs were completed on April 2, 2000.
  • The facility generated its 5 Millionth Megawatt on July 15, 2001.
  • The facility generated its 6 Millionth Megawatt on September 18, 2002.
  • The facility completed its annual two-week outage for the year 2003 on May 6.
  • The facility generated its 7 Millionth Megawatt on December 21, 2003.
  • The facility completed its annual two-week outage for the year 2004 on April 3.
  • The facility generated its 8 Millionth Megawatt on March 8, 2005
  • On April 23, 2006, the facility completed a major overhaul, including a number of upgrades to fuel handling, generator and steam turbine overhaul, and installation of new turbine control system.
  • The facility generated its 9 Millionth Megawatt on July 5, 2006

 

 

 

Project Team


Reed Hall Rd. Fuel Supply

 

 

Direct any comments towards: megawatt@nauticom.net

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