Panda Energy Intl. Inc. paved the way for its entrance into theFlorida generation market last week by announcing that petitionsfor determination of need have been filed with the Florida PublicService Commission to build two 1,000 MW power plants. Both plantswill cost $300 million and are expected to begin commercialoperation in May of 2003.

The company said it made the filings on behalf of two affiliatecompanies — Panda Leesburg Power Partners, LP, and Panda MidwayPower Partners, LP. The Leesburg facility will be located in LakeCounty, west of the city of Leesburg. Panda Midway will benorthwest of the town of Port St. Lucie in St. Lucie County.

Panda said the facilities would employ high efficiency gasturbines that use two-thirds less water and one-third less fuelthan traditional sources of generation. They will each burn 170MMcf/d, said Peggy Striegel, a Panda spokesperson.

The new plants would be welcome additions to a rapidly growingstate in need of additional power, according to Panda. The Dallas,TX-based company pointed to a 1999, 10-year site plan prepared bythe Florida Reliability Coordinating Council which showed thatFlorida will need an additional 8,000 MW of electric powergeneration capacity by 2008.

Studies such as the one performed by the Coordinating Councilhave triggered a long list of power plants to be proposed. Justlast week, Reliant Energy announced its plans to build a powerfacility in the state. Duke Energy and Coastal Corp. have becomeactive in exploring ways to exploit the expected boom in thegeneration market. None of the proposed unregulated merchantfacilities have been built yet, however.

Along with the generation activity, gas pipeline projects arealso being considered. Coastal’s Gulfstream project, a Duke Energyand Williams joint venture called the Buccaneer Pipeline andseveral Florida Gas Transmission (FGT) expansions are all atvarious levels in the approval process at FERC.

Many of the generation facility projects, such as the ReliantEnergy plant and Panda’s Leesburg plant, have yet to select a gassupplier, as they wait to see which pipeline will be selected tocompete with FGT’s existing system. The Panda Midway facility,however, has already contracted with Coastal’s Gulfstream.

If approved, these two plants would mark Panda’s foray intoFlorida. The privately held company has 10 GW of power underdevelopment across the United States. Construction is under way onthree 1,000 MW facilities in Marion, Paris and Odessa, TX. Thecompany also operates plants in Roanoke Rapids, NC, and Brandywine,MD.

John Norris

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