The Colusa Generating Station Will Deliver Some of the Cleanest Electricity Available from Natural Gas SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 19
SACRAMENTO, Calif., Nov. 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Pacific Gas and
Electric Company (PG&E) today broke ground on its state-of-the-art Colusa
Generating Station, a 660-megawatt power plant located near the town of
Maxwell in Colusa County, about 75 miles northwest of Sacramento. The new
facility is expected to begin operation in 2010 and will serve nearly
half-a-million homes using the latest technology and environmental design to
produce some of the cleanest electricity available from natural gas.
"The Colusa Generating Station will play a key role in meeting
California's future energy needs in a cost-effective and environmentally
friendly manner," said Jack Keenan, senior vice president and chief operating
officer for PG&E. "PG&E is committed to aggressively pursuing the cleanest
energy resources and technologies for our customers."
Dry-cooling technology will allow the Colusa Generating Station to use 97
percent less water than plants with conventional water cooling systems.
Cleaner burning turbines will also allow the facility to use less fuel and
emit 35 percent less carbon dioxide than older plants. Moreover, the plant is
designed to lower its power output when renewable resources like wind and
solar become available.
The Colusa Generating Station will serve PG&E's comprehensive energy
strategy to meet California's future energy needs with cost-effective and
clean power supplies. This year, the utility expects to supply 14 percent of
its energy from renewable resources that qualify under California's renewable
portfolio standard program. On average, approximately 50 percent of the
electricity that PG&E delivers comes from generation sources that emit no
carbon dioxide.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company, a subsidiary of PG&E Corporation
(NYSE: PCG), is one of the largest combined natural gas and electric utilities
in the United States. Based in San Francisco, with 20,000 employees, the
company delivers some of the nation's cleanest energy to 15 million people in
northern and central California. For more information, please visit
http://www.pge.com .
SOURCE Pacific Gas and Electric Company
