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LADWP Board of Commissioners Approves Long-Term Renewable Power Purchases; Contracts Will Provide 81,843 Megawatt-Hours of Landfill Gas-to-Energy

Posted on: Tuesday, 16 August 2005, 21:00 CDT

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) Board of Commissioners today approved two long-term purchase agreements to buy 81,843 megawatt-hours of renewable energy -- enough to provide power for nearly 10,000 homes -- generated by facilities that use landfill gas-to-energy technology. The contracts will be effective upon approval by the City Council.

The Board's action approved a seven-year agreement to purchase renewable power from the Penrose Landfill Gas Conversion, LLC's existing landfill gas plant at the Penrose Landfill in Los Angeles. The purchase agreement guarantees delivery of 45,421 megawatt-hours annually. The estimated cost of renewable energy purchases over the seven years is approximately $19.4 million up to $23.4 million, based on the maximum generation capability.

The second contract is a 10-year renewable power purchase agreement with WM Solutions Inc., which owns and operates an existing power plant that will utilize gas-to-energy technology to sell renewable power to LADWP. Under the agreement, LADWP will purchase at least 36,422 megawatt-hours annually of renewable energy from WM's landfill gas plant, located at Bradley Landfill, at a cost of $19.7 million to approximately $29 million at the maximum generation capability.

The agreements are the first of many contracts expected to be awarded through a request for proposals (RFP) to meet the city's renewable energy goals, as set forth in the LADWP's Renewable Portfolio Standard policy adopted in May 2005.

"These are strong, economical purchase agreements that will boost the supply of renewable power for Los Angeles, making efficient use of existing transmission lines and landfill-to-gas technology located here in the city," said LADWP General Manager Ronald F. Deaton.

LADWP will continue to evaluate proposals submitted through the RFP, which included wind, geothermal, landfill gas, biomass, and small hydroelectric power resources. As described in the RFP, the Department is seeking to substantially increase its share of renewable energy sales through development and ownership of projects, and through mid- to long-term power purchase agreements. LADWP expects to meet the RPS goals through multiple projects over the next several years.

LADWP officials have been evaluating renewable energy proposals based on a "least cost, best fit" analysis, specifically looking at how well each project meets the July 2004 RFP requirements. The assessment takes into account technical, environmental and economic factors.

The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, which serves more than 3.8 million people in Los Angeles, was established more than 100 years ago to provide reliable, high quality, and competitively priced water and electric services in a safe and environmentally responsible manner. For more information, visit www.ladwp.com.

Source: Business Wire

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